What do I have to do to get paid?
You set up your account and ad units. You are generating valid clicks and are now wondering about your payment. Here are some key points that may help you receive payment.

To get started with the payment process, you must complete all of the below steps, starting with signing in with your username and password.

1. Enter tax information
Entering your tax information in Microsoft pubCenter is similar to filling out an electronic tax form. It is crucial that you enter accurate information that matches your tax information on record with the IRS.

Note: Tax information does not need to be submitted for every user associated with your account. Only enter it for the payee (this person is often also the admin and primary account holder). pubCenter allows only one payee per account.

I. Click the Accounts tab and click on the Tax Information sub-tab.
    a.  Enter all the required information (fields marked with a * are required).
    Note: You must be exempt from backup withholding to participate. Confirm this by selecting the “Exempt from backup withholding”

b. Enter your taxpayer identification number.

c. Enter your name in the Signature field, this serves as your electronic signature.

d. Click Sign and Submit.

2. Setup default payment
There are two payment options available: Checks and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).

I. Click on Accounts tab and click on Payments Method sub-tab.

II. Click Create a new payment method.

III. Select your payment option (check or EFT).
      a. To set up a Check payment.
           i. Select Check from the payment options drop down menu.

          ii. Enter all the required field and click Save.

b. To set up an EFT payment.
     i. Select Electronic funds transfer from the payment options drop down menu. 
    
    ii. Enter all the required field and click Save.

3. Validate Payment Method

Now that you’ve created your payment method, you need to validate your payment. You have three chances to validate your PIN or micro-deposit. If you fail to validate your payment method, you will receive a message asking that contact the Support team to request for a new PIN or micro-deposit.

To validate your Check payment method:

1. After the check payment method has been saved, the validation status will appear as Created.

2. Click on the friendly name of the newly created check payment method. This will create a payment method ID.   Note: Microsoft will send a pos to your address with a PIN number in the next 10 business days.

3. Once you receive the 6-digit PIN (you should receive postcard within 10 business days), go back into the Payment methods section and click on the friendly name of the newly     created check payment method, which should now in Pending status.
Note: If you do not receive the PIN in the mail within 10 business days, a link or hot button will be available to request a new PIN to be sent out again.

4. Enter the PIN number and click on the Validate button. A pop-up message will appear after a successful validation and the validation status will appear as Validated.
Note: If you input the incorrect PIN, you have three attempts until it goes into a blocked state and the validation status will appear as PIN failed. Please contact Support for assistance.

To validate your EFT payment method:

1. After the EFT payment method has been saved, the validation status will appear as Created.

2. Click on the friendly name of the newly created EFT payment method. This will create a payment method ID.
Note: Microsoft will make a test deposit in your bank account in the next 10 business days.

3. Once you receive a micro-deposit in your bank account within 10 business days, go back into the Payment methods section and click on the friendly name of the newly created EFT payment method, which should now in Pending status.
Note: If you do not see the micro-deposit in your bank account within 10 business days, please contact Support for assistance.

4. Enter the micro-deposit amount (USD) and click on the Validate button. A pop-up message will appear after a successful validation and the validation status will appear as Validated.
Note: If you input the incorrect amount, you have three attempts until it goes into a blocked state and the validation status will appear as PIN failed. Please contact Support for assistance.

4. Associate payment method
Click on Accounts tab and click on the desired account name.

I. Click on the payment method drop down menu and select the payment method you want to associate to your account.

II. Click Save.

Payout Eligibility
Now that you have set up your payment process you are ready to get paid. Here are a few reminders on payout eligibility.

1. You must generate $50 in valid clicks during a pay period to receive payment. If your earnings are less than $50 at the end of the month, we’ll roll it over to the following month until the payment threshold is met.

2. If a publisher is a business, the business must be incorporated in the United States, have a valid U.S. address (not a post office box), and provide a valid Tax Information Number (TIN). If a publisher is an individual, they must be a U.S. Resident, have a valid U.S. address, and provide a valid Social Security Number (SSN).

3. Fill out the online W9 form in pubCenter.

4. Fill out the online Payment Method information form in pubCenter

FAQ

Q. When are my payments mailed?
A. Monthly checks and EFT payments are sent out on the third Friday of the following month. Please allow 1-2 weeks for checks to arrive and 2-4 days for an EFT transfer to show up in your account.

Q. Why didn’t I receive a payment?
A. If you did not receive a payment, it may be due to having an incorrect account setup or inaccurate information. To insure speedy resolution of your issue, please make sure that you have completed the steps below prior to contacting pubCenter support:
1. Did you set up an account in pubCenter?
2. Did you enter your tax information?
3. Did you select a payment method?
4. Are you qualified to be paid?
If you have met all of the above requirements and still have not received payment, please contact us via pubbeta@microsoft.com.

Q. Will I receive a tax form 1099 from Microsoft?
A. Yes, you will receive a 1099 form directly from Microsoft via the US Postal Service for earnings above $600 from the previous year. You can expect to receive the form between the last week in January and the first week in February.

Q. I have not received my 1099 form and it is past the first week in February. What should I do?
A. If you have not yet received your 1099 form, please contact us at pubbeta@microsoft.com.

Q. Do I need to submit the tax information if I do not plan on earning more than $600 annually?
A. Tax documents are collected from everyone and are required to process payments. If you do not meet the threshold required to send a 1099 to the IRS, we will not send one to you.

Q. What if Microsoft makes an error on my tax information?
A. Please contact us at pubbeta@microsoft.com to report any errors in your tax information for pubCenter.

Q. I have already submitted my tax information; however, I need to update it. How can I do that?
A. For assistance with updating your tax information on file for pubCenter, please contact us at pubbeta@microsoft.com.

Q. How do I qualify to be paid?
A. A payment is issued if your monthly activity totals more than $50.00 USD in revenue. If you have a carry-over from a previous month, and that amount combined with your most recent month’s activity equals or surpasses $50.00 USD, you are issued a payment. Additionally, you must submit your tax information, create a payment method, and have no holds on your account.

Q. Are earnings generated from impressions or from clicks?
A. Earning are generated from clicks only.

Q. How much do I earn for a given number of clicks?
A. The amount that you earn is based on the number of valid clicks you receive on ads from your website(s) as measured by Microsoft.  Clicks that Microsoft registers as coming from IP addresses owned or controlled by you, or clicks associated with your violation of any Publisher policies are not considered valid clicks.

Q. How do I generate earnings using pubCenter?
A. You generate earnings from content ads, search ads, and image ads.

Q. Do I have to be a U.S. citizen to participate in the pilot?
A. In order to participate in the Publisher pilot, you must be a U.S. citizen. Additionally, your business must be headquartered in the U.S. This information must match the information on file with the IRS.

Q. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has informed me that I am subject to backup withholding. Can I participate in the Publisher pilot?
A. You are not eligible to participate in the beta or to open an account in the future if you are subject to backup withholding with the IRS. If you are unsure of your status in regard to backup withholding, please check your tax records or consults the IRS.

Q. How do I set up an electronic funds transfer?
A. Please follow these steps to set up an EFT payment:
     1. Sign in to your Publisher account
     2. Click on the Accounts tab, then click on the Payment Methods tab
     3. Click ‘Create a payment method’
     4. Under Accounts, select the specified account and set-up payments for 
         that account

Q. How soon will the electronic funds transfer take affect?
A. We will accept your bank account information as soon as the upgrade is completed and you see the options in the user interface. However, it may take a few weeks for us to process these changes and to update the system.  During this time, you will continue to receive any eligible payments via check by mail.

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