Cross-border readiness checklist: what to settle before you register as a partner

Why settle this before you register

Registering is the easy part; unwinding a conflict or a payment problem later is not. The timing explains why. A reward becomes payable only after the referred company's buyer pays and SourceX receives its fee, which follows qualification, a data inventory, agreed price and terms, buyer review and closing. That can be a long way from your introduction. The entity, approvals and tax set-up you choose on day one are the ones in place when money finally moves, and changing them mid-deal is awkward for everyone.

The checklist below is written for advisers based outside the US: accountants, consultants, bankers, lawyers, fractional executives and operators whose networks include US businesses or the groups that own them. Partners can join from any supported country; only the companies they introduce must be in the US.

The checklist

Professional and employer rules

• I have read my professional body's rules on referral fees, commissions and disclosure, and know whether they restrict payments linked to clients.
• If I am employed, I have written approval under my employer's outside activity policy; the explainer on outside business activity policies covers what to disclose.
• I know which companies I may not introduce because of independence, conflict or confidentiality obligations.
• If I hold a securities or financial-services registration anywhere, my firm's compliance team has signed off.

Who registers and who gets paid

• I have checked in the program terms who may register, decided whether to register personally or, if the terms allow it, through my firm or personal company, and confirmed I have authority to do so.
• I know which US tax form the payer will ask for. Foreign individuals generally provide Form W-8BEN and foreign entities provide Form W-8BEN-E; both go to the payer, not to the IRS.
• If I register through a firm, I have read how to fill out a W-8BEN-E for an advisory or consulting firm, and I know whether a treaty claim is relevant; see W-8BEN Part II treaty claims.
• The payment details I will provide are in the same name as the registered partner.

Tax and indirect tax at home

• My accountant has told me how referral income is taxed where I live and when it is recognized.
• I know whether VAT, GST or a similar tax applies to a reward paid by a US company, and whether I must issue an invoice. Rules vary by country.
• I understand that payments from the US to non-US persons can raise US withholding questions that depend on the facts, as the IRS guide for withholding agents, Publication 515, explains; I will ask a tax adviser rather than assume a rate.

Contact details and data protection

• I will pass on business contact details only, and only with the contact's agreement, or I will send my referral link so the company applies itself.
• I will never export, upload, forward or describe a company's confidential records; partners give basic fit information only.
• I know which data protection law covers me where I am based, and that it may govern how I share a person's details.

Disclosure

• I will tell every contact, before the introduction, that a completed deal could earn me part of SourceX's fee.
• If I recommend SourceX publicly, for example in a newsletter or a LinkedIn post that reaches US readers, I will disclose the paid relationship next to the recommendation. FTC staff guidance in the Endorsement Guides FAQ says material connections should be disclosed clearly and close to the endorsement.

Your network

• I can name at least one US company with 50+ full-time employees at peak (contractors excluded), several years of documented operations and a sponsor I can reach: an owner, CEO, CFO or authorized representative.
• I know whether it belongs to a foreign group; if so, I have read the page on referring US companies with a foreign parent.
• I have read the program terms in full.

This is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm with your own counsel, tax adviser or professional body before acting.

How to use your results

Red flags: pause before registering

• Your employer or regulator bars you from receiving payments connected to clients, and the companies you know are clients.
• The introduction would only work if you shared client files or described what is in their systems.
• Every company you know is outside the US, or never reached 50+ full-time employees at peak.
• You expect to be paid for leads or meetings. A lead, meeting or signed agreement alone does not trigger a reward.
• Your plan is cold outreach to bought lists. The program is built for people who can reach a decision-maker they already know.

Reward facts to know before you sign up

Partners earn 25% of the eligible platform fees SourceX actually collects from the referred company's licensing deals, capped at $100,000 per referred company. Rewards become payable only after the buyer pays and SourceX receives its fee, and no reward is guaranteed.

Attribution follows the earliest valid partner whose introduction results in a verified application inside the attribution window. Because the reward is paid out of SourceX's own fee, the company's proceeds are untouched. To see the formula applied to the published program, open the referral earnings calculator.

Next step

Work through the boxes, close any that are open, and keep the written answers you collect. When the list is complete, register as a partner.