9%
Platform commission
Taken from vendor revenue on every settled line.
This page summarizes the fees, payout timing, and cancellation rules that apply to vendors selling through Gather. It is provided for reference and is governed by the Vendor Agreement you accept during onboarding. Specific amounts and policies on individual bookings always follow what was in effect at the time the booking was accepted.
9%
Platform commission
Taken from vendor revenue on every settled line.
12%
Customer service fee
Paid by the customer and never deducted from vendor payout.
100%
HST and incidentals
Configured HST and incidental fees pass straight through.
14 days
Cancellation window
Cancellation fees gate on the 14 days before the event.
5 days
Final payment timing
Charged at event_end_at + 5 days.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Platform commission (vendor) | 9% of vendor revenue |
| Customer service fee | 12% of booking total, paid by the customer |
| HST and incidental fees | 100% pass-through to vendor with no commission and no service fee applied. |
| Currency | Canadian Dollars (CAD) only |
| Stripe processing fees | Paid by Gather; not deducted from vendor payout |
The 14 calendar days preceding event_start_at. Cancellation fees only apply inside this window.
Charged at booking acceptance (responded_at). Configured per offering by the vendor. The 12% customer service fee on the deposit portion is collected at the same time.
Charged at event_end_at + 5 days for every booking. Covers the remaining principal, the 12% service fee on that remaining balance, and HST.
When an approved change request increases the deposit, the additional amount settles exactly like a deposit - 9% platform commission, the 12% customer service fee, and HST pass-through all apply to the delta. A decrease refunds the corresponding principal, HST, and the proportional service fee.
Base price plus add-ons, delivery, and option upcharges, before service fee and HST.
For vendor cancellations inside the window: deposit plus 20% of line total.
Vendors cannot cancel within 24 hours of event_start_at.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Deposit | Scheduled at booking acceptance (`responded_at`) and charged automatically as soon as due. Amount and type are set per offering by the vendor. The 12% customer service fee on the deposit portion is collected with the deposit; the rest of the service fee is collected at the final payment. |
| Final payment | Scheduled 5 calendar days after the event end (`event_end_at + 5 days`) for every booking. If that timestamp is already in the past at acceptance time, it runs immediately. Covers the remaining principal, the 12% service fee on the remaining balance, and tax. |
| Vendor transfer to connected account | Queued after each successful charge (deposit and final phases) and sent to the vendor connected Stripe account in transfer batches. This is not delayed until event end in the current implementation. |
| Payout batching | Eligible vendor transfers are grouped by event + vendor + phase and processed by automation. Stripe bank-settlement timing then follows the connected account payout schedule/review status. |
Vendor commission is applied at each settlement step. The customer service fee is retained by Gather and is never deducted from the vendor’s payout. If Stripe marks the connected account payouts-disabled, transfer release is paused until Stripe clears the account.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| More than 14 days before the event | No additional penalty. Customer is refunded 100% of any captured deposit. Vendor is clawed back/invoiced for the full deposit amount, which effectively covers Gather's 9% retained commission. |
| Within 14 days of the event | Vendor is charged the full deposit clawback plus 20% of the line total, and a 12% service fee on (deposit + penalty). |
| Customer refund on vendor cancellation | 100% of captured deposit is refunded to the customer in all vendor-cancellation scenarios. |
| How the penalty is collected | Stripe invoice issued to the vendor. Retry attempts run automatically; unresolved invoices are flagged for support follow-up. |
| Cancellation lockout | Vendor cancellation is disabled within 24 hours of the event start. |
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Before vendor accepts | No charge. Any held deposit authorization is released without settlement. |
| After vendor accepts, outside the cancellation window | Deposit retained by the vendor according to the vendor’s configured cancellation policy. |
| Within the cancellation window (within 14 days of the event) | Deposit retained. Customer is charged the cancellation fee defined on the offering, plus the 12% service fee applied to the combined penalty base. |
| Vendor receives | The cancellation fee, less platform commission. Funds held while a vendor account is in payout-hold are retained until the hold clears. |
Each offering may define its own cancellation fee. The cancellation window is the 14 calendar days preceding the event start date.
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Refunds before payout | Refund reduces the customer charge and removes the vendor’s payable share for that line. |
| Refunds after payout | Vendor’s share is reversed via the next scheduled payout. A clawback record is written so the vendor can reconcile against their Stripe statement. |
| Deposit principal (vendor cancellation) | 100% refunded (full deposit). Vendor is invoiced/clawed back for the full amount, including the 9% Gather retains. |
| Deposit decrease (change request) | When an approved change request lowers the deposit, the customer is refunded the reduced principal, the corresponding HST, and the proportional 12% service fee on the reduced amount. |
| Chargebacks and disputes | Handled through Stripe’s dispute process. Funds are placed on hold for the disputed booking until the dispute resolves. |
| Card refund timing | Refunds are issued to the original card on file. Most card networks return funds in 5 to 10 business days; some take longer based on issuer policy. |
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| HST and other sales taxes | Vendor remains responsible for collecting and remitting applicable sales taxes. HST configured on an offering is added to the customer charge and passed to the vendor as part of the line total. |
| Delivery fees | Configured per vendor profile or per offering. Treated as part of the line total and subject to platform commission. |
| Add-ons and option upcharges | Treated as part of the line total and subject to platform commission and the customer service fee on the same terms as the base price. |
| Tips | Not collected through Gather. If a customer wishes to tip, the vendor must arrange this outside the platform. |
| Incidental fees (post-event) | Captured within 5 days of event end. 100% pass-through to vendor with no commission and no service fee. |
| Item | Rule |
|---|---|
| Off-session charge failure | Retries follow the 5, 15, 30, 60, 180, and 720 minute schedule. After six attempts the booking is flagged for manual review. |
| Connected account payouts-disabled | Vendor transfers pause until Stripe clears the account. Customer charges and the booking itself continue normally. |
| Unpaid vendor invoice | Future payouts may be paused until the invoice is settled or the support team intervenes. |
| Negative connected-account balance | If refunds or cancellations push your Stripe connected-account balance negative, Gather first lets your upcoming payouts cover it - incoming booking payouts are applied to the negative balance automatically, at no extra cost. Only if the balance stays negative for 30 days with no upcoming bookings (with payouts due within 60 days) large enough to cover it do we issue a recovery invoice on your connected account. The invoice appears in your payments dashboard with a link to settle it; if upcoming payouts cover the balance first, the invoice is voided automatically. |
Gather may update this schedule from time to time. Material changes to commission, service fees, or payout timing take effect for bookings created after the effective date shown at the top of this page; bookings already accepted remain on the terms in effect when they were accepted.