Getting your money out: what to prepare
Payout verification catches people out. Here is what to have ready before you need it.
The moment you first try to withdraw is a bad moment to discover what is required. Prepare in advance.
What you will need
Identity. A government-issued document. Name spelled exactly as it appears on your bank account. Exactly — a middle name present on one and absent on the other is a common cause of delay.
A bank account in your own name. Not a family member's, not a business account you are not a signatory on. Payouts to accounts whose name does not match the verified identity get held.
Confirmation of the account. A statement or an official letter, recent.
The name-matching problem
This is the single largest cause of stuck payouts and it is entirely avoidable.
Your platform name, your legal name and your bank account name need to reconcile. If you registered as your artist name and your bank knows you by your legal name, sort that out before you have money waiting.
Set the threshold sensibly
Withdrawing costs a fee. Withdrawing small amounts frequently means paying that fee repeatedly against a small balance.
Work out what makes the fee a reasonable percentage and withdraw at that point. For most people that means monthly, not weekly.
Keep your own records
Download your transaction history periodically and keep it. You will need it at tax time, and you should not rely on any platform — including this one — being the only place your financial history exists.
What we do not do
We do not withhold tax on your behalf, and we do not advise on what you owe. That depends on where you live, what else you earn and rules that change. If you are earning meaningfully, talk to an accountant once. It is cheaper than the alternative.