Light Entrepreneurship Service Agreement and Terms of Use

1.   General

These General Terms and Conditions of Use (hereinafter referred to as the “Terms of Use”) apply to the use of the online invoicing service and related website provided by Anspalkkio Oy (Finnish Business ID 3255852-7), as further described in the service description.

The term “service provider” refers to Anspalkkio Oy, which provides a user with an online invoicing service that enables them to invoice a client for the work they have done. A user is defined as an adult and legally viable natural person or a minor over 15 years of age who has the consent of a guardian who accepts these Terms of Use as binding on themselves.

Hereinafter, the service provider and the user are referred to separately as “party” and collectively as “parties”.

A client is defined as a natural or legal person who commissions work from the user and pays them for the work using the invoicing service maintained by the service provider.

Services refers to services, applications and software accessible via the address Palkkioplus.fi and the content of the website.

Contract Entry and Application of the Terms of Use
The contract is deemed to have been entered into when the user has registered for the service and created a user ID, and has accepted these Terms of Use and privacy policy. Registration is free of charge.

The Terms of Use apply to all registered users and to a person authorised by the user to use the service on their behalf.

2. Service Description

The service provider provides the user with an invoicing and payroll service. Using the service, the user can create invoices for performed work in compliance with the legislation and official guidelines in force at any given time. The user can also upload documents and vouchers related to invoicing and salary payments. The service provider takes care of actions related to the payment of wages of the user on the basis of the information entered into the service by the user.

3.   Salary Payments and Service Usage Fee

The payment of wages is made according to the user’s choice. The wages and any compensations are paid to the user or can be withdrawn by the user in the service after the payment made by the client has arrived in the service provider’s account. The user can use the service to view an electronic payment calculation of the payments made to them. The fee for the use of the service is charged to the user before the wages are paid in accordance with the current price list. In addition, tax and other applicable statutory fees are withheld from the VAT-free amount invoiced to the client.

The user is obliged to independently clarify their YEL obligations (i.e. obligations concerning a self-employed person’s pension insurance). To determine liability for health insurance payments, the user must inform the service provider whether they are liable for YEL insurance. The service provider must be notified of any change in the situation without delay. The user is responsible for any overpayments, insufficient deductions and associated additional expenses caused by incorrect information, and the service provider is not obligated, for example, to apply for refunds for overpayments.

In connection with the payment of salaries, a service fee in accordance with the service provider’s price list and an additional fee will be charged for the VAT-free payment of the invoice paid by the client. The surcharge includes, among other things, insurance.

An additional service fee may be charged to the user if they use the Pikapalkkatoiminto (rapid salary payment functionality) offered by the service provider to obtain wages before the client has their invoice, which has been confirmed by the client. A fee is charged for a quick payment, i.e. a transfer without a bank delay, in accordance with the price list. 

4.   Health Insurance Payment

The service provider only collects an employer’s health insurance payment from those users who are liable for YEL insurance on the basis of the information provided to the service provider.

5 User’s Insurance Cover

The user is not insured with statutory accident insurance, but with accident insurance procured by the service provider, which is valid in accordance with the terms and conditions in force at any given time. In addition, the service provider has insured the user with liability insurance, which is valid in accordance with its current terms and conditions. The user must ensure the coverage of the insurances in relation to the work task they are performing at any given time. 

The service provider insures users who have registered for the service and submitted a declaration of work with accident insurance. Further, in the case of business activity requiring a permit, a prerequisite for the validity of the insurance is that the user has valid qualifications, a permits or passport required by the work.

In the event of an accident, the user is responsible for any VAT and excess shares charged by the insurance company. Accident insurance and liability insurance are provided by Keskinäinen Vahinkovakuutusyhtiö Fennia. More detailed insurance terms and conditions are available in the material bank of the palkkioplus.fi dashboard.

6.   Responsibilities and Obligations of the Parties

The user agrees on the service and the compensation to be paid for with each of their clients. The user must agree on work commissions with each client in such a way that no employment relationship is established between the user and the client in accordance with the Employment Contracts Act.

The client must be aware that the invoice is paid for using a service maintained by the service provider. The user shall ensure that the client and any other third parties are aware of the position of the service provider and the distribution of responsibilities between the parties.

The user must agree to pay reimbursements for travel expenses in writing with the client if they wish to apply for travel expenses to be reimbursed through the service provided by the service provider. The contract must specify whether travel expenses will be invoiced to the client in addition to compensation for the work or whether the
travel costs are included in the total remuneration agreed upon with the client. When adding travel reimbursements to the invoice created in the service, the user declares that these travel allowances have been agreed upon with the client.

In their operations, the user must comply with the legislation in force in Finland, the instructions of the authorities and these terms of use. The user is independently responsible for ensuring that any legal requirements related to their duties in connection with, for example, qualifications, permits or special guarantees are met. The user must agree on the price of the commissioned work with the client in such a way that the gross wage resulting from the invoiced amount is reasonable and does not fall below the minimum earnings specified in any universally binding collective agreement in force in the sector.

The user declares that they are a taxable person in Finland for the work invoiced through the service and are responsible for the accuracy and acceptability of the information they have provided, invoices that have been created, and bills for expenses. The service provider may require the user to use a specific ancillary tool or application to verify the accuracy of their billing or reimbursement of expenses.

The user is obliged to provide the service provider and client with all necessary information about the commissioned work in order to pay the agreed price and to withhold taxes and official fees in accordance with the law.
If necessary, the user must be able to demonstrate to the service provider that the user has delivered the work in accordance with the assignment agreement between the user and the client and without any dispute, and that the work has not been done in violation of good practice or the law. The service provider reserves the right not to accept an invoice or bill for expenses that is in violation with legislation or the terms of use, or when the grounds for the invoice are otherwise unclear.

The service provider has the right to set off any claims from the user regarding the settlements paid to the user before the payment of wages or compensation.

7.   Nature of the Relationship Between the Parties

For the sake of clarity, it is noted that when using the service, no employment relationship is established between the service provider and the user in accordance with the Employment Contracts Act. The service provider is not an employer of the user as specified in the Employment Contracts Act, as the service provider does not exercise the right of supervision and direction towards the user or hold the ability to influence the pricing of work undertaken by the user, their choice of client or the working hours of the user.

In addition, the service provider does not have vicarious liability over work undertaken by the user as specified by employment law. Instead, the service provider merely serves as a pro forma employer of the person performing the work, only taking care of the payment of the user’s salary.

8.   Limitations on the Use of the Service

Use of the service is subject to the following restrictions and prohibitions, which the user must take into account:
– It is prohibited to use the service to submit invoices for work or services that do not comply with the law or the terms of use.
– A person who is prohibited from doing business may not use the service provided by the service provider.
– Invoicing temporary agency work is prohibited. The client shall not order or oversee the transfer of work of carried out by the user or control of the user over the work to another company.
– The user may not make purchases by invoice, credit, hire purchase or subcontract in the name of the service provider.
– The use of Anspalkkio Oy’s Finnish Business ID for VAT-free purchases within the EU is prohibited.
– The user does not have the right to use the intellectual property rights held in the name of the service provider. All trademarks, registered trademarks, trade names, business names or other similar trademarks of the service provider are the property of the service provider.

9.   Suspension of the Provision of the Service

The service provider has the right to suspend the provision of the service to a particular user if the user has behaved in violation of the law or good practice towards the service provider or its representative, or if the service provider has reasonable grounds to suspect that the service has been used for activities contrary to law or good practice, or if the user does not comply with these terms and conditions and/or the instructions and requests given by the service provider.

The service provider has the right to suspend all or part of the provision or use of the service if the suspension is necessary for the repair, updating or maintenance of the service or part thereof, or to otherwise ensure the availability or functionality of the service.

The service provider shall inform the user in advance of the interruption if reasonably possible. The notification obligation does not apply to technical changes, such as software updates. The service provider shall not be obliged to compensate the user for any damage caused to the user by the temporary suspension of the service or any changes in its content referred to above, or to reduce or eliminate service charges.

10.  Validity and Termination of the Agreement

The agreement is valid until further notice from the time the user has registered for the service. The user may terminate the agreement at any time. The user’s account can be deleted by contacting the customer service in writing or electronically.

The service provider has the right to terminate the contract immediately, either in whole or in part, and to suspend the delivery of the service if the use of the service has been completely suspended for more than 12 months.

The service provider may terminate the contract immediately if the service is used in violation of these terms or the purpose of the service, or for activities contrary to law or good practice. The agreement may also be terminated immediately due to user conduct that is contrary to the law or good practice.

The service provider has the right to stop providing the service or its characteristic if there are reasonable grounds for doing so. Such a reason can be attributed to a change in mandatory legislation or a judicial order.

In the event of a user’s death, the estate may send the service provider a notification of the user’s death and termination of the contract as a result. If, at the time of death, the user had uncontested unpaid work or unpaid wages, the estate is entitled to these claims. The service provider assists the estate in the handling of matters relating to the account after receiving both a copy of the deceased’s certificate of office and a specific power of attorney addressed to Anspalkkio, in which the shareholders give the shareholder or third person representing the estate the right to invoice on behalf of the deceased.

The operation of the service will be monitored and any errors will be corrected as soon as practicable. The user is obliged to notify the service provider of any activity or other error that is materially different from the description of the service in these terms of use as soon as it is noticed.

The service provider is not obligated to remedy any defects or disturbances that arise as a result of the user’s or a third party’s liability, such as improper use of the service, negligence in complying with the instructions on the use of the service, or equipment, software, settings, configurations, connections or other conditions for using the service. The service provider is not obligated to correct errors in software or interfaces produced by a third party.

11. Damages and limitations of liability

The parties shall be liable for damages caused to the other party. The user is ordered to pay damage compensation for damages caused to the service provider and client if they have caused the damage or failed to fulfil their obligations intentionally or negligently.
 

The service provider’s combined maximum liability for damages to the user is limited to a service fee charged to the user at the most. The limitation of liability does not apply to damage caused intentionally or through gross negligence. The service provider shall not be liable and shall not be liable for any costs, costs or damages arising out of the user’s responsibility or otherwise beyond the service provider’s control.

Neither party shall be liable for any delay or damage caused by a factor beyond its control which could not reasonably have been taken into account and the consequences of which could not reasonably have been avoided (‘force majeure’). Such issues include, but are not limited to, problems, errors, or malfunctions in third-party software or technical devices, such as information networks.

If the service provider is required to pay damages to a third party as a result of the user’s error, damage or omission, the user shall be liable to reimburse the service provider for the amount paid.

12.  Information Security

The service provider keeps the information security of the service at an adequate level. The service provider shall not be liable for the security of the public Internet network or for any disruptions therein or for any other factors or damages caused by the use of the service provider outside the service provider’s control. The service may contain links to third-party websites, for example
in relation to campaigns and ads. The service provider is not responsible for any part of their data security or content. The service provider may use cookies and other similar identifiers on its website as described in more detail in the website’s privacy policy. However, the policies for accepting and blocking cookies vary from case to case, so that the cookie policies always comply with the applicable legislation.

13.  Data Protection

The service provider undertakes to keep all material considered confidential in relation to the user and to use it only in cooperation between the service provider and the user. This obligation shall remain in force until further notice even at the end of the agreement between the parties. Further information on the processing of the user’s personal data can be found in the privacy policy.

The use of the service enables the user to collect and store personal data of their own clients in the service provider’s system. In this respect, the user must comply with applicable data protection legislation. The service provider acts as the processor of client personal data stored by the user in accordance with the legislation in force.

As a data controller, the user is responsible for the accuracy of the personal data of their clients and for the legality of the storage. In addition, the user is responsible for ensuring that they have the right to process personal data, to submit it for processing and to grant the service provider the right to process it. The user as the data controller is responsible for drawing up the privacy statement in accordance with the GDPR and making it available to their own client base.

14. Marketing

The service provider may send electronic messages to the user related to the use of the service.

15. Changes to Conditions

The service provider may change the terms and conditions of the service and pricing as necessary without the user’s separate consent. The user accepts the updated terms of use by continuing to use the service.

16. Transfer of the Agreement

The user does not have the right to transfer the agreement to a third party. The service provider reserves the right to transfer the agreement and/or services, either in whole or in part, to a third party without the user’s consent.

17.  Entire Agreement

Together, these terms of use and the price list of the service constitute the entire agreement between the parties. These terms of use are available in several languages. Should there be a difference of interpretation between the versions offered in different languages, the Finnish version is decisive. If any provision, condition or definition contained in these terms of use is found to be void or invalid, it shall not affect the validity or applicability of the terms of use in other respects. A void or invalid term or definition shall be replaced by a new one which is as similar as possible to the term or definition that has been replaced.

18.  Applicable Law

The law of Finland shall apply to this agreement. The main aim is to resolve disputes through consultations between the parties. If this is not possible, the matter will be decided in the District Court of Helsinki.

19. Validity of the Agreement

These terms and conditions will enter into force on 25 March 2022 and will remain in force until further notice.

Contact information
Anspalkkio Oy
Asemapäällikkökatu 12B
FI-00520 Helsinki, FINLAND
palkkioplus.fi