A referral program for accountants and bookkeepers: when to recommend SaturnShift to a client, and how commission works

Clients ask their accountant about payments long before they ask anyone else. "Should I take cards?" "Why does this processor's deposit never match the invoice?" "A customer wants to pay in USDC, is that a problem for the books?" You end up answering those questions whether or not anyone pays you for it.

SaturnShift Partners is a referral program for people who advise small businesses, and accountants, bookkeepers and QuickBooks consultants are a large part of who it is for. It is live and open for applications at saturnshift.io/partners.

This post is written for a practice deciding whether to join. Most of it is about the client, because a referral only holds up if the tool really suits the business you send to it.

Which clients it fits

SaturnShift is a payments, invoicing and commerce platform for US businesses. A client can send branded invoices that customers pay by card, ACH or stablecoin (subject to plan), share payment links, send automatic email reminders before an invoice is due and after it is overdue, and see reporting, reconciliation views and monthly statements in their dashboard.

The clients it tends to suit:

• Businesses that invoice and wait to be paid. Invoices, payment links and email reminders sit in one place, and reminders skip invoices that are already paid or have a payment in progress.
• Businesses on QuickBooks Online. On Crypto Suite and Full Suite, the QuickBooks Online connection reflects invoices, payments, refunds and fees in the books, including stablecoin payments. More detail is on the QuickBooks page.
• Businesses with customers who want to pay in stablecoins. SaturnShift accepts USDC on Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum and Polygon, and USDT on Ethereum and Base. Payments settle in kind to the business's own wallet, so a USDC payment on Polygon arrives as USDC on Polygon. SaturnShift doesn't hold the funds and doesn't convert them to dollars. If the client wants dollars, they convert through their own exchange.
• Businesses that bill the same customers every month by card. Recurring billing is a Full Suite feature, and it charges a card.

Where it doesn't fit, so you can say no early

Being specific here saves you a difficult conversation later:

• Xero or QuickBooks Desktop clients. The accounting sync is QuickBooks Online only.
• Starter plan clients who need the sync. Starter ($0 a month) covers card, ACH and stablecoin payments with up to 10 invoices a month, but doesn't include QuickBooks Online, recurring billing or WooCommerce.
• Subscription revenue in the books. Subscription payments don't sync to QuickBooks Online.
• Recurring ACH or recurring stablecoin billing. Neither is available. Recurring billing is card only.
• Businesses outside the US. SaturnShift merchants are US businesses and complete a US Stripe account as part of signup.
• Clients expecting invoice tax to be worked out for them. Tax on invoices is a rate the business enters, per line or for the whole invoice. It isn't calculated automatically.

What to tell a client before they sign up

Set expectations the same way you would for any new system:

1. Every plan includes Stripe onboarding, where the business gives Stripe its business and identity details. Card and ACH payments also carry Stripe's own processing charges, separate from SaturnShift's fee.
2. SaturnShift reviews each account. Your client can start accepting payments once their account is approved. Before that they can explore the product and set up invoices.
3. Stablecoins need a payout wallet before payments can settle.
4. Check the plan against the need. QuickBooks Online is on Crypto Suite and Full Suite. Recurring billing is Full Suite. Crypto Suite is stablecoin only. Current fees are on the pricing page.

A client who signs up through your partner link or code gets a 30-day trial on their first paid subscription (Crypto Suite or Full Suite) instead of the standard 7 days, where eligible. The trial covers the subscription fee only; processing fees apply as normal during it, and a business that has already had a SaturnShift trial or paid subscription doesn't get it. For you, that means no subscription commission while the trial invoice is $0, but processing commission still counts on the processing fees SaturnShift collects on the client's payments during the trial. Stripe onboarding and approval still apply. For a client moving their invoicing and books across, the extra time to check the QuickBooks Online side is genuinely useful.

How commission works for a practice

Approved partners earn 25% of the subscription fees a referred business pays SaturnShift and 15% of the processing fees SaturnShift collects on that business's payments.

Three details matter most to accountants:

• It is never a share of your client's sales. Commission isn't based on their revenue, their payment volume, Stripe's fees or network fees. It is a share of SaturnShift's own collected fees only.
• Each client has its own 12-month window, starting from the first fee SaturnShift collects from that client after it is credited to you. That can be a processing fee on one of its payments, including during its subscription trial, or its first paid subscription invoice, whichever comes first. Signing up alone doesn't start it. If you refer one client this quarter and another next year, each gets its own 12 months and the windows overlap.
• Starter clients count. A client on the free Starter plan pays no subscription fee, but SaturnShift's processing fees on their payments still count.

One practical point for a practice with an existing client list: only businesses new to SaturnShift can be credited to you, and referrals made before your application is approved don't earn. A client that already uses SaturnShift generally can't be claimed after the fact. Section 5.3 of the terms covers the one exception.

Commission is recorded in your dashboard as Pending when SaturnShift's fee is confirmed as collected. Each commission is then held for 30 days before it becomes available for payout. Payouts are a separate step: they are sent manually, normally once a month, when your available balance is at least USD 50, by ACH to a US bank account or in USDC on Base. No particular payout date is guaranteed. The SaturnShift Partners page and the terms cover the details.

We don't publish earnings examples. What you earn depends on which clients you refer and what fees SaturnShift collects from them. Terms can vary by partner, and the Partner Programme Terms & Conditions are the binding version.

A note on professional rules

Accountants and bookkeepers often work under professional or licensing rules about referral compensation and disclosure to clients. Whether you can accept a referral commission, and what you have to tell a client, can depend on your credential, where you practise and the kind of client. Don't assume it is permitted for every client you serve. Check with your own professional body before you join; we can't advise on how those rules apply to you.

Separately, the partner terms require every partner to describe SaturnShift accurately and to clearly disclose the relationship with SaturnShift wherever they promote it.

How to join

1. Apply at saturnshift.io/partners and accept the terms.
2. Request a partner code, or leave it blank and one is assigned. A code is secured only when your application is approved, and it can't be changed after that.
3. Wait for review. Every application is reviewed, and approval isn't automatic.

If your practice already uses SaturnShift as a merchant, you can apply from inside your account. Your own merchant account never earns commission.

FAQ

Is this a percentage of my clients' revenue?
No. Commission is 25% of subscription fees and 15% of processing fees that SaturnShift itself collects from the client, never a share of their sales or volume.

What does my client get for signing up through my link?
Through your link or code, they get a 30-day trial on their first paid subscription (Crypto Suite or Full Suite) instead of 7 days.

Does the QuickBooks Online sync work for every client?
Only on Crypto Suite and Full Suite, and only for QuickBooks Online. Subscription payments don't sync.

When does a client's 12-month window start?
When SaturnShift collects its first fee from that client, whether that is a processing fee during the trial or the first paid subscription invoice. Signing up alone doesn't start it.

Do I earn anything during a client's 30-day trial?
No subscription commission while the trial invoice is $0, but processing commission counts on the processing fees SaturnShift collects during the trial.

I have a question about attribution, payouts or tax forms.
Email [e-mail]. Those are answered case by case.

If some of your clients fit the description above, apply to SaturnShift Partners.