Here you will find all the relevant information about the payout process at CopeCart. We explain what a transaction overview is, what is included in a credit note and give you an overview of taxation at CopeCart.
The payment process at CopeCart
Your earned money will be transferred to your bank account. This process is called payout. Please note two things:
in order to receive payouts, your account must be validated (you can find out everything about validating your account here) and
your data must be correct in your account settings.
Here you can set your payout interval and the minimum payout amount.
You can also enter the IBAN and BIC for the account to which the payouts are to be made.
When will the payout be made?
Payouts are not made immediately, but according to your individual preferences and can be made weekly, every two weeks or monthly. Please note that payouts are made at fixed intervals (80/20 rule). Find out everything about our "Fast Payout" feature here.
The transfers are initiated on specific days, on the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th day of each month.
Copecart will transfer you 80% of the amount on the next possible payout date (min 14 days after successful order).
For security reasons, the balance of 20% will be transferred to you after 40 days (in some cases, there are chargebacks and returns of received revenues from vendors and affiliates. In order to protect your Copecart account from excessive transaction costs and other financial risks, Copecart keeps a security deposit as a precaution).
You can see when your next payout will be made in your account under the "Payout Information" tab, where you will find your next payout date.
Where to find your payout history
In the "Payout Information" tab you can see for which orders you have received payouts.
For each payout you will receive a transaction overview.
You can view your transaction overviews by clicking on the icon under "Payout Overview". If you click on the payout ID, you will see the order ID's that are included in this payout.
You will be informed about every payout by e-mail. You can enter your E-mail address under the "Payment Account" tab.
Credits (Gutschrift)
In the area of online business, CopeCart uses a reseller model. This means that CopeCart buys products from vendors and then sells them to end users. As a result, the purchase process is conducted between an end user as the buyer and CopeCart as the seller.
All vendors receive a listing at the beginning of each month, for all purchases from the previous month = credit (Gutschrift).
What do the credit notes contain?
The credit note represents all the products Copecart buys from a vendor in a given period. It has nothing to do with payouts or buyer payments. Much more the credit note serves as an overview.
The credit note shows the total value of items sold to Copecart in the previous month. This includes all payment options with their total amount (one-time payment, subscription, installment).
Example:
If a buyer purchases an item and selects the installment payment option, Copecart will purchase the entire item from the vendor in the first month. For this reason, the total amount of the item must be included in the credit memo for that first month.
This is what a credit note looks like:
Frequently asked questions about payouts
When will I receive my payouts?
Payouts are paid on the 7th, 14th, 21st and 28th each month. You can see when your next payout date is in your account under the "Payouts" tab.
It is already the 7th (14th, 21st or 28th) day of the month. Why haven't I received my payout yet?
There can be several reasons:
Because the payment day is a holiday or falls on a weekend. You will receive your outstanding payment on the first business day after the weekend/holiday.
You have changed the default payout settings from weekly payout to another one (once every two weeks or monthly payout).
Your actual earned income is less than the minimum payout you set.
Your payment details are not correct. Check them in your account settings and correct the data if necessary. Further up in this article you will find all the important information.
What do negative numbers in a payout mean?
Negative amounts (e.g. -10.00 EUR) are amounts that are refunded or returned to the purchaser as chargebacks.
To keep our calculation process transparent, both the net income amount and the charge-back and refund amount are shown in the payout.
Example:
A product is purchased and a vendor receives €20 net income. This amount is written off as a positive figure of €20 until it is paid out. Some time later, the customer returns the product and asks for a refund. This refund is shown in the payout as a negative amount of -20€.
Are the disbursements divided?
Yes, the payouts are processed in two steps. This is necessary to protect both the customer and the vendor.
80% of the net amount earned will be paid to the vendor or affiliate on the first valid payout date (14 days after funds are received).
20% of the net earned amount will be paid to the Vendor or Affiliate 40 days after payment.
If you would like to receive your payouts even earlier, you can find out all about our "Fast Payout" feature here.
Example:
The purchase (and payment) was made on July 26, 2019. The net amount earned by the vendor is €1000.
The 14th day after payment is August 9, 2019, and the first valid payment date is August 14. Thus, on August 14, 2019, €800 (80% of the net amount earned) will be paid to the Vendor.
The 40th day after payment is September 6, 2019, the first valid payout date is September 7, 2019, but since it is a Saturday, the remaining €200 (remaining 20% of the net amount earned) will be paid to the Vendor or Affiliate on Monday, September 9, 2019.
What happens if a chargeback or refund is initiated?
The amount of the chargeback and/or refund is automatically deducted from your income.
The net amount earned will be shown on the invoice as a positive number (e.g. 100 €), the amount deducted (chargeback/refund) as a negative number (e.g. -20 €).
Please note that return debits and refunds follow the same two-step procedure as usual payments.
This means that 80% of the chargeback/refund will be deducted from the vendor on the 14th day after the chargeback/refund request is registered in the system.
The remaining 20% of the chargeback/refund will be deducted on the 40th day after the chargeback/refund request is registered in the system.
I am an affiliate. Why is the chargeback/refund deducted from my payout?
Chargebacks/refunds are distributed between all parties (Vendors, JVPs, Affiliates) according to their shares.
Example:
Revenue will be split as follows:
Vendor - 50 %
JVP1 - 30
JVP2 - 20 %
This means that 50% of the chargeback or refund will be borne by the Vendor, 30% by Joint Venture Partner 1 and 20% by Joint Venture Partner 2.
Affiliates will also have their commission rate deducted proportionally. If the affiliate commission rate is set at 50%, 50% of the chargeback/refund will be borne by the respective affiliate.
Are there any chargeback fees?
The fee charged by the payment processor per chargeback is split between Vendor, JVPs and Affiliate Partners (if any) according to their shares.
The chargeback fee is also processed in two steps (80% fee on day 14, 20% on day 40).
Why are there this many chargebacks and refunds in my payout statement?
Because each chargeback and refund process has two steps: 80% of the amount is refunded on the 14th day after the request and the remaining 20% is refunded on the 40th day after the request. So, two partial transactions are due for a single chargeback or a single refund.
Another crucial reason could be the poor quality of your products. If buyers are dissatisfied with what they receive, they will ask for cancellation/refund.
Taxation at CopeCart
The sales tax of the payouts is always calculated at the time of the order.
If you are a vendor or affiliate from Germany and sell a product before you have successfully passed the user validation, the payouts for this sale will always be made as net amount.
This means that if you have not configured a VAT scheme, you can receive the payout as not subject to VAT, and CopeCart will pay the appropriate VAT rate back to the German tax office.
You must be a small business owner or a VAT payer to receive payouts from CopeCart for your Vendor/Affiliate activity. However, it depends on your business type what payout amount - net or gross - you will receive.
You can specify your VAT ID and/or tax number in the account settings:
IMPORTANT:
Vendors/affiliates within the EU but outside Germany can get payouts only with VAT ID or tax number. Exception: small businesses from Austria.
In order to receive payouts, a tax regime must be chosen
If you are subject to VAT in Germany (i.e. run a business in Germany), you will receive payouts in large amounts so that you can pay back the appropriate VAT rate to the German tax office.
If you are a small business owner in Germany, you will receive your credit note without VAT, as you are not liable for VAT.
If you own a company in one of the EU countries (not in Germany), you will receive payments in net amounts.
For further questions, please feel free to contact our support team.
Best regards
Your CopeCart Team