Payment Outside Upwork

[tz_moses]

Hello, I have a potential client who said they would not be able to process the payment on Upwork, as they do not have business PayPal, so They cannot process the payment and contract on Upwork. They asked me for my email address, so they can send the contract.

All this seems suspicious/a violation of Upwork terms. I would like a second opinion on this matter.

[0ea796be · Accepted solution]

It violates Upwork's TOS and is a scam. 

[prestonhunter]

I have read many reports on the Forum from freelancers whose accounts were suspended simply for TALKING with clients about off-platform payments.

If a prospective client mentions something like this, then I quickly make it clear that payment can only be done through Upwork. If they persist, I block them immediately.

[tz_moses]

Thanks for your response, much appreciated. I have reported and blocked them.

[ericaandrews]

It is definitely a violation of the Terms of Service.  You also cannot give out your contact information before an Upwork contract is in place.  It's also likely a scam, because Upwork accepts many other forms of payment from clients besides 'PayPal'.  You should REPORT the client to Upwork in the Upwork Messages/Chat and then BLOCK the client.

[tz_moses]

Thanks for your response, much appreciated. I have reported and blocked them.

[penngrp]

You said "All this seems suspicious/a violation of Upwork terms" - Why do you have to ask for a second opinion?

[jeremiah-brown]

flag them, move on