Last updated: September 2026 · Reviewed by the Partner Federation partnerships team, with two decades of combined experience in online trading and brokerage partnerships.
Most partners never read the actual partnership agreement closely before signing — they read the summary on the sign-up page, check the headline commission rate, and click accept. That’s a mistake, because the agreement, not the marketing page, is the document that decides whether you actually get paid.
What’s actually in a partnership contract
A typical introducing-broker or affiliate agreement covers: the commission structure and rate; payout frequency, minimum threshold, and settlement currency (see Getting Paid); the attribution window and cookie duration used to link a referral back to you; sub-affiliate and override terms if you’ll be building a multi-tier network; what happens to client ownership if the agreement ends; the conditions under which a payout can be clawed back; termination and notice terms; marketing and compliance obligations; and which law and venue govern any dispute.
Clauses that should make you pause
- Unilateral rate changes with no minimum notice. A clause letting the broker change your commission rate at any time, effective immediately, means every number quoted to you when you signed up is provisional.
- Broad, vague clawback language. “At the broker’s sole discretion” clawback wording is very different from a clawback narrowly defined to fraud, chargebacks, or deposit reversals — the distinction the Getting Paid page draws between a client’s normal trading loss (never clawed back) and an actual payment reversal (is clawed back). A contract that doesn’t draw that line leaves it entirely up to the broker later.
- No survival clause for trailing commissions. If the agreement is silent on what happens to ongoing revenue share, lot rebate, or spread share commissions after termination, the broker can end the relationship and keep collecting from clients you already referred — without you.
- Exclusivity with no reciprocal commitment. Being locked into promoting one broker exclusively is sometimes reasonable for a large, dedicated IB relationship, but should come with something in return — a defined rate, a dedicated account manager, minimum service commitments.
- An inconvenient, one-sided dispute clause. Mandatory arbitration in a distant jurisdiction, with no cost-sharing provision, can make a legitimate dispute practically unenforceable regardless of who’s right. See What to Do If a Broker Stops Paying Your Commissions for what this means in practice.
- No defined “qualified client” or “qualified lead.” If the broker has sole, unstated discretion over what counts as payable, it can decline to pay for referrals after the fact with no objective standard to point to.
- Termination “for any reason,” effective immediately, with no cure period. A broker that can end the relationship instantly, for any or no reason, holds all the leverage in every other clause in the contract.
- No audit or reporting rights. If you can’t independently verify your own reported trading volume or lead count, you’re relying entirely on the broker’s own dashboard — with no way to check it.
What a fair contract usually includes
- Commission math that’s specific enough to calculate yourself from the numbers in CPA, Revenue Share, Lot Rebate, or Spread Share reporting, not a vague percentage range
- A specific, time-boxed clawback definition tied to fraud or payment reversals — not broker discretion
- A defined notice period for both rate changes and termination
- Trailing commission that survives termination for clients already referred, or a contract that’s at least explicit that it doesn’t, stated up front rather than discovered later
- A named payout schedule, threshold, and currency, matching what’s described in Getting Paid
- A stated, reasonably accessible dispute-resolution path
Practical steps before signing
- Read the actual agreement document — not just the summary on the partner sign-up page.
- Get any ambiguous term clarified in writing. An email reply is evidence later; a verbal assurance from an account manager isn’t.
- Keep your own copy. Programs do update their terms, and you want a record of what you actually agreed to.
- Run the broker and program through How to Spot a Fake or Predatory Partner Program and How to Verify a Broker’s IB Program Is Legitimate before you sign, not after.
FAQ
Can a broker legally change my commission rate after I’ve already built up referred clients?
Usually yes, if the contract allows unilateral amendment — that’s exactly why the notice-period clause matters before you sign, not after a rate cut has already happened.
What happens to my commissions if I stop actively promoting the program?
It depends entirely on the trailing-commission language in your specific contract. Most legitimate revenue share, lot rebate, and spread share arrangements keep paying for as long as the referred client keeps trading, regardless of whether you’re still actively referring new ones — but this is a contract term, not a universal rule, so confirm it explicitly.
Is a non-compete or exclusivity clause normal?
It can be, particularly for a larger IB relationship with dedicated support and a negotiated rate. It’s a red flag mainly when it’s one-sided — you’re locked in, but the broker commits to nothing specific in return. If your volume has grown since you signed, that negotiated rate is worth revisiting — see Negotiating Your Rate.
Should I get a lawyer to review a partnership agreement?
For a casual, low-volume affiliate arrangement, probably not economical. For a serious partnership with meaningful projected volume — or any agreement with an exclusivity or multi-tier override structure — a one-time legal review is a reasonable cost against the downside of an unfair contract.
What’s a fair clawback clause look like?
Narrow and specific: tied to fraud, chargebacks, or deposit reversals, within a defined time window — not a broad, standing right for the broker to reclaim commission at its own discretion. See Getting Paid for the underlying distinction between a client’s ordinary trading loss and an actual payment reversal.