Most freelancers who do not get paid were not cheated by a sophisticated fraud. They started work on a vague agreement, delivered everything, and then had no leverage.
Six clauses fix nearly all of it. None of them need legal language.
1. The advance
Take 30-50% before you start.
This is not about cash flow. It is a filter. A client who will not pay an advance is telling you something before you have spent three weeks finding it out.
Work begins on receipt of a 40% advance. The balance is payable on delivery.
2. Scope, in specifics
“Design a website” is not a scope. It is an argument waiting to happen.
Write what is included as a list, and then — this matters more — write what is not:
Included: five pages, one round of layout revisions, delivery as Figma files. Not included: copywriting, photography, hosting setup, or ongoing maintenance.
The second list is what stops the job growing after the price is fixed.
3. Revisions, counted
Two rounds of revisions are included. Further rounds are billed at $X per round.
Unlimited revisions is the single most common way a decent fixed price turns into working for nothing. Put a number on it.
4. Ownership until payment
All rights in the work remain with the freelancer until the final invoice is paid in full.
This is your only real leverage. Once the client has the files and owns them, there is no reason to pay you except goodwill, and goodwill is not a payment method.
5. Payment terms with a date and a consequence
Invoices are payable within 14 days. Overdue amounts carry interest at 1.5% per month.
“On completion” is not a date. Name a number of days, and name what happens when it passes. You may never charge the interest, but a stated consequence changes how an invoice is treated in an accounts queue.
6. The kill fee
If the project is cancelled after work has begun, the advance is non-refundable and completed work is billed pro rata.
Projects die for reasons that have nothing to do with you. This says the time you already spent is still paid for.
You do not need a lawyer for a small job
For a $500 project, a signed agreement is disproportionate. An email is enough:
Hi — confirming what we discussed: [scope list]. Not included: [exclusions]. Two revision rounds. $1,500 total, 40% to start, balance within 14 days of delivery. I keep the rights until the final payment. Reply “agreed” and I will begin.
A reply saying “agreed” is acceptance of terms. Keep the thread.
When payment is late anyway
- Send a plain reminder on day one. Most late payments are administrative, not hostile.
- Day seven, a firmer note referencing the agreed terms and the interest clause.
- Stop work on anything else for that client. Do not deliver more into an unpaid balance.
- Day thirty, a formal demand — a demand letter from an attorney is inexpensive and often enough on its own.
The honest part: for small amounts, the realistic options are persistence and, if it comes to it, writing it off and never working with them again. Which is exactly why clauses one and four matter so much — they are the ones that stop you reaching this stage.