A 6-point checklist for reading the clawback clause

A 6-point checklist for reading the clawback clause

Hot reminder: the clawback clause is the only part of the contract written to protect them from you.

Read it line by line and flag:

— Window length. 30 days is normal, 90+ is a tell.
— Trigger events. Refund? Chargeback? "Fraud at our discretion"? That last one is a blank check.
— Whether clawbacks stack across the whole referred cohort or per-account.
— Negative balance carry-forward. Some programs make you pay them back from future earnings.
— Reversal on downgrade, not just cancel. Annual-to-monthly downgrades can void the bonus.
— Who decides. "Sole discretion" means there is no appeal.

If three of these are aggressive, your real payout is whatever survives the worst month.

Verdict: the clawback clause is the actual commission rate. Read it first.