# The Above Board Standard — v1.1 (public draft, October 2026)

Above Board is an independent standard for the companies that sit between creators and the platforms that pay them: creator management agencies (OnlyFans, Fansly, Fanvue), TikTok LIVE creator networks, chat-outsourcing firms and webcam studios.

Above Board does not take money from creators, never sells placement, and charges a flat fee, agreed before the audit, that is the same whether an audit passes or fails.

## Certifications

| Certification | Who it is for | How it is checked | Typical time |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| **Agency Verified** | Agencies and creator networks | Fully remote | About 2 weeks |
| **Studio Certified** | Webcam studios | Remote review plus an unannounced site visit | About 4 weeks |

## Statuses (published on the public register)

- **Active** — met every required criterion at the last audit; the certification is in force for 12 months.
- **Suspended** — temporarily not in force while a credible complaint, a missed obligation or a material change is investigated. A suspension is not a finding of wrongdoing. It ends in reinstatement or revocation.
- **Expired** — the 12-month term ended without renewal.
- **Revoked** — withdrawn after an investigation confirmed a required criterion was not met, the holder had the chance to respond and any appeal was decided. The revocation stays on the public record and cites only the criterion number.

Businesses that were never certified, are being audited or did not pass are simply not on the register. We never publish "failed". A failed audit stays private: the applicant receives a written fix list and may be re-checked within 90 days at no extra charge.

## Certification process (summary)

1. Application and eligibility check, including a conflict-of-interest check.
2. Flat fee and scope agreed in writing before any review starts.
3. Document review against the evidence list for each pillar.
4. Creator confirmations, collected directly by Above Board through channels the business does not control: every creator on rosters of 25 or fewer; above that, a random sample of 25 plus 10% of the remaining roster, chosen by Above Board.
5. Payout reconciliation: three recent months of statements for every sampled creator, checked against the contract rate.
6. Studios only: an unannounced site visit within a 30-day window, with private worker interviews held without management present.
7. Written findings. Every required criterion must pass. Gaps may be fixed within 90 days, with one re-check included.
8. Certification decision by a reviewer who took no part in the audit.
9. Publication: register entry, public profile, live badge and a tamper-proof record.

## Obligations while certified

- Notify Above Board within 30 days of a change of ownership, legal name, contract template, commission structure or business model.
- Display the badge only as issued, linked to the live profile.
- Cooperate with complaint investigations and with one unannounced mid-term check of creator confirmations.
- Never retaliate against a creator who contacts Above Board. Retaliation is grounds for revocation.
- Start renewal at least 60 days before expiry.

## The ten pillars

Each criterion is **Required** (must pass) or **Scored** (assessed and reported privately to the company; does not block certification).

### 1. Legal identity
- 1.1 Registered legal entity, with registry number and country. *Required*
- 1.2 Named beneficial owners disclosed to Above Board (kept private). *Required*
- 1.3 Real business address and working contact. *Required*

### 2. Account control
- 2.1 The creator owns the account and keeps control of it: the account email, password resets, two-factor authentication and payout details stay with the creator, who can cut off all agency access at any time. Where the platform offers official delegated access (Fansly Management Sessions, Fanvue Manager Accounts, TikTok's Creator Network tools), the agency uses it. Where it does not, such as OnlyFans, any staff access is limited to named people, logged, and never used to change credentials, payout details or ownership. *Required*
- 2.2 For agencies, platform payouts go only to the creator's own account, and the agency invoices for its share. For studios paid by the platform, criterion 9.4 applies. *Required*
- 2.3 Access is revoked within 7 days of the relationship ending. *Required*
- 2.4 No power of attorney or authority to sign for the creator, beyond specific tasks the creator approves in writing. *Required*

### 3. Contract fairness
- 3.1 Commission rate and its base (gross fan spend, or net after platform fee) written in the contract. *Required*
- 3.2 Minimum commitment of 6 months or less: the creator can leave without penalty, on the notice in 3.3, at any time after at most 6 months. *Required*
- 3.3 Creator can exit with no more than 60 days' notice, with no exit penalty beyond commission already earned. *Required*
- 3.4 Content belongs to the creator; any license to the agency ends when the contract ends. No perpetual or irrevocable rights, and no assignment of the creator's content. *Required*
- 3.5 Treatment of tips stated. *Scored*
- 3.6 A performance clause lets the creator exit early if agreed targets are missed. *Scored*
- 3.7 No right to create AI-generated or digital-replica versions of the creator's face, body or voice without separate, specific written consent for each use, ending with the contract. *Required*
- 3.8 No fees, deposits or charges to join, be trained, or stay, and no guaranteed-income promises. *Required*
- 3.9 Streaming hours, posting volumes or revenue targets, if any, are written down; missing them never leads to fines, deductions or loss of the account. *Required*

### 4. Money matches paper
- 4.1 Commission actually charged matches the contract rate, sampled across creators. *Required*
- 4.2 Monthly statements given to every creator. *Required*

### 5. Verified roster
- 5.1 Every creator the agency names publicly confirms the relationship directly to Above Board. *Required*
- 5.2 No fabricated testimonials or earnings claims in marketing. *Required*

### 6. Outcomes
- 6.1 Earnings before and after joining, from platform data with the creator's consent, or from statements as a fallback. *Scored* (used in the audit; never published per agency or per creator)
- 6.2 Creator retention at 12 months. *Scored*

### 7. Chatters and staff
- 7.1 Written policy on who writes messages to fans, and how that is disclosed. *Required for agencies using chatters*
- 7.2 Chatter pay at or above the legal minimum wage where the chatter works, with written terms. *Required for agencies using chatters*
- 7.3 Anonymous chatter survey. *Scored*

### 8. Age and consent
- 8.1 Government ID verification for every performer before any content or broadcast. *Required*
- 8.2 Consent records for every performer in every piece of content, retained as the law requires. *Required*
- 8.3 Zero tolerance: any evidence of a minor ends the audit and is reported to the authorities. *Required*

### 9. Workplace (studios only)
- 9.1 Adequate ventilation, clean sanitary facilities and hygiene supplies provided free. *Required*
- 9.2 No cameras in restrooms or changing areas. *Required*
- 9.3 Scheduled breaks; no shift over 10 hours; working hours within local labor law. *Required*
- 9.4 The model's share is written down; she can see her own gross platform earnings for each pay period, and she is paid on a fixed schedule. *Required*
- 9.5 The model owns her account and following, or can take them with her when she leaves. *Required*
- 9.6 Models can refuse any act without penalty. *Required*
- 9.7 No fines, penalties or deductions from the model's share for lateness, missed targets or refusals, and no charges for rooms, equipment or supplies that were not agreed in writing in advance. *Required*

### 10. Grievance channel
- 10.1 The agency or studio gives creators Above Board's confidential reporting channel. *Required*
- 10.2 Complaints are tracked to resolution; a confirmed serious complaint triggers a re-audit. *Required*

## Evidence and how we check it

| Evidence | Used for |
| --- | --- |
| Registry documents | Pillar 1 |
| Platform access settings and access logs, confirmed by the creator | Pillar 2 |
| Contracts, checked clause by clause | Pillar 3 |
| Payout data against invoices | Pillar 4 |
| Direct creator confirmations | Pillar 5 |
| Platform earnings data with consent | Pillar 6 |
| Policies, payroll sample, anonymous surveys | Pillar 7 |
| Verification logs | Pillar 8 |
| Unannounced site visit and private worker interviews | Pillar 9 |
| Above Board intake records | Pillar 10 |

## Independence rules

1. A flat audit fee, agreed before the audit, the same whether the audit passes or fails.
2. Auditors must be paid per audit, never by result, and never by the audited company.
3. No paid placement, rankings or advertising, ever.
4. Every badge issued, renewed or revoked is written to a public, tamper-proof record. Only a fingerprint of the report goes public; the report itself stays private.
5. No personal data about creators is ever published.
6. Methodology changes are versioned and published with their date before they apply to any audit.

## Appeals

A company may appeal any audit decision within 30 days. The appeal is decided by a reviewer who was not involved in the audit. A revocation is published only after the company has had the chance to respond and any appeal has been decided.

## Renewal

Certifications last 12 months. Above Board may re-check at any time after a credible complaint.

## Changelog

- **v1.1 draft (October 19, 2026):** statuses are now Active, Suspended, Expired and Revoked (previously Verified, Not verified and Revoked); added the certification process summary, sampling rules for creator confirmations and payout reconciliation, obligations while certified, and the mid-term check. Added 3.8 (no fees to join, train or stay) and 3.9 (targets never enforced by fines, deductions or loss of the account).

- **v1.0 draft, revision 2 (October 19, 2026):** added 2.4 (power of attorney), 3.7 (AI likeness) and 9.7 (fines and deductions). Clarified 2.1 for platforms without official manager access, 2.2 for studios, 3.2 as a minimum commitment, 3.4 to cover assignment of rights, 6.1 as never published, 7.2 and 9.3 on local law, and 9.4 on earnings visibility. Added appeals; scored criteria are now reported privately.
- **v1.0 draft (October 18, 2026):** first public draft.