Refund & Cancellation Policy

1. The 100% Connect Return Protocol (Talent Anti-Loss Guarantee)

Legacy freelance marketplaces profit by burning freelancer proposal connects on unhired postings. Worklyfy fundamentally outlaws this predatory practice.

• Temporary Escrow Holding: Connects allocated to a proposal are never consumed upon submission. They remain in temporary platform escrow.
• 100% Automatic Refund on Rejection: If a client declines your proposal, selects a different talent, or closes the job posting, 100% of your connects are automatically and instantly credited back to your balance.
• Deduction Condition: Connects are consumed only when genuine value is delivered—specifically, when a client formally accepts your proposal and initiates direct messaging/interviewing, or establishes an escrow milestone contract.

2. 7-Day Ghost Job & Client Inactivity Protocol

When a client publishes a project brief and abandons it without taking hiring action:

• Automated 7-Day Expiration: If no interview or hiring action occurs within 7 calendar days of job publication, our backend cron daemon automatically flags the job as abandoned and closes the listing.
• Instant Wallet Credit: 100% of connects spent by all applicants on that post are automatically refunded to their platform wallet with a notification alert.

3. Client Milestone Escrow Cancellation & Returns

Worklyfy protects client capital through dual-signature custodial escrow vaults:

• Pre-Commencement Cancellation: If a contract is cancelled before milestone work starts, 100% of locked escrow funds are immediately refunded to the client's original payment method or Worklyfy balance.
• Mutual Agreement Cancellation: If both parties agree to terminate a project mid-milestone, unworked escrow portions are returned directly to the client's original payment method within 24 to 48 hours.
• Freelancer Non-Delivery / Inactivity: If a freelancer fails to deliver by the milestone deadline and remains unresponsive for 72 consecutive hours, the client may initiate an instant full refund request. Unreleased escrow funds are restored to the client without penalty.

4. Subscription Cancellations & Money-Back Guarantee

Worklyfy offers micro-subscriptions with flexible terms:

• 7-Day Initial Money-Back Guarantee: First-time subscribers of the Pro Guild ($4.99/mo) or Agency Pass ($14.99/mo) may request a 100% refund within 7 calendar days of purchase, provided premium connects and features have not been extensively utilized for contract billings.
• Cancel Anytime: You can cancel your subscription at any time with a single click from your billing settings. Your access continues until the end of the current billing cycle, with zero recurring charges thereafter.

5. Technical Disputes & Milestone Escrow Arbitration

If a client and freelancer disagree on deliverable quality or scope completion:

• No Automatic Confiscation: Funds remain securely locked in escrow while the Worklyfy Human Technical Mediation Guild reviews the dispute.
• Evidence-Based Review: Senior software engineers and design evaluators inspect GitHub pull requests, commit timestamps, Figma artboards, staging builds, and agreed project scopes.
• Fair Escrow Determination: The guild issues a binding resolution authorizing a full refund, full release, or a proportional percentage split reflective of verified deliverable progress.

6. Non-Refundable Scenarios

To maintain integrity across the marketplace, refunds cannot be granted under the following conditions:

• Approved & Released Milestones: Once a client clicks "Approve Deliverable" and funds are released from escrow to the freelancer's wallet, that milestone payment is irrevocable and non-refundable (except where legal fraud or criminal conduct is proven).
• Consumed Connects on Active Contracts: Connects consumed on contracts where the client conducted interviews or hired the talent cannot be refunded.
• Completed Subscription Cycles: Monthly subscription fees for previous months already elapsed are non-refundable.

7. Refund Processing Channels & Timelines

Refund processing speeds depend on the selected channel and financial institution:

• Connects Balance: Restored immediately (real-time, < 5 seconds).
• Worklyfy Wallet Escrow Balance: Restored within 1 to 2 hours.
• Bank Transfers & UPI (India): Processed via direct banking rails within 24 to 48 business hours.
• Credit / Debit Cards (Stripe): Initiated within 24 hours; credited to your statement within 3 to 7 business days according to your card issuer's clearing cycle.

8. How to Request a Refund & Priority Support

Requesting a refund or escalating an escrow milestone is simple and accessible: