When do you actually get paid after a sale

A buyer has paid. You can see the order. You open your banking app and nothing is there.

That is normal. It is still a shock the first time, and it matters, because you have already paid for the stock. Here is how the money moves on Berkedai and what to plan around.

Paid is not the same as in your bank

When a buyer pays, the money does not go straight to you. It is held until the buyer has what they paid for.

The reason is the buyer. Someone who has never bought from you is sending money to a stranger. They will do it if they know the money has not already gone when a parcel fails to arrive. The hold is what lets a buyer trust a shop they have not bought from before.

The steps

Payment is held under Berkedai Protected until the order is delivered. Then it is settled to you. In order:

• The buyer pays. The order shows as paid. The money is held.
• You ship. You arrange the shipment, and the courier collects or you drop the parcel off.
• The parcel is delivered. The courier confirms it. Your earnings for that order are worked out.
• The money is released. Two to three days after delivery. If the buyer confirms they received the order, it is released at once.
• You withdraw. Released money can be sent to your bank account.

So the wait is counted from delivery, not from payment. A parcel that takes three days to arrive means roughly a week from sale to money you can withdraw.

What comes off each order

The fees are taken from each order before it reaches your balance. For a new store that is an 8% platform fee and 3% payment processing, both on the price of the products. Physical orders also carry a shipping handling fee, a fixed amount plus a small percentage of the shipping the buyer paid.

The platform fee steps down to 6% and then 4% as a store's monthly sales grow, and once it has gone down it does not go back up. The order page shows every line, so you do not have to work it out yourself.

Three things that slow it down

Shipping late. Nothing starts until the parcel moves. An order paid on Monday and shipped on Friday has lost four days.

No verified bank account. Adding your bank account is not the last step. It is checked first, and you cannot withdraw until it is verified. Add it when you open the store, not on the day you want the money.

A dispute. If the buyer's bank is disputing the payment, the money for that order is held until it is resolved.

Getting it to your bank

With a verified account, a withdrawal of your full balance is requested for you every Monday. You can also ask for one yourself at any time. The first withdrawal each week is free, and the automatic Monday one counts as the first. Allow some time for the transfer to arrive.

What to plan your cash around

• Do not spend an order's money on the day it is paid. Count on a week before you can withdraw it, and more before it is in your bank.
• Keep enough for the next batch of stock. You will be buying again before the last batch has paid you.
• Ship the same day or the next. It is the one part of the wait you control.
• Hand the parcel over on time. Delivery is what releases your money.

Once orders come in steadily, this stops being a wait. Money from last week's orders arrives while this week's are on their way.

Start your store at berkedai.com