Terms & Conditions

1. Agreement

These Terms & Conditions ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and TipRiver ("TipRiver", "we", "us") covering your use of the TipRiver website, apps and services (the "Service"). By creating an account, subscribing to a monthly tip or receiving tips, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, please don't use the Service.

2. Definitions

• Giver: a user who sends a recurring monthly tip.
• Receiver: an individual worker who receives tips.
• Subscription: a standing instruction from one Giver to one Receiver for a fixed monthly amount.
• Gross tip: the monthly amount the Giver chooses and is charged.
• Net tip: the gross tip less the TipRiver platform fee and the payment processing fee.
• Balance: net tips credited to a Receiver and not yet paid out.
• Payment Partner: Stripe Connect and any successor or additional processor we use to charge Givers and pay Receivers.

3. What TipRiver is

TipRiver is a platform for direct, person-to-person support. It connects one person who wants to give with one person who receives and keeps that ongoing support simple, private and fair.

• TipRiver is separate from any employer. It does not integrate with point-of-sale, payroll or tip-pooling systems. Employers are not parties to Subscriptions, do not receive or handle funds, and have no access to account information.
• A tip is voluntary and unconditional. A Receiver owes a Giver nothing in return, and a Giver is not buying goods or services.
• TipRiver is not crowdfunding, a creator membership service, an employer, a bank or a money-transmission service in its own right. Funds are charged, held and paid out by our Payment Partner.
• Tips are a supplement, not wages, and are not guaranteed. TipRiver makes no representation about how much any Receiver will receive.

4. Eligibility and accounts

• You must be at least 18 years old (or the age of majority where you live) and able to form a binding contract.
• Receivers must be individuals receiving tips in their own name, and must provide accurate identity, address and tax information when requested.
• You may hold one account. An account can give, receive, or both.
• You must keep your information accurate and up to date. Accounts are personal and may not be transferred.
• The Service is currently available in the United States and transacts in US dollars only.

5. Account security

• Two-factor authentication is mandatory for all accounts. Passwords must be at least 12 characters and include upper case, lower case, a number and a special character.
• After 5 consecutive failed sign-in attempts the account is locked for 30 minutes and you'll be notified by email.
• Sensitive actions (changing a payment or payout method, requesting a payout, changing email, password or 2FA settings) require re-authentication even within an active session.
• You are responsible for keeping your credentials and recovery codes secure. Tell us promptly at the contact in section 27 if you suspect unauthorized access. If both your second factor and your recovery codes are lost, recovery requires manual identity verification.

6. Monthly tips (Givers)

6.1 Amounts and frequency

Each Subscription is for a fixed monthly amount of at least $3.00 and at most $100.00 per Giver per Receiver, in US dollars, with no more than two decimal places. Tips are monthly only. You may hold one open Subscription per Receiver.

6.2 Authorization

By confirming a Subscription, you authorize TipRiver, through our Payment Partner, to charge your chosen payment method (card, PayPal or Venmo) the gross tip amount on the start date and on the same day each month after that. If that day doesn't exist in a month, the charge falls on the month's last day. Charges continue until you change, pause or cancel the Subscription or it ends under these Terms. The confirmation screen will state the amount, the Receiver and the monthly recurrence before you confirm.

6.3 What you are charged

You are charged the gross tip you chose and nothing more. Fees are deducted from the tip before it is credited to the Receiver (section 7).

6.4 Finding a Receiver

Receivers are found only through the personal code, link or QR code they share. There is no public directory. You are responsible for confirming you have chosen the intended Receiver before you confirm.

6.5 Payment methods

You must use a payment method you are authorized to use. If your default method can't be charged, we may attempt another active method you have stored. We never ask for new card details mid-charge.

7. Fees

Two deductions are taken from each gross tip. Each is calculated on the gross amount and rounded half up to the cent:

For example, on a $5.00 tip the platform fee is $0.25, processing is $0.45 ($0.30 + $0.145 rounded to $0.15), and the net tip credited to the Receiver is $4.30. Because the $0.30 is fixed, smaller tips bear a higher effective fee rate: 18.0% at $3.00 and 14.0% at $5.00.

Payout method fees are described in section 12. We do not charge any other fee on tips. We will give at least 30 days' notice before any fee change takes effect, and fee changes never apply to charges already made.

8. Failed payments

• If a monthly charge fails, we make up to 3 attempts in total: on the billing date, 2 days later, and 3 days after that (5 days in total). We'll email you after each failed attempt.
• The Subscription stays active during this period. If all attempts fail, it moves to "failed" and no further charges are attempted until you act.
• A failed Subscription becomes active again once a payment for the outstanding amount (one monthly tip) succeeds. Charges are never stacked.
• A tip is charged in full or not at all. No fee applies to a failed attempt, and Receivers are credited only for successful payments. Receivers are not told the reason a payment failed.

9. Changes, pauses and cancellation

• Change amount: a new amount (within $3.00–$100.00) applies from the next scheduled charge. There is no proration, and charges already processed are not altered. Once a charge is pending with the Payment Partner, it can't be edited for that cycle.
• Pause: no charges are made while paused and nothing accrues or is owed on resume.
• Cancel: cancellation is effective immediately for all future charges. Cancellation does not by itself trigger a refund, and the Receiver keeps tips from payments already processed. A cancelled Subscription can't be reactivated, but you may create a new one.
• We'll confirm every change by email.

10. Refunds and chargebacks

10.1 Refunds

You may request a refund of a monthly tip by contacting us. Refunds cover the full gross amount of one payment. Partial refunds are not offered. Refunds are returned to the original payment method. When a refund is issued, the Receiver's net credit for that tip is reversed, and TipRiver absorbs the platform fee and the processing fee. The Receiver is not charged any fee.

10.2 Chargebacks

If your card issuer reverses a payment, the Receiver's net credit for that payment is reversed. TipRiver bears the Payment Partner's chargeback fee (currently $15.00), the original processing fee and the platform fee. We may contest chargebacks we believe are unfounded, using non-sensitive records such as your Subscription and authorization. Please contact us before disputing a charge with your bank. We'll usually resolve it faster.

10.3 Receiver balances after reversals

If a reversal exceeds a Receiver's available balance (for example, because funds were already paid out), the difference becomes a recovery balance. Future payouts are reduced by that amount until it reaches zero. TipRiver does not withdraw funds from a Receiver's external bank account.

11. Receiving tips (Receivers)

• You may share your code, link or QR code at your discretion. You may not misrepresent who you are, imply that tips are required, or solicit tips on behalf of another person.
• Your Balance is credited with net tips when payments succeed. You will see the gross amount, each fee and the net amount for every tip.
• You are solely responsible for complying with your employer's policies, your employment terms and applicable law relating to receiving tips through TipRiver. TipRiver does not notify employers.
• You are responsible for reporting and paying any taxes due on money you receive (section 14).

12. Payouts

• Payouts run weekly on Tuesday for balances credited up to Sunday 23:59 UTC. Funds typically arrive 1–3 business days after release.
• A payout is made only when your Balance is at least $10.00 (inclusive), measured before any payout method fee. Smaller balances roll forward with no fee or expiry.
• Payout method fees: bank transfer $0.00; PayPal or Venmo $0.50 per payout, deducted from the payout. You'll see the fee and the net amount before confirming.
• Payouts require a verified payout method, completion of any required identity verification, and an active account.
• If a payout fails, the funds are returned to your Balance and included in a later payout once the issue is resolved.
• TipRiver does not offer advances or credit against future tips.

13. Identity verification

To meet anti-money-laundering, counter-terrorist-financing and sanctions obligations, Receivers must provide identity information. At signup we ask for legal name, date of birth and address. Further verification is required when cumulative net payouts reach $1,500.00 in a rolling 12-month period (photo ID and proof of address dated within 3 months), with enhanced checks at $5,000.00 and above $10,000.00, or if our monitoring flags unusual activity. Periodic re-verification applies. While verification is pending, credited tips remain in your Balance and only withdrawals are held. After two failed verification attempts the account may be suspended pending human review. Verification may be performed by our Payment Partner or a third-party provider.

14. Taxes

Receivers are responsible for reporting and paying all applicable income taxes on money received through TipRiver. Where required, Form 1099-K reporting is issued under the strictest applicable federal or state threshold for your residency, based on gross payments. Receivers must provide a valid SSN or EIN when requested, and payouts may be held until it is provided. We recommend consulting a qualified tax professional for personalized advice.

15. Privacy and visibility

Givers choose, per Subscription, whether a Receiver sees their display name or an alias ("Anonymous Supporter #XXXX"). Receivers see a supporter's name or alias, monthly amount, start date and total given, and never payment details or contact information. Our handling of personal data is described in the Privacy Policy.

16. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• use the Service for anything other than voluntary personal tips, including payment for goods or services, loans, wages or business revenue;
• use stolen or unauthorized payment methods, or tip yourself;
• create multiple accounts or structure activity to avoid limits or verification;
• harass, pressure or threaten any user, or pressure anyone to subscribe or to share tips;
• impersonate another person or misrepresent your workplace or role;
• launder money, finance unlawful activity, or deal with sanctioned persons;
• interfere with, probe or reverse-engineer the Service, or scrape data from it.

17. Payment partner

Payment processing and payouts are provided by Stripe Connect. Receivers may be required to agree to the Payment Partner's own terms for connected accounts. TipRiver never stores full card numbers. Card data is handled by the Payment Partner, a PCI DSS Level 1 service provider. Funds awaiting payout are held by the Payment Partner, not in an escrow arrangement.

18. Intellectual property

The Service, including the TipRiver name, logos, software, designs and content, is owned by TipRiver or its licensors and protected by law. We grant you a limited, revocable, non-transferable licence to use the Service for its intended purpose. You keep ownership of content you provide (such as a display name, photo or personal message) and grant TipRiver a non-exclusive licence to host and display it to operate the Service. You must have the rights to anything you upload.

19. No financial advice

20. Disclaimers

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available." To the extent permitted by law, we disclaim all implied warranties, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose and non-infringement. We do not warrant that the Service will be uninterrupted or error-free, that any Giver will continue a Subscription, or that any Receiver will receive a particular amount. Nothing in these Terms limits rights you have under consumer protection law that cannot be waived.

21. Limitation of liability

To the extent permitted by law, TipRiver will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for lost profits, data or goodwill. Our total liability for any claim relating to the Service is limited to the greater of (a) the platform fees you paid or generated in the 12 months before the claim, or (b) $100.00. This does not limit our obligation to pay out Receiver balances properly due, or liability that cannot be limited by law.

22. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify TipRiver against claims, losses and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms, your misuse of the Service, or your violation of law or the rights of others, including any dispute between you and your employer.

23. Suspension and termination

You may close your account at any time. Closing it cancels all your Subscriptions. Any eligible Receiver balance will be paid out under section 12, subject to verification. We may suspend or close accounts that breach these Terms, present fraud, legal or security risk, or fail verification, and will tell you why where we lawfully can. Already-credited tips are not forfeited because of a suspension. Payouts pause until it is resolved. Sections that by their nature should survive termination will survive.

24. Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms. For material changes we'll give at least 30 days' notice by email or in the app before they take effect. Continuing to use the Service after that means you accept the updated Terms. If you don't agree, you may cancel and close your account.

25. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of [State/Jurisdiction to be confirmed by counsel], without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Before filing any claim, you agree to contact us and try to resolve the dispute informally for at least 30 days. Disputes that are not resolved will be handled in [forum / arbitration provider and venue to be confirmed by counsel], except that either party may bring individual claims in small-claims court where eligible.

26. General

These Terms and the Privacy Policy are the entire agreement between you and TipRiver about the Service. If any provision is unenforceable, the rest remains in effect. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms without our consent. We may assign them in connection with a merger or sale, with notice to you.

27. Contact

Questions about these Terms: use our contact form and choose "Legal or terms", or write to legal@tipriver.com.