Payment cycle: We make payments once a month. By the 1st or
2nd of the month, the invoice is uploaded on their dashboard
in our content management platform. Reporters are required to
complete the formalities and submit the invoice by the 5th,
post which the amount is transferred to their bank account by
the 7th or 8th.
Our publishers also have the right to republish the story. So
if the same story is translated and published in another
language, the reporter (and 101Reporters too, for that matter)
cannot claim payment for it
If a reporter fails to submit their invoice by the due date,
they are paid the next month.
We pay neither in advance nor immediately after a story is
submitted. In other words, payment is not released outside our
monthly payment cycle. No requests regarding the same are
entertained.
There is no minimum threshold for payment.
We don’t pay for travel or accommodation for reporting.
If our desk approves a story but the publisher fails/refuses
to carry it, we will still make the full payment.
We don’t guarantee payment if a publisher refuses to carry a
story because the reporter submitted it after the deadline
lapsed.
No payment shall be made if our desk refuses to approve a
story for want of inputs.
Tax Deduction at Source:
If a reporter's net payment crosses Rs30,000 in a financial year, we are required to deduct 10% of the net amount as Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) as per Government of India rules. All the subsequent payments will incur 10% TDS once a reporter crosses the Rs30,000 threshold.
eg. If a reporter has received Rs27,000 in payment from 101Reporters in a financial year, all the payments made till then incur no TDS. Suppose the reporter's next invoice in the same financial year is for Rs5,000, taking his/her net income from 101Reporters to Rs32,500. Now, 101Reporters will have to deduct 10% of the net payment made to the reporter so far in the financial year. In this case, the amount comes to 10% of Rs32,500 = Rs3,250. Hence, instead of receiving Rs5,000 from 101Reporters, the reporter will receive Rs1,750 (Rs5,000- Rs3,250).
All the following payments to the reporter will incur a 10% deduction only on that particular invoice. Suppose the reporter's next invoice is also for Rs5,000. This time, the TDS will be only Rs500 (10% of Rs5,000), since the tax for the previous payments has already been accounted for in the previous deduction.
101Reporters is required to deposit this TDS to the government and provide a TDS certificate to the reporter. If the reporter's annual income in the financial year is within the exemption limit to pay income tax, the reporter can claim a refund from the Income Tax Department while filing annual income tax returns. More information on this is available on the internet.