Can't find the "convert" option to take relationship outside of Upwork

[jorgensons]

This morning, a former client emailed me. We worked together in March 2018, and he'd like to collaborate on a new project. He would prefer to work outside of Upwork. This shouldn't be an issue since the relationship began almost 5 years ago, and the TOS allows freelancers to accept payments outside of Upwork after 2 years. From what I understand, there should be a one-time conversion fee of $1 to take this relationship off Upwork.

I'm trying to initiate the conversion process, but I'm not having any luck. Upwork's online tutorial offers the following steps:

1. Go to Jobs > All Contracts
2. Choose a specific contract under All contracts and select the (…) menu
3. Select the Request Contract Conversion button to start the conversion process

However,  when I click the "..." menu, the only option that appears is "send a message." I'm also trying to initiate conversion from the actual contract page, but when I click the "..." from that screen, there's no conversion option -- just "propose new contract" and "give refund." (See screenshots below.) What am I doing wrong? Help!

[jorgensons]

Ah, just figured it out. Clients have to be the ones to initiate conversion. That's a little bit mind-blowing. Why can't either party initiate the process to make is as easy and painless as possible? I would gladly pay the $1 fee so I can charge my client less and still earn a higher profit.

Of course, that's a rhetorical question. I know the answer. It's a barrier. Every obstacle reduces the number of relationships that leave Upwork due to the "screw it" factor. I'll let my client know that he'll have to resurrect his defunct Upwork account in order to move forward, otherwise I can't work with him off-platform. (Or, for that matter, on-platform.) What a pain.

I'm guessing this is a job I won't get because of the difficulty associated with moving forward.

[bobafett999]

Be calm and gentle.  You don't get that many chances to work off platform with a buyer who you met through upwork!  It is like you met through us, so marry him.  

[shaespencer]

I'm having the same issue. Did you ever find an answer for this?

[ArjayM]

Hi Shae,

Thank you for reaching out to us. It looks like the OP (Signe) found the answer to her query herself. We certainly understand that sometimes, clients and freelancers who have met through Upwork wish to work together directly outside of Upwork. We provide the option to do this with a one-time payment of the Upwork Conversion Fee. We call this process “contract conversion.” 

As Signe mentioned, clients need to initiate this process. Once the conversion fee has been paid, we'll inform you that you're both OK to work together off our platform. You may review this help article for more details.

[kbadeau]

I'm having the same problem, except that the person who's trying to follow the instructions above actually IS the client, because I knew before he tried to do it that I wasn't allowed to do it, since I'm the freelancer.

[ArjayM]

Hi Kelly, 

We totally understand your concern about initiating the conversion process. Please remember that initiating and paying the conversion fee demonstrates that the client can pay a freelancer. This protection for freelancers is part of what makes Upwork a safe and reliable place to work. That security is part of what draws quality independent talent to our platform.

Also, we apply a discount to the Conversion Fee based on the total amount of Marketplace fees paid to Upwork by the client. We also consider the length of the relationship between the specific client and the talent converting their contract. 

[kbadeau]

Did AI write that response? That doesn't help at all. I have a client, who I've worked with for 2 years as of November 10, who is trying to convert our contract, but when he clicks on the three dots to the right, the option "Request contract conversion" does not exist.

Can you offer an explanation as to why he does not have that option? Even if the contract weren't two years old, he should still have the option to convert the contract, it would just cost more.

[ArjayM]

Apologies for the inconvenience, Kelly,

In that case, we need to check the client's account and review why they do not have the option to convert your contract. Please advise the client to contact our support team and report the issue they're experiencing. We'll surely look into it and assist them accordingly.

[04de0de5]

Did you get this resolved, Kelly? I also have a client who I have worked with for 2+ years and want to take the work off-platform. Did the client contacting support allow them to pay the conversion fee and end the conversion process?

[6bfcdaf8]

Same problem here!

[kbadeau]

Every project I've tried to convert has had this problem, except one, and every time the answer from Upwork is that the CLIENT has to contact customer service to try to get it resolved. I swear they do it that way on purpose to try to prevent people from converting contracts, but I HAVE successfully converted all my old (active) contracts now.

I don't know if they're doing the math, but I would think the 5% I would have happily paid them is better than the 0% I am currently paying them. All they had to do was grandfather in any contract that was at 5%, but alas, they did not.

So the short answer is... ask your client nicely to contact customer service, apologize for the trouble, and know that it DOES work if the client is willing to be persistent. I always stress that I can get banned from the platorm permanently if I don't follow the procedure, and my clients were all nice enough to jump through that hoop for me.