The $25 Floor and Dec 15 Year-End Force-Pay, Explained | Harmonia
Harmonia's minimum payout is $25: balances under that roll forward until they clear it, and a December 15 force-pay sends any positive balance before year-end.
The minimum payout on Harmonia is $25. Once your brand's monthly invoice clears, payouts run daily through Stripe Connect, and any payable balance of $25 or more goes out on the next daily payout. A balance under $25 is not lost. It rolls forward and keeps adding up until it crosses $25. And on December 15 we pay out any positive balance regardless of the minimum, so nothing earned sits below the floor into the new year.
This guide explains the $25 floor, how it works with the daily payout, and what the December 15 year-end force-pay does.
The short version
- The minimum payout is $25. A payable balance of $25 or more goes out on the next daily payout.
- Under $25 rolls forward. A smaller balance stays put and keeps building across payouts until it crosses $25.
- Nothing is lost below the floor. The minimum sets when the money moves, never whether you keep it.
- December 15 pays everything out. On that date any positive balance is paid regardless of the minimum.
- The floor never resets. Your balance carries forward day to day and month to month.
What the $25 floor is
The $25 floor is the smallest payout we send. When your earned commission has been funded (the brand's invoice has cleared) and your payable balance reaches $25 or more, the next daily payout sends it through Stripe Connect.
The floor exists for one practical reason: a tiny payout costs more in transfer overhead than it moves. Holding a $3 balance until it joins later earnings means more of your money reaches you, instead of being eaten by per-payout cost.
A few things the floor is not:
- It is not a fee. Nothing is deducted for being under the minimum.
- It is not a forfeit. A balance under $25 is still yours, in full, waiting to go out.
- It is not a deadline you can miss. There is no expiry on a sub-$25 balance during the year, and December 15 catches anything still under the floor.
Why a balance under $25 is not paid yet
If your funded balance is under $25, the daily payout skips it and the balance rolls forward. It keeps adding up, day after day, as new sales fund, until it crosses $25. On the next daily payout after that, the whole balance goes out.
Say your funded balance over a few weeks looks like this:
| Day | New funded commission | Running balance | Paid out? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | $8 | $8 | No, under $25 (rolls forward) |
| Day 9 | $10 | $18 | No, under $25 (rolls forward) |
| Day 20 | $12 | $30 | Yes, $30 goes out on the next daily payout |
After the payout, the balance returns to $0 and the same cycle begins with your next funded commission. Nothing about Day 1's $8 was lost. It waited until the total crossed the floor, then went out with the rest.
Rolls forward means it keeps adding up
A balance under $25 is not stuck. Every new funded sale adds to it, and the moment the total reaches $25 it is paid on the next daily payout. The floor decides the timing of the payout, not the amount you keep.
How the floor works with the daily payout
The floor only matters after your money is funded, which is the step where the brand's invoice has cleared. Here is the order it happens in:
- You drive an attributed sale. Your commission is recorded as pending.
- The brand is invoiced and the invoice clears. Your commission moves to funded and becomes payable. For the full set of states, see the affiliate payout timeline.
- The daily payout checks your balance. Once funded, your payable balance is checked every day, not once a month.
- The floor decides the timing. If the balance is $25 or more, it goes out on that day's payout. If it is under $25, it rolls forward to the next day.
So the floor sits at the end of the path. It never holds up money that has not funded yet, and it never reaches back into pending or eligible commission. It only governs when a funded, payable balance is large enough to send. For the whole lifecycle from start to finish, see how athletes get paid.
The December 15 year-end force-pay
December 15 is the one day the $25 floor does not apply. On that date we pay out any positive funded balance, even if it is under $25. A balance of $3, $11, or $24 that has been rolling forward is paid before year-end.
This matters for two reasons:
- No earned money carries into the new year stuck below the floor. Your year closes with your balance cleared.
- It keeps your tax reporting clean. If you clear the IRS reporting threshold for the year, Stripe issues your 1099-NEC automatically at year-end. The form reflects everything you were paid that year, and the December 15 force-pay makes sure a small balance is included rather than left behind.
You do not have to do anything on December 15
The year-end force-pay runs on its own. There is no button to press and no request to send. If you have a positive funded balance, it goes out through Stripe Connect to the bank account you set up at verification.
Floor vs. force-pay, side by side
| Normal daily payout | December 15 force-pay | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Every day, once the invoice clears | Once a year, on December 15 |
| $25 minimum applies? | Yes | No |
| Balance under $25 | Rolls forward to the next day | Paid out in full |
| Balance $25 or more | Paid out on the next daily payout | Paid out |
| What you do | Nothing; it runs on its own | Nothing; it runs on its own |
The floor does not change what you earn
The $25 minimum is about timing, not amount. You earn the commission the brand sets, in full. The 20% platform fee is billed to the brand, so it is never taken out of your payout. The floor never deducts from your balance; it only decides which day a funded balance is large enough to send.
To see your own balance and payout history, open your payouts in the athlete portal. For the day-by-day timing of when each sale becomes payable, see the getting-paid timeline. And to look up the terms used here, see the payout floor and December 15 force-pay glossary entries.
FAQ
What is the minimum payout on Harmonia?
The minimum payout is $25. Once your brand's monthly invoice clears, payouts run daily through Stripe Connect, and any payable balance of $25 or more goes out on the next daily payout. You earn the commission the brand sets, in full; the 20% platform fee is billed to the brand, so it is never taken out of your payout.
Why is my balance under $25 not paid yet?
A payout runs when your payable balance reaches the $25 minimum. If your funded balance is under $25, it stays put and rolls forward, adding up across the daily payouts until it crosses $25. Nothing is lost below the minimum; the floor only sets when the money moves, never whether you keep it.
Do small balances ever get paid out?
Yes. A balance under $25 keeps building until it crosses the floor, then goes out on the next daily payout. And on December 15 we pay out any positive balance regardless of the minimum, so even a few dollars left below $25 is paid before year-end.
What is the December 15 force-pay?
December 15 is the one day the $25 floor does not apply. On that date we pay out any positive funded balance, even if it is under $25, so no earned money sits below the minimum into the new year. It keeps your 1099-NEC clean: the form reflects everything you were paid that year.
Does the $25 floor reset each month?
No. The floor is not a monthly target you have to hit and it never resets. A balance under $25 carries forward day to day and month to month until it crosses $25 or until the December 15 force-pay sends it. You never start over at zero.