Engagement Terms

Payment Structure

All engagements are milestone-based, billed by bank wire transfer. No credit cards. No third-party processors. No surprises. Every fee, wire instruction, and milestone definition is specified in the signed engagement letter before any work begins.

Payment Method

Bank wire transfer only. Credit cards, PayPal, Venmo, Stripe, and all third-party payment processors are not accepted. Payment is not considered received until funds clear — not when initiated.
Domestic (US)
ACH or Domestic Wire

Routing and account number provided in the signed engagement letter.

International
SWIFT Wire Transfer

SWIFT/BIC and IBAN provided in the signed engagement letter. Sender is responsible for all wire fees.

Cloud Sovereign & Multi-Node Distributed Mesh

Cloud

Two-Payment Split — 50% / 50%

Milestone Amount Trigger
Engagement letter signed 50% of total fee Due upon signing — before any work begins
Deployment complete 50% of total fee Due upon system live and written client sign-off

Definition of "deployment complete": All services passing health checks, client has successfully run at least one query against their document corpus, and written sign-off is received from the client's designated representative.

On-Premises Custom Build

On-Premises

Three-Payment Split — 40% / 30% / 30%

The three-way split reflects the hardware procurement and travel cost exposure inherent in on-premises engagements. Hardware is not ordered and travel is not booked until the first payment clears.

Milestone Amount Trigger
Engagement letter signed 40% of total fee Due upon signing — hardware ordered and travel booked only after this payment clears
Hardware delivered + team on-site 30% of total fee Due upon confirmed hardware delivery at client facility and deployment team arrival
Deployment complete 30% of total fee Due upon system live, all services passing health checks, and written client sign-off

Definition of "deployment complete": System fully operational on client hardware, all services passing health checks, training visit completed, and written sign-off received from the client's designated representative.

Pass-Through Costs — On-Premises Only

The following are client responsibilities for on-premises engagements. The client procures and pays for all of the below directly — these are not invoiced through RusticAgentic. Requirements are confirmed during the scoping call and documented in the engagement letter.

Late Payment & Default

Payment Due Date

All invoices are due within 10 business days of the triggering milestone.

Late Interest

Late payments accrue interest at 1.5% per month (18% annually) on the outstanding balance, from the due date.

Work Suspension

Work is suspended if any payment milestone is missed by more than 10 business days. Work resumes when payment clears — project timeline adjusts accordingly with no penalty to RusticAgentic.

Material Breach

A second missed payment milestone constitutes a material breach of the engagement letter and may result in termination. Payments already received are non-refundable.

Refund Policy

No refunds once the engagement is complete. All sales are final upon delivery and written client sign-off. By signing the engagement letter, the client acknowledges and agrees to this refund policy in full.
Stage Refund Available Notes
Engagement letter signed — before any work begins Deposit forfeited · remaining balance not owed Client may cancel within 3 business days of signing if no work has commenced. Deposit is forfeited; no further payments are due.
Build in progress — after work has commenced No refund on work completed All payments made to date are non-refundable. Any remaining unpaid milestone is released from obligation only if RusticAgentic agrees in writing to terminate the engagement.
System delivered and handed off Zero refunds Once the system is live, health checks pass, and client sign-off is received, the engagement is complete. No refund of any amount is available.
Engagement 100% complete Zero refunds — no exceptions All fees paid are fully earned. No refund, credit, chargeback, or dispute will be honored after written sign-off is received.
Client-initiated cancellation. If the client cancels after work has begun, all payments received to date are retained in full. The client is released from any unpaid milestones only upon written mutual agreement. No partial refund is available for work already performed.
RusticAgentic-initiated termination for cause. If the client commits a material breach (non-payment, failure to cooperate, misrepresentation), all payments received are retained and the remaining balance becomes immediately due.
RusticAgentic inability to complete. If RusticAgentic is unable to complete the engagement through no fault of the client, fees will be prorated to work completed and any unearned balance refunded. This is the only circumstance in which a refund is issued.
No chargebacks. All payments are made by bank wire transfer. Chargebacks are not possible by design. The client's wire transfer constitutes irrevocable payment per the terms of the engagement letter.

General Terms

Controlling document All payment terms, wire instructions, milestone definitions, and total fees are specified in the signed engagement letter. Verbal agreements, email confirmations, and quotes do not constitute a binding payment obligation.
Quote validity Quotes are valid for 30 days from the date of issue. After 30 days, re-scoping may be required before an engagement letter is issued.
Questions Contact scottbaker@rusticagentic.agency with any questions before signing.