Payout schedules and processes
Appropriate roles: Account admin
This page provides details on payment schedules, finding your upcoming payouts in Partner Center, and how we deal with customer nonpayments. The payment schedules and processes listed here are the same for marketplace purchases of public plans, private plans, and private offers including multiparty private offers.
Payment schedules
In general, payments happen monthly. The following sections describe the payouts process for transactions when a customer has an Enterprise Agreement or a Microsoft Customer Agreement or Cloud Solution Provider.
Note
All publishers who choose to transact through the commercial marketplace are entering into an agreement with Microsoft Corporation, which is a US entity. Payments to publishers on global commercial marketplace sales are made by Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft Corporation sends payments from its US legal entity address: Microsoft Corporation, One Microsoft Way, Redmond, WA 98052.
Publishers can set up various Partner Center accounts in varying jurisdictions and can choose which countries or regions those accounts sell into. To determine any applicable withholding on payments issued by Microsoft Corporation, fill out and submit Forms W-8 and W-9.
Transactions when a customer has an Enterprise Agreement
When a customer purchases a product from the Microsoft commercial marketplace or Azure Marketplace using their existing Microsoft Enterprise Agreement for transactions, Microsoft issues payouts in the next payout cycle. Payouts are based on usage or subscription purchase as described in the following table. Payouts often occur before Microsoft collects payment from a customer. To read about the actions Microsoft takes if a customer fails to pay after a payout is issued, see Process for customer nonpayment.
This table shows Enterprise Agreement transactions (usage):
| Event | Description | Reporting visibility | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usage | Customer uses a service | Usage dashboard | Month 1 |
| Microsoft calculates billing amount | Determine total usage over previous month period* | Usage dashboard | Month 2 |
| Transaction reported | Determine agency fee and payout earnings | Marked Unprocessed paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 2 |
| Prepare payout | Earnings are prepared for monthly payment | Marked Upcoming paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 3 (First week) |
| Payout sent | Payment is sent to publisher | Marked Sent paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 3 (no later than the 15th) |
| Invoice paid by customer | Microsoft collects payment from customer | No change | Months 3 through 12 |
* Usage date in reporting shows as beginning of the month in which the usage occurred (for example, October 1 for usage that occurred anytime in October). The payout date is in Pacific Standard Time (PST).
This table shows Enterprise Agreement transactions for orders or subscriptions:
| Event | Description | Reporting visibility | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month of transaction | Customer buys a service | Order dashboard | Month 1 |
| Transaction reported | Determine store service fee and calculate earnings | Marked Unprocessed paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 1 |
| Prepare payout | Earnings are prepared for monthly payment | Marked Upcoming paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 2 (First week) |
| Payout sent | Payment is sent to publisher | Marked Sent paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 2 (no later than the 15th) |
| Invoice paid by customer | Microsoft collects payment from customer | No change | Month 3 through 12 |
Transactions when customer has a Microsoft Customer Agreement or Cloud Solution Provider
When a customer purchases a product from the Microsoft commercial marketplace or Azure Marketplace using a Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) or the Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA), Microsoft issues payouts in a cycle based on usage or subscription purchase as described in the following tables. Transactions become eligible for payment once Microsoft has collected payment from the customer.
This table shows the process for MCA, CSP, and usage:
| Event | Description | Reporting visibility | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usage | Customer uses a service | Usage dashboard | Month 1 |
| Microsoft calculates billing amount | Determine total usage over previous month period* | Usage dashboard | Month 2 |
| Invoice sent to Customer | Microsoft sends invoice to customer | Revenue dashboard | Month 2 |
| Invoice paid by customer | Microsoft collects payment from customer | Usage dashboard | Month 3 |
| Transaction reported | Determine store service fee and payout earnings | Marked Unprocessed paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 3 |
| Prepare payout | Earnings are prepared for monthly payment | Marked Upcoming paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 4 (first week)* +1 month for credit card |
| Payout sent | Payment is sent to publisher | Marked Sent paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 4 (no later than the 15th)* +1 month for credit card |
* Usage date in reporting shows as beginning of the month in which the usage occurred (for example, October 1 for usage that occurred anytime in October). The payout date is in Pacific Standard Time (PST).
This table shows the process for MCA, CSP, and orders or subscriptions:
| Event | Description | Reporting visibility | Timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Month of transaction | Customer buys a service | Order dashboard | Month 1 |
| Invoice sent to Customer | Microsoft sends invoice to customer | Revenue dashboard | Month 2 |
| Invoice paid by customer | Microsoft collects payment from customer | Order dashboard | Month 3 |
| Transaction reported | Determine store service fee and payout earnings | Marked Unprocessed paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 3 |
| Prepare payout | Earnings are prepared for monthly payment | Marked Upcoming paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 4 (First week): +1 month for credit card |
| Payout sent | Payment is sent to publisher | Marked Sent paymentStatus in the Earnings report | Month 4 (no later than the 15th): +1 month for credit card |
Process for customer nonpayment
On rare occasions, Microsoft can't collect payments from customers for their commercial marketplace purchases. When a customer fails to pay Microsoft according to their billing schedule, we begin the collections process. This process takes approximately four months and involves persistent communication from Microsoft. If payment isn't received by the end of this process, Microsoft writes off the funds as non-collectable.
According to the payout process described here, Microsoft might have already paid out funds that are ultimately non-collectable to publishers (you). Therefore, we have a process for reconciling these amounts.
Microsoft recoups any payouts already paid to you by using one of the following methods:
- Microsoft might subtract the unpaid amounts from future payouts. For example, if USD1,000 in payouts is deemed non-collectable and written off, your future payouts are withheld until the USD1,000 is recovered.
- Microsoft might request a refund or invoice publishers for any uncollected amounts.
The following schedule is an example:
| Event | Approximate date* | Partner visibility |
|---|---|---|
| Example payout date | October 15, 2024 | Marked Sent for paymentStatus in the Earnings report |
| If customer does not pay Microsoft | December 2, 2024 to December 5, 2024 | No change, same as above |
| Customer receives first late payment email | December 6, 2024 | None |
| Customer receives regular emails of increasing urgency | December 7, 2024 to January 31, 2025 | None |
| Customer receives termination notice | February 1, 2025 | None |
| Collection process ends and funds are written off | February 15, 2025 | Email notification sent to publisher that funds have been written off |
| Payout is deducted | March 1, 2025 | Publisher sees negative transaction paymentStatus in the Earnings report |
| Payout is withheld | March 15, 2025 | Future payouts are shown in paymentStatus in the Earnings report; publisher doesn't receive payment until balance is no longer negative |
* The payout date is in Pacific Standard Time (PST).
Manage your revenue stream and accounting activities with Marketplace Insights
There are a variety of dashboards and downloads available for partners to manage their revenue stream for transactional history, forecasting, and other publishing needs, such as assessing the creditworthiness of customers you continue selling to.
By accessing data in the following ways, partners can communicate with customers in a timely and effective manner throughout their invoicing experience:
- View Marketplace Insights reports in the Partner Center
- Download CSV files through the Downloads hub
- Get data directly from the ISV Revenue API (and other APIs available for Marketplace Partners)
The following articles provide additional information and guidance for the preceding options:
- Revenue dashboard in commercial marketplace analytics
- Access insights for the commercial marketplace in Partner Center
- Downloads hub - Marketplace offers
- Make your first API call to access commercial marketplace analytics data
- Prerequisites to programmatically access analytics data for commercial marketplace
Time required for payments to reach a payout account
We typically send payments due by the 15th day of the month, but more time is required for the payment to reach your account. The time required depends on the payment method that we use for your account, as described in the following table.
Note
The intervals in the table are approximate. Payments might take more or less time to reach your account.
| Payment method | Number of days to reach payout account |
|---|---|
| PayPal | One business day |
| ACH/SEPA | Two to three business days |
| Wire transfer | Seven to 10 business days |