Payment Lifecycle Overview
Payment for UGC submissions is now initiated once your submission is approved by the UGC review team, rather than waiting on testing. Below is the standard flow from submission to payment.
Regular and Grimoire Machine Submissions
initiated immediately. Build, testing, and deployment then continue afterward without holding up payment. The general lifecycle looks like this:
- Approved – Your submission is formally accepted by the UGC review team.
- Payment Initiated – Once approval is confirmed, your submission is queued for payment.
- Build – The machine is built by the OffSec team.
- Testing – The machine undergoes internal testing to validate functionality and quality.
- Deployed – The machine goes live on the platform.
Both VM submissions and Grimoires now follow this same approval-triggered payment timeline. Previously, regular machines were paid only after deployment; Grimoires already paid on approval, and regular submissions now match that flow.
Grimoire Submissions
Grimoires follow an accelerated timeline. Because Grimoires are built and deployed as soon as they are approved, the payment process is initiated immediately upon approval rather than waiting for a separate deployment phase.
Author Responsibility During Build and Testing
Because payment is now initiated at approval, before your machine is built, tested, and deployed, authors remain responsible for supporting their submissions through the build and testing stage. You are expected to:
- Respond to any questions, issues, or change requests from the UGC team regarding your approved submission, typically within 1–2 business days.
- Assist with any fixes or adjustments needed to get your machine deployment-ready.
If an author is unresponsive or unable to support issue resolution, their account will revert to the standard deploy-first model. In that case, payment will not proceed until the machine has been built, tested, and deployed.
Payment Request Process
When your machine is ready for payment, you will receive an email from the OffSec team with the following subject line:
[Machine Name] - UGC Program | Payment Request
This email will ask you to complete and return the UGC Payment Form with the following:
- Completed Payment Form – Fill in all required banking details in full (see Banking Information below).
- Valid ID – A government-issued ID must be included for identity validation purposes.
- Compress/Archive and Secure - Add these two files to a password-protected zip file
- File Password – You must always include the password needed to open the completed form in your reply. Form(s) returned without the password cannot be processed and will be delayed until the password is provided.
Incomplete submissions will delay processing. Please ensure all fields are filled out accurately before sending.
Banking Information
The payment form will ask for the following details. Please have these ready before filling it out.
Account Holder Details
- Full name on bank account
- Account holder address, city, country, and postal code
Bank Details
- Bank name, address, city, country, and postal code
By Region
| Region | Required Details |
| United States | ABA Routing Number, Account Number |
| United Kingdom | Bank Account Number, Sort Code |
| Canada | SWIFT Code, Account Number, Institution Number, Transit Number |
| Europe (SWIFT) | SWIFT Code, IBAN |
| All other locations | Contact your bank for international wire instructions |
OffSec uses XE as its currency converter and will make every effort to convert USD to your requested currency at the best available exchange rate. Exchange rates are subject to change.
Payment Processing Timeline
- Payments are processed by our internal team once every week.
- Once a payment has been processed, please allow 5–10 business days for the wire transfer to reach your account, depending on your bank and region.
Frequently Asked Questions
What payment methods are available?
Currently, OffSec only supports payment via international wire transfer. We do not offer PayPal, Payoneer, check, or other payment methods at this time. We appreciate your understanding and will communicate any changes to available payment options.
Can I convert my payment into OffSec vouchers or certification credits instead?
This is not available at this time. We have received this feedback from contributors and it has been noted for future consideration. We will update the community if this option becomes available.
When does the clock start for the Early Payment Contingency program?
The 30-day window begins on the date your submission receives formal approval from the UGC review team, not the date of initial submission.
I haven't received a payment request email after my machine was deployed. What should I do?
Please allow a few business days after deployment before reaching out. If you have not received the payment request email within a reasonable timeframe, contact the UGC team via OffSec's Discord in the user-generated-content channel.
What happened to the Early Payment Contingency Program?
It has been retired. Payment is now initiated upon approval for all submissions, so the program is no longer needed. Note that authors are still expected to stay responsive during build and testing; unresponsiveness reverts an account to the deploy-first model.
I haven't received a payment request email after my submission was approved. What should I do?
Please allow 5-10 business days after approval before reaching out. If you have not received the payment request email within a reasonable timeframe, contact the UGC team via OffSec’s Discord in the user-generated-content channel.
Need faster support?
You can:
- Submit a request via ugc@offsec.com
- Reach out to Oscar via the OffSec Support Portal
- Post in the OffSec Discord in the user-generated-content channel
When submitting a support ticket, please include your Discord name and ID. This allows our team to reach out to you directly in Discord for instant assistance.