Affonso lets you collect tax forms from affiliates. Affiliates upload their forms in the affiliate portal, and you review each submission before approving it.
Affonso does not provide tax advice or verify that the information in a tax form is legally correct. If you are unsure what you need to collect or approve, speak with a qualified tax adviser.
Before you start
Tax forms are available on the Elite plan for programs using Self-Service Payouts. To collect them, set the program's Tax Forms setting to Required. Tax forms are not available with Managed Payouts:
- When Managed Payouts are enabled, Affonso handles payouts and the related compliance process.
- Enabling Managed Payouts changes the Tax Forms setting to Not Required.
- If you later turn Managed Payouts off, set Tax Forms to Required again if you want to continue collecting forms.
Require tax forms for a program
- Open Payment Terms for your affiliate program.
- Find the Tax Forms section.
- Select Required.
Affiliates in that program can now submit their tax form from their portal settings. Affonso will not create a payout for an affiliate until you have approved a valid form.
To stop requiring forms, select Not Required. Only do this if it matches your own tax and compliance requirements.
What affiliates submit
Affiliates answer a short set of questions in their portal. Based on their own answers, Affonso guides them to one of these forms:
| Affiliate's answer | Form shown |
|---|---|
| I am a US person for US tax purposes | W-9 |
| I am not a US person and receive this income as an individual | W-8BEN |
| I am not a US person and receive this income as an entity | W-8BEN-E |
The submission then has the status Under review. Uploading a form alone does not make an affiliate eligible for payout.
An affiliate can replace a rejected or expired form with a new submission.
Review a tax form
Once Tax Forms is set to Required for at least one program, open Monitoring → Tax forms in your dashboard.
The Tax forms page shows the affiliate, form type, status, submission date, expiry date, reviewer, and any rejection reason. Use the filters to search by affiliate name or email, status, form type, submission date, or expiry date.
- Find the affiliate's submission.
- Download the PDF and review it according to your internal process.
- Select Approve or Reject.
Approve a form
When approving a form, confirm its signed date. For W-8BEN and W-8BEN-E, you can set an earlier expiry date when needed.
W-8 forms expire no later than 31 December of the third calendar year after they were signed. W-9 forms do not have an automatic expiry date.
Once you approve a valid form, the affiliate is eligible for payouts, as long as they meet your other payout requirements.
Reject a form
Enter a clear rejection reason. The affiliate sees the reason in their portal and can submit a corrected replacement.
You can also revoke an approved form when it should no longer be accepted. The affiliate will need an approved replacement before payouts can resume.
Understand tax-form statuses
| Status | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Missing | The affiliate has not submitted a form. | Ask them to submit one. |
| Under review | The affiliate submitted a form and is waiting for your decision. | Review the PDF and approve or reject it. |
| Approved | The form is approved and still valid. | No action is needed. |
| Rejected | The form was not accepted. | The affiliate can submit a corrected form. |
| Expired | The form is no longer valid. | Ask the affiliate to submit a new form. |
| Superseded | A newer submission replaced this form. | Use Include superseded history if you need to view it. |
How tax forms affect payouts
When Tax Forms is set to Required, an affiliate's earnings are not lost if their form is missing, under review, rejected, or expired. Affonso simply does not create their payout until an approved, valid form is available.
On the Payments page, the Blocked by tax forms section shows affected earnings and the reason they are blocked:
- No form submitted
- Waiting for your approval
- Form rejected
- Form expired
After you approve a valid form, the affiliate can be included in the next payout run.
Mark one payout as paid without an approved form
In rare cases, you can mark a payout as paid without an approved tax form. You must explicitly confirm the exception and provide a reason. The exception is recorded for your audit trail.
This option is intentionally unavailable for bulk actions. Before using it, make sure the exception is appropriate for your own legal and compliance requirements.
FAQ
Why can't I see Tax forms in the dashboard?
The menu item appears after Tax Forms is set to Required for at least one program. It is not available for programs using Managed Payouts.
Does submitting a form automatically unlock a payout?
No. You must approve the form before the affiliate becomes eligible for normal payouts.
Can I choose the tax form for an affiliate?
No. The affiliate confirms their own tax status and is guided to the relevant form. Affonso does not determine an affiliate's tax status.
What happens when a W-8 form expires?
The affiliate must submit a new form. Payouts remain blocked until you approve the replacement.
Can I view older forms after an affiliate submits a replacement?
Yes. Select Include superseded history on the Tax forms page to view replaced submissions.
