Payments & Refunds

1. Tokens are consumable digital goods

Tokens are an internal credit you buy to fund bounties. Because they’re consumable digital goods that can be spent immediately, the following applies:

• Once tokens are credited to your balance, purchases are generally non-refundable, and tokens that have been spent or escrowed in a bounty can’t be returned as a purchase refund - except as required by law or as described below. (Unspent tokens can instead be cashed out for their face value - see “Cashing out” below.)
• If we do reverse a token purchase (for example, a Stripe refund or chargeback), the corresponding tokens are removed from your balance. If you’ve already spent them, this can take your balance below zero until you top up again.
• We don’t offer a separate discretionary “cooling-off” refund window for token purchases - once credited they’re non-refundable, but any unspent tokens can instead be cashed out for their face value. Statutory consumer rights, where they apply, are unaffected.

2. Bounty escrow refunds (how unspent escrow comes back)

Posting a bounty escrows the full amount up front. When the window closes, the prize pool - the entire bounty amount, with no platform fee - is split 50 / 30 / 20 among the top three critiques. Any prize tier that isn’t awarded is refunded to you, in tokens. Specifically:

• 0 eligible critiques → your entire bounty is refunded.
• 1 critique paid → the 1st-place tier (50%) is paid; the 2nd and 3rd tiers (30% + 20%) are refunded to you.
• 2 critiques paid → the 1st + 2nd tiers (50% + 30%) are paid; the 3rd tier (20%) is refunded to you.
• 3 or more eligible → all three tiers are paid; there is no refund.

Voxol takes no fee on bounty payouts - the full prize pool goes to critics, and refunded tiers come back to you untouched. These refunds are token movements within Voxol; they don’t convert tokens back into money (for that, see “Cashing out” below).

3. Automatic settlement

The moment a bounty’s window closes it settles automatically - there’s no judging period. Critiques you accepted rank first, then the rest by community upvotes, and the top three are paid using the exact tier-and-refund rules above. A bounty that received no eligible critiques is fully refunded.

4. Team seat subscriptions

Paid Team seats are a separate, recurring subscription billed in advance through Stripe (they are not tokens). They auto-renew each billing period until cancelled.

• Cancel anytime. Cancelling stops future renewals; your seats stay active through the end of the current paid period.
• No partial refunds. Fees already billed for the current period are not refunded on a partial or pro-rated basis, except where required by law. Reducing the number of seats takes effect at your next billing period.
• Taxes. Any applicable taxes are shown and collected at checkout.

5. Cashing out your tokens

You can spend your tokens on bounties, or cash them out for real money. Both purchased and earned tokens in your balance are eligible. Cashing out is always a deliberate request - tokens are never auto-converted.

• Value. Tokens cash out at their face value of US$0.05 per token - the same value a token carries on-platform.
• Minimum. You need at least 600 tokens (US$30.00) to request a cash-out.
• Tokens leave your balance on request. When you submit a cash-out, the tokens are debited immediately and held for payout. A token can’t be both cashed out and spent.

6. Getting set up (Stripe Connect)

Payouts are made through Stripe Connect to US-based accounts. Before your first cash-out you complete a short, Stripe-hosted onboarding from your Wallet - Stripe verifies your identity and collects your bank/payout details and any required tax information directly. Voxol never sees or stores your bank details or government ID; we only receive whether your account is cleared to receive payouts.

7. When you get paid

• Schedule. Cash-out requests that clear by the monthly cutoff are paid out on the 21st of each month. Requests made after the cutoff roll into the next month’s run.
• Method. Funds are transferred to the connected payout account you set up with Stripe; arrival timing after the run depends on your bank and Stripe.
• If a payout fails (e.g. incomplete Stripe onboarding or a rejected transfer), the request is marked failed and the tokens can be returned to your balance so you can fix the issue and request again.

8. Fees

Voxol takes no fee on cash-outs - you receive the full face value of the tokens you cash out, and Voxol covers Stripe’s payout-processing fee. Voxol earns only on the spread when tokens are purchased (sold at $0.07, worth $0.05 on-platform). Payouts are made in US dollars to a US bank account; your own bank may still apply receiving fees outside Voxol’s control.

9. Taxes

Cash-outs are earnings and may be taxable. During onboarding, Stripe collects the tax information required to pay you. Where the law requires it, the appropriate tax forms are issued based on your location and how much you’re paid; the specific forms and reporting thresholds depend on your circumstances, vary by state, and change over time, so we don’t state a particular form or dollar threshold here. You are responsible for any taxes on amounts you receive and for reporting them correctly. Voxol does not provide tax advice and nothing here is tax advice - please consult a qualified tax professional about your situation.

10. Holds & abuse

We may delay, hold, or decline a payout where we need to investigate suspected fraud, self-dealing, multi-account farming, chargebacks, or violations of our Terms. Tokens earned through prohibited activity may be reversed. Where a request is declined for these reasons, we’ll generally return the tokens to your balance unless they were earned through abuse.