Payment Options for Porn and FSSW
I cover the obvious, the less obvious, the old school – hello Postal Orders – and the new.
UPDATE June 2023
The following services actually LIKE us:-
Yoursafe.com
Set up specifically for adult industry people – both online and in person. Dutch, so, chilled.
Personal Account is good for getting platform payouts so your bank doesn’t get scared when they realise you have ManyVids or OF income streams. They just see a transfer from your Dutch account to your UK one…
Business Account : FSSW should look at this for client payments via a Trading As or Business Name. (Payments to personal accounts need your real name, which you may not want to share. This is a SEPA requirement, Europe wide rule).
Bitcoin, specifically, Lightning
Lightning is Bitcoin, but designed for retail use – instant settlement, tiny, often ZERO, charges, and prices are in sats – short for Satoshis, because 0.0000XBTC is a pain, so X sats is an easier read.. Think of Bitcoin as large bars of gold in the vault, lightning is the dollars/pounds/euros that those gold bars back. (Yes, I know, don’t @ me).
I made a little video. As you can see, it’s as easy for your fans to load up with bitcoin as it is to buy site tokens. And way better for you – instant settlement, 100% payout.
Content rules? None. Just stay within your local law. You’ll see mention of a Lightning address. Mine is badbutler@getalby.com – send me your Lightning address and I’ll send you 1000 sats to prove how easy it is.
The payment system shown in the video where the client buys my video uses the getalby paywall plugin for WordPress. And if you are thinking, “so, I can have my own web site, sell content direct, for 100%, and instant settlement, and no silly content rules, and also take booking deposits or tribute in order to reach the DM me page, and all I need to do is have my fans follow some piss easy instructions to get a bit of bitcoin to spend”, yes, you have got it perfectly 🙂
Turning your bitcoin into cash/stuff. I use bitrefill.com and get Tesco vouchers (oh, the glamour), because yes, it’s small scale now. As takeup grows and you need to change proper money, there are plenty of options. Google Peach Bitcoin App for example. Even reach out to me if you like.
And this is how you get paid for deposits of anything where you might normally want to be PayPal or other money app we can’t use. All you need to get paid is a Lighting Address. All they need is some money in a Lightning wallet. Note : suggest they put a note in the message/comment box. Otherwise you can’t tell who it’s from.
Wishtender
Your fans buy you gifts, buy which I mean, they send you the money to buy the gift, and you keep the money. Total time between client gift and getting money in your bank seems to be 2-3 days.
Play Wishtender a bit close to your chest – read their rules. I think they run risk of losing their processor if they get used too blatantly by us.
This service doesn’t actively hate us
Wise
Widely used esp by adult biz, even though we are a T&C breach.
I have been told that if you give clients a fake name, provided that they agree to send after being warned that the name doesn’t match, you will get the money.
Main Article
A look at payment options for SW, online and FSSW, and porn, direct and via sites. Focus is UK, (but some comments re other places).
OUR SITES can implement whatever you like. Usually Crypto (one day, clients will have it, and it’s free) plus your preferred burner, cash/cheques/postal orders and/or CC provider (when you have one).
RULE 1 : Google is your ENEMY.
If you are using a Burner account in public (PayPal, CashApp, Venmo etc)
Any company that wants to get tough with SW, e.g. because of pressure from regulators/politicians or crazy Xtian campaign groups can do some pretty decent trawling of anything Google knows about. Other evil bastard grass you up search engines are available.
RULE 2 : You’re probably going to break some T&C, but try not to break the law
Asking someone else to do a cash pickup might be illegal if it relates to a service which breaks local laws. Both you and they could be in trouble.
Breaking T&C just get’s your account killed.
Direct Transfer to Bank Account (UK)
Client needs your Sort Code and Account Number.
But in practice new anti-fraud measures mean they also need your name. (Ok, so they don’t NEED your name, but the bank will make them jump through hoops accepting responsibility for any fraud and basically do their best to make them NOT SEND).
It also depends on whether your account (they one they are sending to, is Personal or Business).
Personal – the bank will push to have the payer confirm the full account name. I.e. the sender needs to know your real name.
Business – a Trading As or TA or T/A account, they only need the part after the TA. So My Name TA AIR, will accept as properly correct payments sent to AIR, sort code, account number.
Business – other types of accounts. Talk to your bank.
My bank also told me that if your account is not with a Clearing Bank (the big ones) then they might have different rules.
So, talk to your bank, but generally, for privacy, you’ll probably need a TA business account with something innocuous as your TA name. THEN open one, or more Personal Accounts elsewhere, so that if your biz account blows up, you don’t suddenly have no bank account.
Fake Names on accounts – not allowed. Not with UK banks anyway.
Cash Deposit Direct into your account
Will need the same info as a Direct Transfer, but some banks and building societies seem to have stopped doing them at all. For no good reason, since the others still do it. HOWEVER even if you are with a bank that allows it, it is clearly now a flag event likely to bring closer examination of your account. (Basically, lots of them from non relations on an ad hoc basis and it’s “is this account a drug dealer or money mule?”). So, probably best avoid asking people to pay direct.
Banking Threat Model : angry clients wanting to stir shit up.
This is nothing to do with tax avoidance or evasion. I am not even asking whether or not this info is shared with your Government. This is about clients knowing enough to cause trouble.
KEY OBSERVATION : All bank accounts have an identifying code, and I think that code means that a motivated “write to the bank and try and drop you in it client” can write to the bank, and if they take it seriously, they take it seriously.
RULE 1 : Because of the above, you need TWO (or more) accounts. Ideally, in different banks.
Main Account : Your real bank. The one you use for day to day life. You NEVER give out the details for this account.
Collections Account : The one you get people to send money to. Ideally, this is a business account, but in many cases an ordinary account will not get flagged. (This depends how the account is used. A few client payments a week will probably not get attention. An online shop sending several a day to it, probably will).
Collections Accounts are burnable, but your main one, you want to keep.
Specific UK Banks
Starling : new kids on the block, but moralistic prudes for whom dating or escort services, pornography or adult entertainment are BANNED by T&C, (re their Sole Trader account. So, probably the rest of their business accounts), and if you plan use a Personal Account for biz purposes, the most data savvy bank in the Uk won’t be fooled for a moment once you trigger them.
Tide : Report on SNAP that they wouldn’t allow payments in from Clips4Sale and other, unnamed, platforms.
Other General Purpose or known friendly services
Postal Order
Still a thing, can be bought with cash. You want it with a blank name, and NOT CROSSED. They can be used internationally, and your client pays the fees when they buy it.
You will need a postal address – but PO Boxes and Accomodation Address services are relatively cheap AND you can use them for model releases etc, so, added security there, now that the platforms are all starting to demand all documents for every shoot you ever did for anyone, and hackers will go for those databases….
Cash and Cheques in the post
Old school, but works. If you have a safe postal address.
International Money Order
From the Post Office. Can be used for cash pick up, or sent to a bank account
Western Union
Can be used for cash pick up or sent to bank account. But, seems to often (always?) require real names. (I suspect the crim fraudsters who love WU do so because they have fake ID’s).
Banq.com
USA only at the moment, but set up specifically adult industry friendly. If I was an American I’d check them out.
Found.com
New USA entrant as a specialist small business banking service for US based businesses. Have been told by an SW that they were approved for an account in full knowledge of their business.
SMS
You can get paid by SMS for digital content But fuck me you lose as much as you do from platform sales and there is a limit to the gross value. Not really worth doing unless a specific low cost service. Might fly for a dick rating service or pay per message chat.
Interac e-transfer
Canada only. No idea how they like us. BUT have been told that sender sees the account name, so, depends what rules apply to naming accounts.
Have clients pay off YOUR credit card (in full or in part)
I have not tested this, but it does seem to be a thing.
https://www.wikihow.com/Pay-Someone-Else%27s-Credit-Card-Bill
The article is written for Americans (hence the talk of routing numbers).
If I was going to try this, I’d get a new card with a new bank, run up some debt, and then see what happened when a friendly volunteer tries to reduce it for me.
I’d also assume that if too many payments came in, it would get flagged as not looking real. How many is too many? No idea.
Credit Card
OK, so, you can do this the legit way, or the other way, which also works, for a while…
The Legit Way : Using an Adult CC payments provider. Unless you expect to bill at least $1000pm+ (or can afford to hang in there while you build sales), it’s not usually worth having your own CC processing for stuff you can sell on platforms.
Online only people can get adult processing for CC. I don’t think escorts can.
The Other Way : You lie, and (try to) get a normal payment provider – e.g. Stripe.
Most of the companies will look at your site to make sure it’s suitable. So, if going this route, you need a non porn domain name AND a complete non porn site selling, say tee shirts or cups, that you later bin and turn into your porn site. This should work until someone dobs you in. Or requests a refund. Or denies that they purchased from you.
So, if I lie (or escort, or sell content not allowed on credit cards) what might happen? : You’ll lose your processing AND you’ll probably bugger your chances of ANY FUTURE business taking CC, and possibly other ratings issues, for many years to come.
Read that again – if you lie about escorting (or selling content outside their rules), and they catch you, that mainstream fashion/restaurant/webdesign biz you want to start after leaving adult, quite possibly NO CC FOR YOU. Possibly no mortgage unless you have huge 50% type deposit.
That said, if you want that on the site we build for you, I’m fine with that. It’s your site, your risk…
Crypto
Simple “just get me started” :-
ONE : Download and install the Exodus.io wallet on your computer or phone.
TWO : Tell the client to send the crypto to your wallet.
Three : Visit Bitrefill.com and buy yourself Gift Cards with whatever company you need stuff from.
Four : Go shopping.
More info :-
PERFECT for SW, if your clients have it. Encourage them to do so. See the various other articles I’ve written. Or contact me direct.
Key point – you can have lots of wallets. Just don’t use the Exchange wallet as the one people pay to. Have a wallet where all the payments arrive, then send it from there to your Exchange wallet as and when you have a few hundred worth.
Crypto is the ONLY completely safe way of getting paid. You can take website sales this way too WAY cheaper than CC. And one day, if we bash clients over the head with it, they’ll actually use it!
Advanced people should watch MobileCoin from Signal.
Also (new, coming soon at time of writing) lifestyle.money Twitter @ICC_LM – they are fine with adult, and like mainstream banks, be discrete if you escort. It seems to be a wallet that attaches to your bank account but accepts transfers in several crypto AND Fiat. So, could be good.
Content and Kitsch as Payment
If you put content up on the platforms, people can buy it. The fact that they are doing so as, for example, a booking deposit, is something that only you and the client know.
You can do this on sites like Etsy or Ebay – sell something cheap for too much money because “hand decorated”. ÂŁ2 mug, Jackson Pollocked into a unique ÂŁ50 item.
HOWEVER, I’d assume this would be a breach of most T&C, and if it isn’t, it will be within weeks of platforms discovering that they are being used this way.
Though lightning.video seems like they wouldn’t care. Though as that means the client is already comfortable with Bitcoin and Lightning Network, probably overkill…
Small Biz Solutions
Skrill
Interesting. I’m sure I looked at them “back in the day” and they didn’t like adult. However I heard that OnlyFans were able to pay out to Skrill accounts. So, I went back and had a look. And, in the mess of documents, didn’t see the blanket ban I expected on “adult services” or “pornography”. Just a ban on “obscene”.
What is the difference between Obscene and Adult? In a lawyers document, the law. A ban on Adult Services or Pornography would cover lawful porn. Game over for us. The use of the word Obscene in this context means they MIGHT be open to allowing some porn.
Also, this review says that they have taken on sites nor normally allowed https://ecommerce-platforms.com/ecommerce-reviews/skrill-review
Note – Skrill make a very clear distinction between Personal accounts and Commercial accounts – if your account will be used for commercial purposes (yes), you must choose Commercial account and, if you want to avoid being closed down later, contact Customer Services and get explicit approval. T&C 11.5 doesn’t list Adult or Porn as a business that you need to consult with Customer Services about, but given the list of ones they do mention, it’s sensible to ask. If you ask and they say yes, you’re sorted. If they say no, well, cross them off the list.
Plenty more of these around, and if you want me to check one out, let me know. Not doing so now as they will be pretty much, “no escorts” and most probably “no porn”.
Stripe
Will politely decline your business. They do have someone look at each site prior to allowing payments.
Amazon Wish List
Great for things you actually want, but doesn’t pay the rent.
UPDATE : I have just discovered you can buy gold and silver bullion on Amazon, BUT not worth it unless 10g or 1/2oz and upwards. (Manufacturing costs for small bars make up a huge part of their cost, which you’ll lose when you sell on the basis of their gold weight).
CashtoCode
Very promising, happy with adult. But until they create a WP plugin, not using them.
The rest – Burnables. We like burnables, even they don’t like us.
IMO most people can use these until burned as they are just not that important for anything else.
IMPORTANT : They NEVER FORGET. Getting burned for SW use means that you’ll probably NEVER be able to use them again for ANY business that you set up after quitting adult. Paypal started adult friendly, then changed their mind, gave people a few weeks to quit, and then banned those who didn’t. Those bans are still live decades later.
You can use any of these to get paid in the websites we build. At your own risk. But we can make that risk a lot less than when people publish for all to see on Social Media.
- a) Use their plugin. We don’t advise this, they’ll notice and ban hammer you
- b) Publish your pay tag at Checkout. Safer, can still get picked up by Google, so, hostage to fortune. This is about as safe as publishing it in a “send me money” tweet.
- c) Include your pay tag in your automated “thank you for your order, send money HERE” email. Safest. Invisible to Google, so safe unless you get dobbed in by the client.
For direct payment from clients use basic operational security – nothing in public and tell people NOT to write nice messages with the send, as those can get your arse smacked.
PayPal
Do not like adult. And too useful IRL for me to treat as a burner, but YMMV.
If using :-
- a) DO NOT put in your bio. Google indexes bios. So you’re just one PayPal compliance audit via Google from doxxing yourself
- b) DO NOT include in public tweets. To be fair, it’s a bit safer than in your bio, (because Google doesn’t index all tweets) but you’re still one sad puritanical zealot/bastard ex/jealous bitch from being reported.
- c) Try and limit to DMs.
CashApp
Do not like adult. Consider as a burner. See PayPal for “safe” use on SM.
UK – useless anyway as limits all reduced
Venmo
Do not like adult. Consider as a burner. See PayPal for “safe” use on SM.
Square
Do not like adult. And really, too useful to be a burner IMO. But, YMMV. See PayPal for “safe” use on SM.
Important : By default people paying you will get YOUR ADDRESS. You need to turn it off in the RECEIPTS section.
Zelle
US Only. Didn’t see any specific notes re adult, but assume they don’t like us.
Square Cash
It’s part of Square, so, like Cash App.
GiftCards
So many retailers, and you can sell them on places such as CardYard.co.uk although you’ll lose 10% to 25% or so. FWIW I chose Amazon, Next and WHSmith, and for a £100 Card was offered £90, £86 and £76. IMPORTANT : It’s generally a breach of T&C to use these as a proxy for money and you CAN have your GC account closed and LOSE EVERYTHING, so, always be cashing out. Amazon will certainly close you down if they get wind.
UPDATE : Seen SW suspect that Amazon is closing their giftcard accounts (and keeping the money) because they get paid in their work name, and extract via their real name. To avoid people at home/work asking awkward questions like “, Alice, why are you getting packages for a Violet?”. SOLUTION (which I haven’t tried, mainly because no one sends me gift cards, boohoo), but those Amazon Delivery boxes might be the solution. No humans involved, so collect as Violet, no questions asked.
UPDATE : I have been told (by a techie in the adult space who I trust) that wishtender.com are good from a privacy POV, and their blurb talks about you getting the money that you can use to buy the gift with. Can you just withdraw the money? Not sure. Try it and find out.
Gold Bullion
Amazon sell gold bullion. Of course they do. You really need to buy 1/2oz and upwards, but, if you get a lot of Amazon Giftcards…
Lydia
Lydia-app.com – cash transfer app. Only for people in the EEA, (and no Americans at all). They don’t like porn/escorting so view as burner.
UK is not in the EEA, thank you Brexit.
Chime
US only by the looks of things. Cash transfer app. T&C are that must be personal use only, no commercial use (flat ban, not even a grocer). So no good for porn/SW. View as a burner.
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