Can the client release payment early for a milestone

[philm002]

Hello all,

I have a client that needs to release payment to me before I can start work on a fixed price contract. This was already agreed upon and is a term in the contract.

They did create a milestone for this. Now from the client's perspective, are they able to release the payment without me having to submit work? If so, how would they do that? (I would like to send them some instructions because I have found that most of my clients are not versed in Upwork.)

If not, I don't think that it will be a big deal for me. I can simply talk to the client and work out something simple to submit to fulfil the requirement. But it would be easier if they could release payment without me having to submit something.

Please let me know!

[prestonhunter · Accepted solution]

re: "Can the client release payment early for a milestone?"

Yes.

A client can release payment any time she wants to.

A client can even release a milestone payment before the work has been done.

There are no limitations on when a client releases a milestone payment.

The client may wish to look at this:

https://support.upwork.com/hc/en-us/articles/360000980507-Review-a-Milestone

ALSO:
Keep in mind that it is NOT NECESSARY for a client to create a milestone in order to pay you money. The client can use the client-side "Send bonus" or "Pay bonus" option to send any amount of money at any time. The client can use this (for example) to make advance payments to a freelancer prior to any work being done.