Expenses FAQ

How do I get paid from a Collective?

Go to the Collective and click "Submit Expense". You will need to upload a valid receipt or provide invoicing details and input your PayPal address or bank account.

More details

How are expenses approved?

Anyone can file an expense to any Collective. To be paid, it must be approved by one of the Admins of that Collective.

Please ensure your expense meets the expense policy of the Collective, which appears on the 'submit expense' page. If you modify an expense, it will have to be approved again.

Are receipts or invoices public?

Basic data for all expenses, like the amount and description, are public. But attachments, payment details, addresses, and comments are private, as they may contain personal information. Only the Admins and the submitter can see full expense details.

Can I submit an Anonymous Expense?

You can use a pseudonym on your main profile while maintaining legal requirements with our legal name option in your User Settings.

When will I get paid?

Expenses for Collectives in Fiscal Hosts managed by Open Collective are paid twice weekly. Other hosts have their own policies and schedules.

By what method can I get paid?

Right now our system can process outgoing payments to Paypal addresses and bank accounts (in countries served by Wise).

Paying by other means is a manual process at the discretion of the Fiscal Host. If you are not able to use Paypal or bank account payments through Transferwise, get in touch with the fiscal host of the Collective and see what other options might be available.

What are the approximate fees charged by each payment processor (Credit Card, PayPal, Bank transfer)?

Unfortunately, they can vary depending on the method of payout, the location/currency of the payee, and the amount of the transaction.

The most cost-effective method is Bank Transfer ACH (USD to USD), which is generally .39 cents. With a bank transfer from USD to another currency, we default to Wise's fee structure on this and they vary depending on the country. More info is available here.

PayPal's fees are the hardest to predict. In general, if PayPal and USD to USD, this will be cheaper than USD to any other currency. PayPal fees vary by country and amount because they charge based on the percentage of the transaction total. More info on PayPal fees here.

It is really hard to estimate the fees. Hopefully, the Wise & PayPal documentation can give you some guidance on the estimated fees for your typical transactions.