Upwork is an incredible service for connecting freelancers, independent professionals and agencies together in a range of fields from writing to sales & marketing.
Unfortunately, sometimes the work you receive is not to the standard you expected.
Regardless of the scope of work, whether it be a complex project; a long-term contract; or a short, one-off task, you have the right to request a refund.
With Upwork, you can request a refund either directly from a freelancer or agency, or through Upwork within 180 days of the payment.
Things to Consider
Before placing a refund request, check the following:
- If you require a refund from a previously funded escrow from a fixed-price contract, then you will need to follow a separate process than described here.
- For issues relating to an hourly contract, a dispute must be filed.
- For issues relating to time-logging, attempt to contact the freelancer or agency before closing a contract.
How to Request a Refund
From a Freelancer
- Head to Jobs, and then onto My Job. Select the title of the contract you want to be refunded.
- Click the three dots in the options menu, and select ‘Request a Refund’ from the drop-down box.
- Decide whether you want the total invoice amount or another amount to be refunded. Then, provide a message describing the reason for the request. Finally, select ‘Send Request’.
Form an Agency
All refund requests for agencies must be placed through customer support. Click here to submit a request.
Refunding a Closed Contract
After submitting a refund request, a contract can still be closed. However, you will still only have 14 days to leave feedback. If you provide feedback, the freelancer or agency can subsequently enable feedback changes, if you later want to change what was written.
A freelancer or agency can decide whether they want to issue a full refund, a partial refund, or no refund. They can initiate refunds via Upwork on any contract, irrespective of whether it is active or ended, provided the refund is:
- Within 180 days of the payment
- Less than the earnings from the contract
- Payable from their available funds
Refund Request Refusals
Following a request, a freelancer or agency can still decline to give a refund, or you may receive no further communication. In such a case, you can raise a dispute via the Dispute Center.
All disputes must be filed by Friday following the close of the billing week. Therefore, for a week’s invoice received on Monday, a dispute must be submitted by midnight on Friday. As such, only the current invoice can be disputed, not a past invoice.
Refund Billing
Following a successful refund request, the money will be automatically credited to you.
- It can take up to 3-5 business days for the credit to become available.
- Monitor any refunds via Reports > Transaction History.
Refunds which reduce a freelancer’s or agency’s earning to $1 or less on a contract, will be removed from both parties’ work history, and any feedback will be removed within 12 hours.
