| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | No invoices accepted with amounts less than 500 € Thread poster: Isabell Scherg
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| 500 Euros is out of the question | Jan 6 |
As Zea_Mays wrote, this sum is beyond a reasonable sum and what happens when this client goes bust before you get your 500 Euros?
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what if they stop sending you jobs when they owe you €499?
| | | | | "No assignment accepted when the order sum is less than..." | Jan 6 |
One could of course decline every job that pays below 1000 EUR - and demand half the money up front (before starting) if a large 1000 EUR+ job appears.
Two can play that game. 
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This is only a trick for helping their own treasury. It meaqs they are not financially stable. So they are a high risk for the translator anyway. Stop! You are not their banker.
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Luca Tutino 
Italy
Member (2002)
English to Italian
+ ...
| Do not accept any job under the threshold - Reserve your time to look for better clients | Jan 6 |
The trick is a bad sign, indicative of a risky situation and/or serious business incompetence, and so unreal that it would be difficult to discuss the matter without offending them. But you should definitely mention it every time you turn down any job for less than €500,00: just state that you can accept it if they raise the figure to at least 500,00, regardless of the original offer. With a smile in your voice.
In such cases, the PMs will probably promise an exception to the rule... See more The trick is a bad sign, indicative of a risky situation and/or serious business incompetence, and so unreal that it would be difficult to discuss the matter without offending them. But you should definitely mention it every time you turn down any job for less than €500,00: just state that you can accept it if they raise the figure to at least 500,00, regardless of the original offer. With a smile in your voice.
In such cases, the PMs will probably promise an exception to the rule, and you should make sure that they state it clearly and that you repeat it in your written exchanges. But it would be better for you if they didn't. So that you can devote your time to getting a better client.
[Edited at 2024-01-06 23:15 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | No invoices accepted with amounts less than 500 € | Jan 7 |
Hello,
Thank you for the information. I understand that invoices with amounts less than 500 € are not accepted. This policy likely helps in optimizing administrative processes and managing transaction costs more efficiently.
If you have any specific guidelines or procedures related to invoicing or if there are alternative methods for handling smaller amounts, please let me know. I want to ensure that our invoicing aligns with your requirements.
Looking fo... See more Hello,
Thank you for the information. I understand that invoices with amounts less than 500 € are not accepted. This policy likely helps in optimizing administrative processes and managing transaction costs more efficiently.
If you have any specific guidelines or procedures related to invoicing or if there are alternative methods for handling smaller amounts, please let me know. I want to ensure that our invoicing aligns with your requirements.
Looking forward to any additional details you may provide.
Best regards,
[raoof] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Inge Schumacher
France
Local time: 00:48
Member (2023)
French to German
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| When do you have to pay your social contributions? | Jan 7 |
In France, we have to declare our income every 3 months, and pay our social security contributions (21.1% of turnover) within 3 weeks of the declaration.
I have an unpaid invoice of EUR 3,700 to declare for the last quarter of 2023... and I'll have to pay EUR 780 before the end of this month to the French authorities!
What happens if I don't get paid?
The agencies make easy money out of our work, and don't give a *** about any financial problems we might have!
... See more In France, we have to declare our income every 3 months, and pay our social security contributions (21.1% of turnover) within 3 weeks of the declaration.
I have an unpaid invoice of EUR 3,700 to declare for the last quarter of 2023... and I'll have to pay EUR 780 before the end of this month to the French authorities!
What happens if I don't get paid?
The agencies make easy money out of our work, and don't give a *** about any financial problems we might have!
I would stop working for such agencies, it's as simple as that! We must not SUPPORT companies that have no ethical approach to their "resources".
In the long run, they are the ones who will lose out.... Well, that's what I hope ▲ Collapse
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Inge Schumacher wrote:
In France, we have to declare our income every 3 months, and pay our social security contributions (21.1% of turnover) within 3 weeks of the declaration.
I have an unpaid invoice of EUR 3,700 to declare for the last quarter of 2023... and I'll have to pay EUR 780 before the end of this month to the French authorities!
What happens if I don't get paid?
I wouldn't presume to know anything about the tax system in France, but one could consult their accountants if the tax laws allows for some form of cash accounting (invoices are accounted as income when paid, not when issued). This "solves" the issue only partially, as you're off the hook when it comes to
state impositions, but the crux of the problem remains - that the delay between doing the job and getting your hands on the money can reach several months.
Sure, an established company is expected to have some kind of a cash cushion and stay in liquidity, but more often than this is not the reality when you are freelancing and just getting by.
Sadly, I don't share your optimism that it's the ethically challenged agency that eventually will get their just deserts. Unless the translation market gets to a better place.
For this (pardon me) business model to fly, they need only need for the right kind of person to roll by (desperate, seeking to establish themselves and not knowing any better),
and like they used to say, there's one born every minute.
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Eva Stoppa
Germany
Local time: 00:48
English to German
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| It does leave me speechless, but... | Jan 8 |
Luca Tutino wrote:
just state that you can accept it if they raise the figure to at least 500,00, regardless of the original offer. With a smile in your voice.
.
[Edited at 2024-01-06 23:15 GMT]
Why a smile in your face? They didn't smile when they came up with this "suggestion" They were serious! So why not show them that you are serious about your condition, too?
| | | | Georgi Kovachev
Bulgaria
Local time: 01:48
Member (2010)
English to Bulgarian
+ ...
Christopher Schröder wrote:
Just bill them 500 euros for every job. Sorted.
I would opt for a win-win situation and would change this by emailing them that I will bill 500 EUR at the end of the quarter regardless of the word count of all projects within this period of time. I am sure they will be "stimulated" to exceed this sum of money.
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If you've done work for an agency you are entitled to invoice them for it and get paid. As others have said, one solution would be to stop accepting orders totalling less than 500 euros. Another would be to drop them altogether, as a company imposing unreasonable requirements is probably not the kind of company you want to be working for.
| | | | | Surely not legitimate | Jan 8 |
Zea_Mays wrote:
I work with an agency with if I remember well a 70 € threshold, but 500 € is way beyond a reasonable sum.
The only acceptable reason for thresholds is transfer fees
Not likely, those are SEPA transfers. [/quote]
while in this case it looks more like a method to a) pay you only after the clients paid, and b) achieve savings thanks to messy translators who don't keep track of their payments.
There is also to check if this is legitimate.
Sure...
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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida wrote:
I wouldn’t discuss it (it’s probably useless), but I would become unavailable for small projects.
That was the first thing that came to my mind as well. If 500€ is what you want to pay for, then 500€ is what you'll get. I'm too old to play "Will they, won't they" games when it comes to payment.
| | | | Matthieu Ledoré
France
Local time: 00:48
Member (2022)
English to French
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| Report them on TRI-TRAB and the Blue Board | Jan 9 |
ProZ's Blue Board is well-known: https://www.proz.com/blueboard
Sometimes, linguists even get paid after posting scathing reviews.
TRI-TRAB is an initiative by one of our fellow translators: https://tri-trab.com/
It is a good complement to the Blue Board. While the BB allows to get averages and mostly... See more ProZ's Blue Board is well-known: https://www.proz.com/blueboard
Sometimes, linguists even get paid after posting scathing reviews.
TRI-TRAB is an initiative by one of our fellow translators: https://tri-trab.com/
It is a good complement to the Blue Board. While the BB allows to get averages and mostly focuses on non-payers, TRI-TRAB lets you publish a fact-based report on noxious business practices, be it low rates, misleading job descriptions, etc.
In other words, it only focuses on bad clients, and you can see the evidence.
Both can be useful in limiting dishonest policies like the one you are reporting. ▲ Collapse
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Seems rather high to me. One client of mine doesn't do transfers abroad (client is in the UK, I'm in Germany) until £100 has been invoiced, which I can understand due to high bank transfer fees. Luckily, this has never been a problem as they always send quite large projects.
| | | | | Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] > | To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator: You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request » No invoices accepted with amounts less than 500 € | Protemos translation business management system | Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!
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