Creator Earnings Terms

1. Participation and verification

A Merq account alone does not qualify for creator payouts. Live participation will require creator approval, an eligible supported country and account, completion of Stripe onboarding and any required identity, bank, or tax verification, acceptance of the applicable creator terms, and no unresolved financial hold. Merq will present any program specific age, legal capacity, and country requirements before enrollment. The app's general minimum age is not a promise of payout eligibility.

Stripe collects verification and payout details through its hosted interface. Stripe's applicable service terms also apply to its services. Creators must provide accurate information and keep payout details current. Merq does not guarantee acceptance by Stripe or any minimum earnings.

2. How eligible gifts are valued

Merq Points received as gifts are not a fixed dollar balance. The purchase proceeds attributable to gifted points depend on the actual eligible purchases that funded them, including their price and currency. Ungifted points and participation rewards do not themselves become creator earnings. Sandbox points do not count toward live earnings.

Merq matches gifted points to their funding records in purchase order and attributes the corresponding purchase proceeds and actual processing fees proportionally. Only valid, settled funding can support a payout. A displayed point count alone does not establish the amount owed in cash.

3. Creator share after actual expenses

For each accounting month, eligible gift purchase value is reduced by its allocated payment or store fees and all other actual expenses attributable to those gifts. The creator receives 70% of the remaining positive profit. Merq receives the remaining 30%. The creator amount is rounded down to whole US cents. If expenses equal or exceed eligible revenue, the creator share for that calculation is zero; a negative result does not by itself create a personal debt for the creator.

Attributable expenses include live streaming, storage and backend services, allocated shared operating costs, payout and account fees, and other documented expenses connected to the gifts. Expenses must be supported by actual charges or bills. Shared costs must be allocated using a documented, reasonable basis tied to the relevant activity, usage, or period, rather than charging each creator the entire shared bill. An expense already deducted as a processing fee cannot be deducted again. Refunded or disputed funding must be reviewed so that the same loss is not counted twice.

Example: if eligible gift revenue is $100, allocated payment fees are $4, and all other reviewed attributable expenses total $16, profit is $80. The creator earns $56 and Merq retains $24. This illustrates the formula, not a fixed point conversion or a promise about actual expense levels.

4. Temporary reserve and monthly reconciliation

Before actual expenses are reviewed, estimates use an expense reserve of $80 per 500 gifted points, equivalent to $0.16 per point. The amount held is capped at the value available after allocated payment fees. This reserve is an estimate, not a permanent fee, a cash guarantee, or an additional deduction on top of actual expenses.

Merq replaces the reserve with reviewed actual attributable expenses before finalizing the month. If actual expenses are lower, the unused reserve returns to the profit calculation. If expenses are higher, the calculation reflects the higher actual amount. The 70% creator share is calculated on the resulting positive profit. Estimates can therefore increase or decrease and are not available for payout until review is complete.

Accounting months follow calendar months in America/Chicago. The current month can change as new gifts and expense information arrive. Statements distinguish estimated, held, adjusted, finalized, pending, and paid amounts. Creators can ask support to explain an expense allocation or challenge an error. Merq's private invoices and internal operating notes are not public statements.

5. $50 minimum and monthly payout processing

The minimum payout is $50 USD in combined finalized, unpaid creator earnings. This threshold applies after the creator's 70% share has been calculated. Merq does not apply another 70% reduction when combining balances for payout. Positive finalized balances below $50 carry forward across months until the combined eligible amount reaches the minimum.

Monthly processing targets the 15th using America/Chicago dates, after prior month expenses and source funds have been reviewed. This is a processing target, not a guaranteed bank arrival date. Late expense reviews, unsettled funds, verification requirements, financial holds, provider delays, and bank processing can delay payment. Estimated earnings and the current unfinished month do not count toward the minimum.

There is at most one payout batch per creator per monthly processing cycle. Additional amounts finalized after that batch has been reserved carry into the next cycle. A failed bank payout can require correction and a retry of the same reserved earnings; it does not create another entitlement to those earnings.

Example: $30 finalized from September plus $25 finalized from October can produce a $55 payout in the November cycle, targeting processing on November 15, if all reviews and eligibility checks are complete.

6. Holds, adjustments, and payout status

Invalid funding, refunds, disputes, suspected fraud, duplicate records, incomplete expenses, or verification problems can place affected earnings or payouts on hold. Merq will review the underlying records before releasing or adjusting affected amounts. An earnings estimate, a reserved payout, a transfer to Stripe, and a completed bank payout are different statuses. Merq will not represent a pending or failed payout as paid.

Material corrections must be tied to documented records and reflected in the earnings history. Already paid earnings require separate review if an underlying payment later fails or is refunded. Merq does not automatically claw back creator earnings already paid or automatically offset them against future earnings. Any proposed recovery requires a separate documented review and applicable accepted terms. These terms do not authorize automatic bank debits or unexplained deductions. Creators can contact support to request an explanation or correction. A hold does not itself extinguish a valid finalized balance.

7. Taxes, stopping participation, and changes

Creators are responsible for applicable personal or business taxes on their earnings. Required tax information or legally required withholding may affect payout eligibility or amounts. Merq will provide applicable reporting and withholding information before enabling a service that requires it. No sandbox amount is real taxable creator income from Merq.

Stopping participation or closing an account does not by itself forfeit positive finalized unpaid earnings. Contact support to resolve outstanding balances, necessary verification, and legitimate financial holds, subject to applicable law. Do not delete payout details needed to resolve a pending payment.

Merq will provide notice of material changes to the calculation or payout rules and request renewed acceptance where required before applying a changed creator agreement. These notices do not authorize undisclosed retroactive changes to finalized earnings. Any separate changes needed for a live launch will be presented before enrollment.

8. Questions and related policies

Contact support@merqapp.com with your account and statement month for earnings questions. Do not send passwords, full bank details, or identity documents. These terms supplement the Terms of Service. See the Refund Policy for purchase issues and the Privacy Policy for financial record handling. Applicable rights that cannot lawfully be excluded remain unaffected.