Payment

[didemnu]

I  submitted the work for payment 1 day ago but my client hasn't approved my payment request.

What should ı do right now?

Thank you!

[robin_hyman · Accepted solution]

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Didem N wrote:

I  submitted the work for payment 1 day ago but my client hasn't approved my payment request.

What should ı do right now?

Thank you!

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You do nothing.  It sounds like this is a fixed-price project.  If you submitted correctly via the submission tool and there was money in escrow, you will receive payment in 14 days.  It's annoying to wait, but more annoying for the client to be harassed by freelancers.  

If the project is complete and you want the client to end the contract, I would write the client and say something along the lines of..

"Hey John, I just submitted the final milestone.  Kindly end the contract and provide feedback based on your experience.  Thank you for the project and I look forward to working with you again in the near future!"

[prestonhunter]

Personally, I never send an additional note when I complete a milestone.

I only use the "Submit Work / Request Payment" button, which has a free-form text box that lets me enter a note. That note IS delivered to the client. And the button starts the countdown clock toward automatic payment.

I find that is quite sufficient.

[didemnu]

I understand, it is really annoying situation!  Thank you very much for your advice! 

[jaybopp82]

I've had clients that wait 10 or so days before they approve.  Not sure the reason - busy with other tasks I assume.  1 day is not long though.  Once you get into the flow of things and start landing more jobs, you'll get used to just hitting the Submit Work button and forgetting about it.  It'll auto approve if you never hear from the client again (after 2 weeks).

Hope this provides some clarity.

[prestonhunter]

When clients don't do anything after I submit a milestone, and then the payment gets automatically released, I think it is amusing.

I understand that some freelancers feel frustrated by this. But 14 days is 14 days. Upwork's rules give the client 14 days to approve milestones, and auto-release money if they "implicitly approve" the work by doing nothing.

Isn't that better than if the work never gets approved and payment never gets released?

To me, this system seems quite fair to both clients and freelancers.

[d0d10224]

It would be better if the client could at least acknowledge he/she received the work. 

To wait fourteen days is beyond frustrating when prior work has all been satifactory and on time. As the writer, I'd appreciate the cleint letting me know he's aware I submitted work.

Looks like the rent will be late next month.

[martina_plaschka]

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Barb B wrote:

It would be better if the client could at least acknowledge he/she received the work. 

To wait fourteen days is beyond frustrating when prior work has all been satifactory and on time. As the writer, I'd appreciate the cleint letting me know he's aware I submitted work.

Looks like the rent will be late next month.

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You need to factor 14 days into your schedules. It is perfectly within the rights of the client to not approve and just let the system run it's course. I have great clients who do that, and it's fine with me. Relying on upwork for rent payments seems risky per se, as freelancing is hardly a steady income.