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Escrow Payments (Stripe USD)

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1. Overview

Escrow Payments protect both you and your experts by holding funds securely until work is approved. When you fund an escrow, your payment is authorized but not captured - experts see the money is real, and you release it only when milestones meet your standards. The platform handles the complexity: Stripe processes payments, experts connect their bank accounts via Stripe Connect, and funds transfer automatically when you approve deliverables. You track every dollar through dedicated payment dashboards.

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2. Step-by-Step Guide

For Clients - Funding an Escrow:
  1. Navigate to your active job’s payment page after an expert has been assigned
  2. Click “Fund Escrow” - you’ll see the total job amount broken down by milestones
  3. Complete payment through Stripe Checkout using your credit or debit card
  4. Your card is authorized (not charged yet) - funds show as “Escrowed” immediately
  5. The expert receives notification that funds are secured and can begin work
  6. When the expert delivers a milestone, review their work on the delivery page
  7. Click “Approve Delivery” - the system transfers 85% of the milestone amount to the expert within 30 seconds (platform retains 15% as fee)
  8. For multi-milestone jobs, remaining funds stay in escrow until you approve subsequent deliverables
For Experts - Setting Up Payouts:
  1. After being matched to a job, you’ll see a “Set Up Payouts” prompt on your dashboard
  2. Click “Set Up Payouts” - you’re redirected to Stripe Connect onboarding
  3. Provide your bank account details, tax information, and identity verification documents
  4. Complete the onboarding flow (usually takes 5-10 minutes)
  5. Return to Fiftyknots - your payout account shows “Verified” status
  6. Once the client approves your milestone delivery, funds transfer to your bank account automatically
  7. Track all earnings on the /earnings page showing total earned, pending payouts, and per-job breakdowns
For Admins - Overseeing Payments:
  1. Access the payment oversight dashboard to view all platform escrow accounts
  2. Filter by status (Funded, Partially Released, Refunded) or date range
  3. For stuck escrows (client unresponsive 14+ days after delivery), click “Manual Release”
  4. Review the breakdown showing expert payout and platform fee in the confirmation dialog
  5. Confirm the manual release - system executes transfer and logs the admin action with your user ID

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3. Common Questions

What happens if my payment card declines? The escrow remains in “Pending Payment” status and you see an error message within 2 seconds. Fix the card issue (expired card, insufficient funds, etc.) with your bank, then retry funding. The expert cannot begin work until funds are secured. Can I get a refund if the expert doesn’t deliver? Yes. If the escrow is still funded and no milestones have been released, request a refund. The system processes a full Stripe Refund, changes the escrow status to “Refunded,” and both you and the expert receive email notifications. Refunds appear in your bank account within 5-10 business days. How do milestone percentages work for partial releases? When you create a job, you set milestone percentages that must total 100% (e.g., 40% for design, 30% for development, 30% for testing). When you approve the first milestone, only that percentage releases - the escrow status changes to “Partially Released” and remaining funds stay locked until you approve later milestones. What if the expert’s bank account becomes invalid mid-job? Milestone releases queue and retry for 7 days with exponential backoff. The expert sees a warning banner to re-verify their Stripe Connect account. If unresolved after 7 days, you can request a refund of unreleased funds. Why does the expert only receive 85% of each milestone? The platform retains 15% as a service fee for matching, quality oversight, dispute resolution, and platform infrastructure. This split happens automatically on every milestone release.

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4. Troubleshooting

“Payment failed: Card declined” error when funding escrow Your bank or card issuer rejected the authorization. Common causes: expired card, insufficient credit limit, fraud prevention block, or incorrect billing address. Contact your card issuer to resolve, then retry. If the issue persists after fixing card details, try a different payment method. Expert’s “Set Up Payouts” button does nothing or shows error The Stripe Connect onboarding link may have expired. Refresh the page and click “Set Up Payouts” again. If the expert abandoned onboarding mid-flow, they’ll see a “Resume Setup” button instead - clicking it returns them to where they left off in the Stripe flow. Milestone approved but expert didn’t receive payout Check the expert’s payout account verification status on their earnings dashboard. If it shows “Pending Verification” or “Action Required,” the expert must complete Stripe Connect setup. If verified, the transfer may be retrying due to temporary Stripe API issues - automatic retries run every 5 minutes for up to 2 hours. Contact support if funds aren’t transferred after 2 hours. Cannot find payment history or escrow details Navigate to /paymenthistory or /escrowdashboard (clients) or /earnings (experts). If pages are empty despite having active jobs, clear your browser cache and refresh. For clients: ensure you’ve funded at least one escrow. For experts: ensure you’ve had at least one approved milestone. Dispute Resolution - If you and your expert disagree on milestone quality, initiate a dispute instead of approving or requesting a refund. The dispute system analyzes evidence, assigns an adjudicator, and determines fair fund distribution (e.g., 70% to expert, 30% refund to you). Disputes protect both parties when delivery expectations misalign. Expert Earnings Dashboard (/earnings) - Experts track lifetime earnings, pending payouts, per-job breakdowns, and Stripe Connect account status. This dashboard links directly to the Stripe Express Dashboard for detailed payout history, tax documents, and bank account management. Transaction History (/transactionhistory) - View your complete financial activity: escrow funding dates, milestone releases, refunds, and platform fees. Export transaction data for accounting or reconciliation. Admins access extended views showing platform-wide revenue and fee collection.