Payments
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oDesk is the first and only service to guarantee buyers that an hour billed is an hour worked and providers that an hour worked is an hour paid. oDesk is able to provide this guarantee to providers only through verifying that the buyer is actually able to pay. Therefore, we require buyers to verify their payment methods. In exchange, our buyers are able to pay their global online workteams without the hassle of global payments.
Hourly
Hourly jobs are automatically billed weekly (see weekly pay schedule). You just need to have an active, verified payment method 
. If your provider goes over their weekly limit, you won't be charged for the time over that limit. But you may wish to pay your provider for those hours.
. If your provider goes over their weekly limit, you won't be charged for the time over that limit. But you may wish to pay your provider for those hours.
It is your responsibility to review your providers' work diaries every week during the review period.
You have until the end of the review period to resolve inconsistencies with your provider and file a dispute if necessary.
You have until the end of the review period to resolve inconsistencies with your provider and file a dispute if necessary.
Hourly jobs are automatically billed weekly (see weekly pay schedule). You just need to be logged into the oDesk Team application while you work; we'll take care of the billing. If you go over an assignment's weekly limit, you will not be paid for the over-limit time unless you come to an agreement with your buyer to submit a bonus payment for those hours.
It is your responsibility to review your work diaries at the end of the work week (or, preferably, daily) to add offline and/or remove inappropriate online time captured by oDesk Team application. Remember: If you can see it in your work diary, so can the buyer. Remove anything inappropriate right away.
Verified Work = Guaranteed Payment.
Payment for properly-recorded online hours is guaranteed. (We cannot guarantee payment for offline hours or fixed-price jobs)
Payment for properly-recorded online hours is guaranteed. (We cannot guarantee payment for offline hours or fixed-price jobs)
Affiliated contractors do not receive pay for their assignments inside oDesk. All their earnings are pooled into the company's financial account for dispersal outside oDesk. This does not change the way the buyer is billed for the assignment.
Even on hourly jobs, you may occasionally want to pay the provider for something that's not on the weekly invoice of hours. It could be a performance bonus, reimbursement for expenses, compensation for time over the weekly limit, etc. No matter what the payment is for, you'll submit it the same way. You can even make a payment on an ended assignment!
- Go to My Jobs > Assignments. Select the appropriate tab.
- Find the correct assignment in the list. Click the Title in the Assignment column.
- Click the give a bonus or other one-time payment link in the Terms section of the assignment details page.
- Enter the amount you'd like the provider to receive. The form will calculate and add the oDesk fee on top of this amount. Check the total Charged Amount. Adjust the amount you entered as needed.
- Enter a comment. The provider will see this comment. You can also enter an optional, private note for your own records.
- When you're ready, click the Give Bonus button. This cannot be undone! Your financial account will reflect this payment immediately. If your account has a negative balance at the end of the day, it will be charged to your billing method.
Non-hourly payments are optional. Therefore, they are not disputable.
Payment will show as pending on your financial account immediately after the buyer submits it. You can even receive a payment on an ended assignment! As long as there aren't problems with the buyer's payment method, it will become available after the standard security period. It could be delayed if the buyer's payment fails to clear.
Non-hourly payments are not guaranteed.
Fixed Price
Many candidates will request an upfront payment when they apply to your job. This will show as part of their application. You can negotiate the amount during the interview, but only the provider can adjust the amount to be paid upfront. When you hire one of these candidates, your financial account will reflect the upfront payment immediately. If your account has a negative balance at the end of the day, it will be charged to your billing method.
Please be cautious about making an upfront payment. It is not a refundable deposit. If the assignment does not work out, you won't be required to make any additional payments. But oDesk cannot force the provider to refund payments you've already made (except in extreme cases, such as fraud). At the same time, many of our best providers do request some upfront payment because there are no guarantees on fixed-price jobs.
So should you agree to upfront payment or not? It's a judgement call and it's up to you to decide if an upfront payment is worth the risk. Here are a few things to ask yourself before you hire a provider who requests upfront payment:
- Have I worked with this provider before?
- Do they have a great feedback history (especially on fixed-price jobs)?
- Is the feedback on small or large jobs?
- How much do I trust this provider to follow-through and deliver?
- Were the cover letter and interview thoughtful and professional?
- Have they been responsive and easy to communicate with thus far?
- How much of a problem would the forfeited payment be if things didn't work out?
Upfront payments are optional. Therefore, they are not disputable.
We recommend breaking up fixed-price assignments into smaller pieces (or milestones). This way you can pay as you go along, instead of all at the end. If, when and how much to pay is up to you. Fixed price jobs are not billed automatically. To enjoy automatic billing, consider changing to an hourly assignment.
- Go to My Jobs > Assignments. Select the appropriate tab.
- Find the correct assignment in the list. Click the Title in the Assignment column.
- Click the make a milestone or other one-time payment link in the Terms section of the assignment details page.
- Enter the amount you'd like the provider to receive. The form will calculate and add the oDesk fee on top of this amount. Check the total Charged Amount. Adjust the amount you entered as needed.
- Enter a comment. The provider will see this comment. You can also enter an optional, private note for your own records.
- When you're ready, click the Make a Payment button. This cannot be undone! Your financial account will reflect the milestone payment immediately. If your account has a negative balance at the end of the day, it will be charged to your billing method.
Milestone payments are optional. Therefore, they are not disputable.
When you end the assignment, you have the option to make one final payment. If you did not make upfront or milestone payments on this assignment, this will be the only payment you make. If, when and how much to pay is still up to you. If you don't want to end the assignment and leave feedback while you make your final payment, please use a milestone payment. You can come back and end the assignment (with or without any additional payments) later.
- Go to My Jobs > Assignments. Select the Active tab.
- Find the correct assignment in the list. Click the Title in the Assignment column.
- Click end assignment at the top of the assignment details page.
- You'll see a confirmation message. Click the End the Assignment to continue.
- You can choose to pay the full amount remaining, nothing or enter the amount you'd like the pay (this amount includes the oDesk fee).
- You'll also need to leave feedback for the provider on this form.
- When you're ready, click the End Assignment button. This cannot be undone! Your financial account will reflect the final payment (if any) immediately. If your account has a negative balance at the end of the day, it will be charged to your billing method.
Payments on the End Assignment form are optional. Therefore, they are not disputable.
Fixed price jobs are not billed automatically. If, when and how much to pay is at the buyer's discretion. When a buyer submits an upfront, milestone or final payment on a fixed-price job, it immediately shows as pending on your financial account. As long as there aren't problems with the buyer's payment method, it will become available after the standard security period. It could be delayed if the buyer's payment fails to clear.
It is your responsibility to work out a payment schedule with the buyer and follow up with them if there are any problems. oDesk cannot force a non-paying buyer to submit payment for fixed-price work.
Affiliated contractors do not receive pay for their assignments inside oDesk. All their earnings are pooled into the company's financial account for dispersal outside oDesk. This does not change the way the buyer is billed for the assignment.
Payment for fixed-price work is not guaranteed. To enjoy guaranteed payment, consider working on an hourly basis.
The buyer has the option to switch any active fixed-price assignment to hourly. On the form, they will be options to make payment for the current, fixed-price assignment and set the terms for the new, hourly assignment.
- Go to My Jobs > Assignments. Select the Active tab.
- Find the correct assignment in the list. Click the Title in the Assignment column.
- Click switch to hourly at the top of the assignment details page.
- You'll see a confirmation message. Click the Continue link.
- You can choose to pay the full amount remaining, nothing or enter the amount you'd like the pay (this amount includes the oDesk fee).
- Set the Duration and Workload for the new assignment. Your selections will not put any restrictions on the assignment; they are for record-keeping purposes only.
- Enter the new Rate. This is the rate the provider will receive. The form will calculate and add the oDesk fee on top of this rate. Check the total Charge Rate. Adjust the rate you entered as needed.
- [Optional, but recommended] Check the box next to enable weekly limit on this assignment. Enter a Weekly Limit in hours. It must be a whole number 0 - 168. The form will calculate and display the new maximum weekly billing. Adjust the hours you entered as needed.
- When you're ready, click the Continue button. This cannot be undone! Your financial account will reflect this payment (if any) immediately. If your account has a negative balance at the end of the day, it will be charged to your billing method.
The buyer must hire the provider's listed profile rate or higher. But you can follow standard rate change procedures on the new, hourly assignment.
Payments on the end assignment form are optional. Therefore, they are not disputable. See above for payment info for the new, hourly assignment.
When providers apply to jobs, they specify the rate they would like to receive. oDesk will add a fee on top of this amount and show you the buyer what would be charged. It is the buyer who pays the fee. If you negotiate the rate, keep in mind that the amount the buyer pays is not the same as the amount provider receives.
The oDesk fee is always 10% of the buyer's payment.
The provider enters a rate of $9 per hour on the application form. The buyer sees and pays a rate of $10 per hour. An additional $1 per hour was added to cover the oDesk fee. $1 / $10 = 10%
The buyer makes a payment for $100 on a fixed-price job. The provider receives $90. The remaining $10 is kept by oDesk. $10 / $100 = 10%
oDesk does not charge registration, membership, job posting, application, or interview fees. It is absolutely free to join and always free for providers to apply to and work on jobs. Buyers only pay a fee on paid assignments - not for posting jobs or interviewing candidates.
