Affiliate Program — Standard Operating Procedure

1. Application received — Affiliate submits via /affiliate-apply. Record created with status pending and a temporary referral code.
2. Admin review — Go to Admin → Affiliate Program. Verify identity, promotion plan, and check for duplicate emails.
3. Request documents — Before approval, the applicant must submit: W-9 tax form, signed Affiliate Agreement, payment info form (PayPal/bank), and government-issued ID.
4. Approve or deny — Click Approve to generate a permanent PRG-XXXXX referral code and referral link. Click Deny with a reason if disqualified.
5. Welcome email — System sends the affiliate their referral code, link, and dashboard access instructions.
6. Ongoing monitoring — Review affiliate activity monthly. Suspend accounts that violate terms.

• All commissions enter a 14-day hold after the referred user's payment date.
• If the referred user requests a refund within 14 days, the commission is automatically revoked.
• After 14 days with no refund, the commission status moves from hold → approved.
• Approved commissions are eligible for the next payout cycle.

Affiliates upload documents through their dashboard. Admins review and approve/reject each document before first payout.

• Duplicate IP detection — Flag referrals originating from the same IP address as the affiliate.
• Self-referral detection — Flag when referred email matches affiliate email or known aliases.
• Velocity check — Flag affiliates with >5 signups in a single day for manual review.
• Refund pattern — Flag affiliates whose referrals have a refund rate >30%.
• Cookie stuffing — Monitor for unusually high click-to-signup ratios.

Run the Fraud Check tool from the admin dashboard weekly. Suspend flagged accounts pending investigation. Document findings in the affiliate's notes field.

• Payouts are processed on the 1st and 15th of each month.
• Minimum payout threshold: $50.
• Supported methods: PayPal, bank transfer (ACH), check.
• Processing steps:
  1. Filter commissions with status approved.
  2. Group by affiliate and sum amounts.
  3. Verify affiliate documents are current.
  4. Click Process Payout for each affiliate or use bulk payout.
  5. Record payment reference number.
  6. Commission status updates to paid.