# Source: https://polar.sh/docs/merchant-of-record/acceptable-use.md

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://polar.sh/docs/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# null

As your Merchant of Record (MoR), we are the reseller of all digital goods and
services and focus exclusively on digital products. Therefore we cannot support
physical goods or entirely human services, e.g consultation or support. In
addition to not accepting the sale of anything illegal, harmful, abusive,
deceptive or sketchy.

## Acceptable Products & Businesses

* Software & SaaS
* Digital products: Templates, eBooks, PDFs, code, icons, fonts, design assets, photos, videos, audio etc
* Premium content & access: Discord server, GitHub repositories, courses and content requiring a subscription.

**General rule of acceptable services**

Digital goods, software or services that can be fulfilled by…

1. Polar on your behalf (License Keys, File Downloads, GitHub- or Discord invites or private links, e.g premium YouTube videos etc)
2. Your site/service using our APIs to grant immediate access to digital assets
   or services for customers with a one-time purchase or subscriptions

Combined with being something you’d proudly boast about in public, i.e nothing illegal, unfair, deceptive, abusive, harmful or shady.

Don’t hesitate to [reach out to us](/support) in advance in case you’re unsure if your use case would be approved.

## Prohibited Businesses

<Note>
  **Not an exhaustive list**

  We reserve the right to add to it at any time. Combined with placing your
  account under further review or suspend it in case we consider the usage
  deceptive, fraudulent, high-risk or of low quality for consumers with high
  refund/chargeback risks.
</Note>

* Illegal or age restricted, e.g drugs, alcohol, tobacco or vaping products
* Violates laws in the jurisdictions where your business is located or to which your business is targeted
* Violates any rules or regulations from payment processors & credit card networks, e.g [Stripe](https://stripe.com/en-se/legal/restricted-businesses)
* Reselling or distributing customer data to other parties for commercial, promotional or any other reason (disclosed service providers are accepted).
* Threatens reputation of Polar or any of our partners and payment providers
* Causes or has a significant risk of refunds, chargebacks, fines, damages, or harm and liability
* Services used by-, intended for or advertised towards minors
* Physical goods of any kind. Including SaaS services offering or requiring fulfilment via physical delivery or human services.
* Human services, e.g marketing, design, web development and consulting in general.
* Donations or charity, i.e price is greater than product value or there is no exchange at all (pure money transfer). Open source maintainers with sponsorship can be supported - reach out.
* Marketplaces. Selling others’ products or services using Polar against an upfront payment or with an agreed upon revenue share.
* Adult services or content. Including by AI or proxy, e.g
  * AI Girlfriend/Boyfriend services.
  * OnlyFans related services.
  * Explicit/NSFW content generated with AI
* Low-quality products, services or sites, e.g
  * E-books generated with AI or 4 pages sold for \$50
  * Quickly & poorly executed websites, products or services
  * Services with a lot of bugs and issues
  * Products, services or websites we determine to have a low trust score
* Fake testimonials, reviews, social proof, and review inflation platforms. It's deceptive to consumers which is behaviour we do not tolerate.
* Trademark violations
* "Get rich" schemes or content
* Gambling & betting services (including lootboxes, mystery boxes and pack openings of random nature)
* Regulated services or products
* Counterfeit goods
* Job boards
* NFT & Crypto assets.
* Cheating: Utilizing macros, cheat codes, hacks, or any unauthorized modifications that alter gameplay or provide an unfair advantage.
* Reselling Licenses: Selling, distributing, or otherwise transferring software licenses at reduced prices or without proper authorization.
* Services to circumvent rules or terms of other services: Attempting to bypass, manipulate, or undermine any established rules, gameplay mechanics, or pricing structures of other vendors/games.
* Financial services, e.g facilitating transactions, investments or balances for customers.
* Financial trading, trading bots, brokerage, or investment advisory services (including insights platforms).
* Financial advice, e.g content or services related to tax guidance, wealth management, trading signals, investment strategies etc.
* IPTV services
* Virus & Spyware
* Telecommunication & eSIM Services
* Products you don’t own the IP of or have the required licenses to resell
* Advertising & unsolicited marketing services. Including services to:
  * Generate, scrape or sell leads
  * Send SMS/WhatsApp messages in bulk
  * Automate outreach (spam risks)
  * Automate mass content generation & submission across sites
* API & IP cloaking services, e.g services to circumvent IP bans, API rate limits etc.
* Products or services associated with pseudo-science; clairvoyance, horoscopes, fortune-telling etc.
* Travel services, reservation services, travel clubs and timeshares
* Medical advice services or products, e.g. pharmaceutical, weight loss, muscle building
* Watermark removal services
* Third-party content downloaders (e.g., YouTube, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.)

## Restricted Businesses

Requires closer review and a higher bar of quality, execution, trust and compliance
standards to be accepted.

* Directories & boards
* Marketing services
* Pre-orders & Paid waitlist
* Ticket sales
* eBooks

## FAQ

**Why do directories & boards require closer review?**

They often sell premium placement, i.e ads, without meeting compliance
requirements for advertising. Or even where it's their sole purpose to sell
placement.

**Why do marketing services require closer review?**

Too many services offer sketchy marketing tactics and mass outreach
(unsolicited) features. There is no short-cut to sales beyond offering a great
product & service. We love marketing services that reflect that and focus on the
long game vs. shortcuts and hacks.

**Can I sell pre-orders or use paid waitlists for my service to validate demand
before build?**

Generally, no. It's a high risk category for us as the Merchant of Record.
Sellers could withdraw funds and never deliver the service or not as promised.
Causing consumers to demand refunds or dispute the sale against us at a later
date.

For high-trust cases from developers with a track record, we're able to make
exceptions, but simultaneously need to adapt our payout process to withhold all
funds until verified fulfilment.

**Why are marketplaces or human services (consultancy) not allowed?**

We hope to change this status quo amongst Merchants of Record long-term, but
both come with additional compliance and risk challenges. Since fulfilment is
not digital, immediate or between known parties to us, we cannot fulfil our
compliance & risk requirements or effectively mitigate potential disputes.

**Why are OnlyFans services not allowed?**

Close & blurred lines between the service and the content & service provided on
OnlyFans, i.e often adult content. In addition to us having seen
fraudulent & deceptive behavior in the category. We're simply not comfortable
acting as the Merchant of Record here.