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Direct Contracts now live for all freelancers

lenaellis
Community Member

To help grow and support your freelance business on and off Upwork, we are releasing Direct Contracts to all Upwork freelancers today. With this new release, we have also expanded the functionality to now include multiple milestones. 

 

Direct Contracts allows you to enter into fixed-price contracts with non-Upwork clients, offering access to Upwork's safety and security features with greater flexibility for your business. Freelancers can access their Direct Contracts by clicking on the new paper airplane icon next to notifications or directly here.

 

Direct Contract Icon.png

 

Here’s how it works: 

 

On the Direct Contracts page, freelancers will see the option to start a new Direct Contract and a list of all existing Direct Contracts along with the status of that contract.

 

The steps to start a new Direct Contract are very simple:

 

1. Enter your client’s details

1. Create.png

 

2. Add either a single amount or create milestones with each amount

MM - Collapsed.png

 

3. Review and send the contract

3. Review.png

 

4. An email is sent to your client to begin

4. Confirmation.png

 

 

Your client will receive an email notifying them of your detailed proposal, along with some guidance on how the product works. 

 

Just like your other fixed-price contracts on Upwork, your client deposits project funds in escrow before the contract starts. You will see the status of the milestone listed below each one, so you will know when to begin working. When you’ve completed the contract or each milestone, you’ll request payment from your client. And with Direct Contracts, once they’ve accepted your request, the funds are released to you immediately, with no security period.

 

5. - Active - m1.png

 

As a freelancer, you’ll pay a processing fee of 3.4% of the total contract amount, but you won’t pay any freelancer service fees to Upwork. It’s easy for your clients because they won’t have to create an Upwork account.  And with payment protection and dispute assistance, you can work confidently with your clients who are not on Upwork. 

 

Let us know if you have any questions.

 

405 Comments
JoanneP
Moderator

Hi Anshuman,

 

I have requested the assistance of our team. One of our agents will reach out via a support ticket to assist further. 

shahabidk
Community Member

Hi!

    This is shah, Abid. I have clients we decided to do some direct contract but there is one question running in my mind.

             The questions are:

 1; Is a direct contract increase or dicrease job success score?

2; Can someone see my Direct contract on my profile when that done?

  Please someone help me and give me brief answers.

Thanks

 Shah 

g_vasilevski
Retired Team Member

Thanks for your question, Shah. Since your client and you will only be using Upwork for payments, any Direct Contracts will not impact your Upwork reputation metrics (for example your Job Success Score or Top Rated status). These contracts also will not be included in your other Upwork profile stats, such as total earnings, number of jobs, etc.

shahabidk
Community Member
Thanks for your kind answer.
igor_zhukovich
Community Member

Hi.

I know that

"With Direct Contracts, you can create and send contract proposals to your clients that don't have Upwork accounts."

I have a client I found outside Upwork. He has an Upwork account. Can I have a direct contract in this case?

 

Thanks in advance.

AndreaG
Moderator

Hi Ihar,

 

Direct Contracts cannot be used with clients who already have an account on Upwork. You can read more about Direct Contracts here

 

Thanks!

i_sohaib
Community Member

same issue

kochubei_valeria
Community Member

Hi Sohaib,

 

I checked and it looks like your most recent Direct Contract was completed and payment released. Please, let us know if you or your client are still experiencing any issues.

bribich-digital
Community Member

hello there
I hope things have been great!
I have questions for you please, I'm recently working on many freelance platforms and I was wondering if I sent a direct contract through Upwork to a client, can he make a review for me after he approved my work? also, is my profile respect your conditions and terms? please give me some tips that can help my profile to get approved.
thank you so much 🙂
BRIBICH

BojanS
Community Manager

Hi Abdessamad,

 

Since your client and you will only be using Upwork for payments, any Direct Contracts will not impact your Upwork reputation metrics (for example your Job Success Score or Top Rated status). These contracts also will not be included in your other Upwork profile stats, such as total earnings, number of jobs, etc.

 

Your account has been accepted. To help you get started, please check out these threads Getting Started on Upwork and Resource Corner. There you’ll find some excellent topics and learn more about Upwork. 

 

Happy working!