Legal Terms Template

When you launch your new referral program, you will need to update your app's terms of service to ensure that you give your users information on the terms of your referral program. Below is a boilerplate, draft template you can use as a reference to share with your legal council. This guide is for reference only, and is not legal advice. Do not use these legal terms without first consulting professional legal advice in your juristdiction.

It is written to line up with how Invitebase actually works: rewards fire on validated referrals, qualification runs through gates, abuse is caught by fraud checks, and payouts carry tax reporting obligations. The clauses reserve the discretion you need to run a program without painting yourself into a corner.

Sample referral program terms

[APP] Referral Program Terms

Last updated: [DATE]

These Referral Program Terms ("Terms") govern participation in the [APP] referral program (the "Program") operated by [COMPANY] ("we", "us"). By participating, you agree to these Terms, our [Terms of Service], and our [Privacy Policy]. If you do not agree, do not participate.

1. Eligibility. To participate you must be at least [MINIMUM AGE] years old, have an active [APP] account in good standing, and reside in a jurisdiction where the Program is offered. Employees, contractors, and affiliates of [COMPANY] may be excluded. The Program is for personal, non-commercial use only.

2. How it works. As a "Referrer", you receive a unique referral link or code to share with people you personally know. When a new user (a "Referred User") signs up through your link and completes the [QUALIFYING ACTION] within [REDEMPTION WINDOW], the referral becomes eligible for a reward. A Referrer and a Referred User must be two different people; you may not refer yourself or create accounts to refer yourself.

3. Rewards. For each qualifying referral, the Referrer receives [REFERRER REWARD] and the Referred User receives [REFERRED REWARD]. Rewards are issued only after the referral is validated and clears our fraud and eligibility checks, and may take up to [PROCESSING TIME] to appear. Rewards have no cash value except where required by law, are non-transferable, and cannot be combined with other offers unless we say so.

4. Limits. We may cap the number of rewards a Referrer can earn per [PERIOD] and in total ([CAP]). We may also limit, adjust, or withhold rewards to keep the Program sustainable. Unredeemed rewards may expire [EXPIRY TERMS].

5. Fair use and fraud. The Program is intended for genuine recommendations to people you know. We may investigate, withhold, reverse, or claw back rewards, and suspend or terminate accounts, where we believe — in our reasonable discretion — that a participant is acting in bad faith or contrary to the intent of the Program. Prohibited conduct includes, without limitation: self-referral; creating fake, duplicate, or automated accounts; spamming, buying, or publicly posting referral links to strangers ("coupon-site" style distribution) where prohibited; misrepresenting [APP] or these Terms; and any activity that violates our [Terms of Service] or applicable law.

6. Payments and taxes. Where a reward is paid as money or a cash equivalent (including gift cards), you are responsible for any taxes on it. We may be required to collect tax information (such as a W-9 or W-8BEN) and to report payments to tax authorities once your cumulative rewards reach applicable reporting thresholds. We may withhold a reward until required tax information is provided.

7. Changes and termination. The Program is offered at our discretion and will not remain open indefinitely. We may change, suspend, or end the Program, or modify these Terms, at any time. Material changes take effect when we post the updated Terms or otherwise notify you. If we end the Program, we may cancel rewards that have not yet vested, subject to applicable law.

8. Disclaimer and liability. The Program is provided "as is". To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties relating to the Program and are not liable for indirect or consequential damages arising from your participation.

9. Governing law. These Terms are governed by the laws of [JURISDICTION], without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Disputes will be resolved [DISPUTE RESOLUTION — e.g. in the courts of [JURISDICTION], or by binding arbitration].

10. Contact. Questions about the Program? Contact us at [SUPPORT EMAIL].

Privacy considerations

Referral programs move personal data around — a Referrer shares a link, a Referred User signs up, and both are linked in your system. Your privacy policy should already cover this, but check that it does:

• What you collect and why. Referral relationships, the events that qualify a referral, and (for cash rewards) payout and tax details. Invitebase practices data minimization — send opaque user IDs rather than PII where you can.
• Controller vs. processor. For your end-users, you are the data controller and Invitebase is a processor acting on your behalf. A DPA is available at support@invitebase.com.
• No fingerprinting. Invitebase's attribution uses only deterministic, platform-sanctioned mechanisms — so your privacy policy does not need to disclose device fingerprinting for referrals.
• Deletion and export. You can honor end-user erasure and export requests across referral, event, reward, and payout records. Reflect that right in your policy.

Where to publish

Link your terms from wherever users encounter the Program:

• On your offer page — a short "Terms apply" link near the reward.
• In referral invitation emails and in-app prompts.
• As a dedicated page (e.g. yourapp.com/referral-terms) that your terms of service references.