Terms & Policies

These Terms of Service form a binding agreement between you and VetMark, the operator of vetmark.io and of the services described on this page. In these terms, "VetMark", "we", "us" and "our" refer to that business. VetMark operates as a fully remote business and can be reached at john@vetmark.io.

By accessing vetmark.io, submitting an enquiry, requesting talent, applying to join the network, or entering into any engagement arranged through us, you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to be bound by these terms and by the Privacy Policy set out in Part Two of this page.

If you are agreeing to these terms on behalf of a company or other organisation, you confirm that you have authority to bind that organisation, and "you" refers to that organisation.

Where you sign a separate written engagement agreement, statement of work or order form with us, that document governs the specific engagement. These terms continue to apply to everything the separate document does not address, and in the event of a direct conflict the separate signed document takes precedence.

Client

A business, organisation or individual that uses VetMark to find, evaluate or engage a Professional.

Professional

An individual who applies to, or has been accepted into, the VetMark network to provide marketing or virtual-assistance services.

Network

The pool of Professionals who have completed VetMark's screening process.

Vetting

VetMark's screening process, comprising a skills test, communication clarity test, portfolio review, live task, test project and interview.

VetMark Verified

The designation applied to a Professional who has completed Vetting. It is a record of process completion, not a warranty of future performance.

Engagement

Any arrangement, whether contract, freelance, ongoing or direct-hire, under which a Client retains a Professional introduced by VetMark.

Introduction

The point at which VetMark first discloses the identity of, or arranges contact with, a Professional to a Client.

Services

The website, the Network, Vetting, introductions, and any related service VetMark provides.

Work Product

Any deliverable, document, design, code, copy, data or other material created by a Professional during an Engagement.

VetMark is a talent marketplace. We source, assess and introduce Professionals to Clients. The scope of what we provide is set out below, and it is stated precisely because misunderstanding it is the single most common source of dispute in this industry.

VetMark does

• Source candidates for marketing and virtual-assistance roles
• Assess candidates through the Vetting process described in clause 7
• Introduce shortlisted Professionals to Clients
• Where agreed, administer invoicing and payment for an Engagement
• Operate the replacement window described in clause 9

VetMark does not

• Employ Professionals, or act as an employer of record, unless expressly agreed in a separate signed agreement
• Perform, supervise, direct or quality-control the work carried out during an Engagement
• Guarantee that any Engagement will produce a particular commercial outcome
• Act as a party to the working relationship between a Client and a Professional
• Provide legal, tax, employment, accounting or immigration advice

Any information we provide about worker classification, tax treatment or compliance is general information only. You are responsible for obtaining your own professional advice on how an Engagement should be structured in your jurisdiction.

You must be at least 18 years old and legally capable of entering into a binding contract to use the Services. Professionals must additionally be legally entitled to provide services on a self-employed or independent basis in their country of residence.

Where an account or profile is created, you agree to provide accurate, current and complete information, to keep it updated, and to keep any access credentials confidential. You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your account.

Providing false, misleading or fabricated information, including misrepresenting work history, portfolio ownership, qualifications or identity, is grounds for immediate and permanent removal from the Services.

When you engage VetMark to fill a role, you agree to the following.

• Accurate briefs. You will describe the role, deliverables, tools, required hours of overlap and budget range accurately. Screening quality depends directly on brief quality.
• Your hiring decision. You are solely responsible for deciding whether to engage any Professional. Our screening is intended to inform that decision, never to replace your own interview, reference checks or due diligence.
• Candidate confidentiality. Candidate details are provided for the purpose of your own hiring assessment only. You may not forward, publish or share a Professional's details with a third party without our prior written consent.
• Lawful engagement. You are responsible for structuring the Engagement lawfully in your jurisdiction, including worker classification, contractual terms, and any tax or reporting obligations that arise.
• Working conditions. You agree to treat Professionals professionally and lawfully, to pay agreed amounts on time, and not to require work outside the agreed scope without agreeing revised terms.

When you apply to join the Network, you agree to the following.

• Honest representation. All information you provide, including work history, portfolio items, results claimed and qualifications, must be accurate and must be your own work. Where a portfolio item was produced as part of a team, you will say so and describe your actual contribution.
• Your own assessment work. Skills tests, live tasks and test projects must be completed by you personally and without undisclosed assistance. Where you use AI tools during an assessment, you must disclose it when asked.
• No guarantee of work. Acceptance into the Network, and the VetMark Verified designation, do not guarantee introductions, interviews, engagements or income. We make no representation about the volume, frequency or value of opportunities.
• Client confidentiality. You will keep Client information, briefs and materials confidential, both during and after any Engagement.
• Independent status. You engage with VetMark and with Clients as an independent contractor and are responsible for your own tax, statutory contributions and business obligations in your country of residence.
• Right to remove. We may remove any Professional from the Network at our discretion, including for misrepresentation, repeated unresponsiveness, unprofessional conduct, or conduct that damages a Client relationship.

Fees payable by Professionals

VetMark does not charge Professionals any fee to apply, to be assessed, or to join the Network. There is no charge for the skills test, the communication clarity test, the portfolio review, the live task, the test project or the interview, and there is no subscription, membership or profile fee of any kind. VetMark is paid by Clients, not by Professionals.

If that position ever changes, we will state it clearly before you apply and it will not be applied retrospectively to anyone already in the Network.

If anyone asks you to pay a fee in VetMark's name, for any reason, do not pay it. Email john@vetmark.io and tell us what happened.

Vetting comprises six stages: a skills test, a communication clarity test, a portfolio review, a live task, a client-simulation test project, and an interview. Each stage is assessed against role-relevant criteria by a person working in the relevant discipline.

The VetMark Verified designation records that a Professional completed that process to the standard applied at the time of assessment. It is expressly not:

• A warranty, guarantee or representation of future performance, output quality or commercial results
• A background check, criminal record check, credit check or right-to-work verification, unless we state in writing that such a check was carried out
• A verification of every factual claim in a Professional's history or portfolio
• A substitute for your own interview, references or due diligence

We may amend, suspend or withdraw a Verified designation at any time, and we may change the Vetting process itself as the Services develop.

Fees are agreed in writing before an Engagement begins, either in a quotation, an engagement agreement or an order form. No fee becomes payable by a Client until a Professional starts work.

Ongoing engagements

For contract, freelance and virtual-assistance Engagements, VetMark charges a markup on the Professional's agreed rate, invoiced monthly for the duration of the Engagement The markup is between 15% and 25% of the Professional's agreed rate, with the exact figure confirmed in writing in your engagement agreement before the Engagement begins.

Direct-hire placements

For direct-hire Engagements, VetMark charges a one-time placement fee calculated as a percentage of the Professional's first-year gross salary, The fee is between 15% and 20% of that salary, with the exact figure confirmed in writing in your engagement agreement before we begin the search. The fee is invoiced on the Professional's start date and is payable only if the Professional actually starts.

Payment terms

• Invoices are payable within 15 days of the invoice date, on net 15 terms.
• All amounts are stated and payable in United States dollars (USD, $), and are exclusive of any applicable taxes, which are payable by the Client where they apply.
• Overdue amounts may accrue interest at 1.5% per month on the outstanding balance, or the maximum rate permitted by applicable law if that is lower, and we may suspend the Services while an invoice remains unpaid.
• We do not charge job posting fees, candidate access fees, search retainers or subscription fees. If a fee is not set out in your engagement agreement, it is not payable.
• Bank charges, currency conversion costs and payment processor fees are borne by the paying party unless agreed otherwise.

Except where the replacement window in clause 9 applies, or where required by law, fees are non-refundable once a Professional has started work.

If a Client determines within 10 business days of a Professional's start date that the placement is not the right fit, the Client may notify VetMark in writing and request a replacement. Where the conditions below are met, we will conduct a replacement search at no additional placement fee or search fee.

Conditions

• Notice must be given in writing within the 10 business day window, which runs from the agreed start date.
• The notice must state specifically why the placement is not working. General dissatisfaction without detail does not allow us to screen a replacement effectively.
• The role and brief must be materially unchanged. A substantially different role is a new search.
• All invoices raised to date must be paid, including fees for work the Professional has already performed.
• The Client must not have breached these terms or the engagement agreement.

The replacement window covers the search and screening effort only. It is not a refund of amounts already paid for work performed, and it does not extend to consequential losses of any kind. Each Engagement carries one replacement entitlement unless we agree otherwise in writing.

Where we are unable to present a suitable replacement within 30 business days of a valid replacement request, the position is straightforward. For a direct-hire placement, we refund the placement fee in full. For an ongoing Engagement, our markup stops accruing from the Professional's last working day and no further amounts are payable to us. In both cases you remain responsible only for work the Professional actually performed.

For a period of 12 months following an Introduction, a Client may not directly or indirectly engage that Professional, or refer them to a third party who engages them, outside the VetMark Services, without paying the applicable fee.

This applies whether the Engagement is described as employment, contracting, consultancy, freelance work or any other arrangement, and whether it is entered into by the Client or by an affiliate, subsidiary, parent or related entity of the Client.

Where circumvention occurs, the Client will pay the placement fee that would have applied, calculated in accordance with clause 8, together with any reasonable costs of recovery.

This clause does not apply where the Client can show they had a documented relationship with the Professional predating the Introduction, or where the Professional independently applied to the Client through a public advertisement without any reference to VetMark.

Nothing in these terms creates an employment relationship, partnership, joint venture or agency between VetMark and any Client, or between VetMark and any Professional.

Professionals introduced through VetMark engage as independent contractors. They control the manner and method by which their services are performed, subject to the deliverables and deadlines agreed with the Client, and they are responsible for their own equipment, insurance, taxes and statutory contributions.

Worker classification is determined by the law of the relevant jurisdiction and by the substance of the working relationship, not by the label the parties apply to it. Each Client is responsible for satisfying itself that its Engagement is correctly classified, and for obtaining independent legal and tax advice on that question. VetMark accepts no liability arising from a Client's misclassification of a Professional.

Each party may receive information from the other that is confidential. Confidential information includes briefs, candidate details, pricing, business plans, client lists, and any information that would reasonably be understood to be confidential given its nature or the circumstances of disclosure.

Each party agrees to use the other's confidential information only for the purposes of the Services or an Engagement, to protect it with at least reasonable care, and not to disclose it to any third party except to personnel or advisors who need it and who are bound by equivalent obligations.

These obligations do not apply to information that is or becomes public through no breach of this clause, was already lawfully known to the receiving party, is independently developed without reference to the disclosed information, or must be disclosed by law or court order, provided that reasonable notice of any such requirement is given where legally permitted.

Professionals sign a confidentiality undertaking before receiving Client access. Where a Client requires Professionals to sign the Client's own confidentiality or data-protection terms, we will facilitate that.

VetMark property

The VetMark name, logo, website, assessment materials, rubrics, test projects and all associated content are owned by VetMark or its licensors and are protected by intellectual property law. Nothing in these terms transfers any right in them to you. You may not copy, reproduce, republish, scrape or reuse our assessment materials or website content without written permission.

Work Product

Ownership of Work Product created during an Engagement is governed by the agreement between the Client and the Professional. The standard position we recommend and apply in our own template agreements is that Work Product created for a Client during a paid Engagement is assigned to that Client on payment.

Pre-existing materials, tools, templates and methods that a Professional brings to an Engagement remain the property of that Professional, who grants the Client a licence to use them to the extent they are embedded in the Work Product.

Assessment materials

Work produced by a Professional during Vetting is created for the purpose of assessment. We may retain it for our records and may share relevant extracts with prospective Clients as evidence of capability, with the Professional's consent.

You agree not to use the Services to:

• Post, request or facilitate anything unlawful, fraudulent, defamatory, harassing or discriminatory
• Discriminate against any person on the basis of a protected characteristic under applicable law
• Advertise a role that does not genuinely exist, or that misrepresents pay, scope or working conditions
• Misrepresent your identity, organisation, work history or qualifications
• Scrape, harvest, index or bulk-extract candidate data, listings or website content by any automated means
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Services, or interfere with their operation or security
• Introduce malware, or use the Services to distribute unsolicited commercial messages
• Circumvent the fee structure described in clause 10

We investigate reported breaches and may suspend or terminate access, remove content, and where appropriate report conduct to the relevant authorities.

You may stop using the Services at any time. Where an Engagement or engagement agreement is in force, its own notice provisions apply.

We may suspend or terminate access to the Services immediately where you breach these terms, where an invoice remains unpaid beyond its due date, where we reasonably suspect fraud or misrepresentation, or where we are required to do so by law.

Termination does not affect any right or liability that accrued before it, and clauses relating to fees already due, non-circumvention, confidentiality, intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnity and governing law survive termination.

The Services are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. To the fullest extent permitted by law, VetMark disclaims all warranties, whether express, implied or statutory, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

Without limiting the above, we do not warrant that:

• Any Professional will meet a Client's expectations, perform to a particular standard, or remain available
• Any Engagement will produce any particular commercial, marketing or financial outcome
• Any Professional will receive introductions, interviews, engagements or income
• The website will be uninterrupted, error-free or free of harmful components

Any statistics, case studies, past results or benchmark figures published by VetMark describe specific past engagements or general industry data. They are illustrative only and are not a prediction, projection or guarantee of results for you.

Some jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion of certain warranties. Where that is the case, the exclusions above apply only to the extent permitted by the law that applies to you, and nothing in these terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, or for any other liability that cannot lawfully be limited.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, VetMark is not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive loss, or for any loss of profit, revenue, business, goodwill, anticipated saving, data, or opportunity, however caused and whether or not we were advised of the possibility.

VetMark's total aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with the Services, whether in contract, tort including negligence, statute or otherwise, is limited to the total fees actually paid by you to VetMark in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

In particular, VetMark is not liable for acts, omissions, errors, negligence, misconduct, breaches of confidence or losses caused by any Professional or any Client during or after an Engagement. The Engagement is between those parties.

This clause does not limit liability that cannot be limited by law, and it applies subject to clause 16.

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless VetMark, its officers, employees and contractors against any claim, demand, loss, liability, cost or expense, including reasonable legal fees, arising out of or connected with your breach of these terms, your misuse of the Services, your infringement of any third-party right, or, in the case of a Client, any claim arising from your engagement, classification, treatment or termination of a Professional.

These terms, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them including non-contractual disputes, are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, United States, without regard to its conflict of law principles.

Step one: raise it with us

Before starting any formal proceeding, you agree to email john@vetmark.io describing the dispute and what you want resolved, and we agree to respond in good faith. Most disagreements are settled at this stage. If the matter is not resolved within 30 days of that notice, either party may proceed under step two.

Step two: binding individual arbitration

Please read this section carefully. It affects how disputes between us are resolved and it limits the ways in which you can seek relief.

Any dispute not resolved under step one will be settled by final and binding arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association under its Commercial Arbitration Rules, before a single arbitrator. The seat of arbitration is Delaware, United States. Hearings will be conducted remotely by video wherever the arbitrator permits, so that neither party is required to travel in order to be heard. The arbitrator's award may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction.

Class action waiver

Disputes will be arbitrated only on an individual basis. You and VetMark each waive any right to bring, join or participate in a class, collective, consolidated or representative action. The arbitrator may not consolidate the claims of more than one person and may not preside over any form of representative proceeding. If this waiver is held unenforceable in respect of a particular claim, then that claim, and only that claim, will be heard in court rather than in arbitration.

Your right to opt out

You may opt out of the arbitration agreement and class action waiver above by emailing john@vetmark.io within 30 days of first accepting these terms, stating your name and that you are opting out of arbitration. Opting out affects nothing else in these terms, and it will not affect your relationship with VetMark in any way.

Exceptions

Either party may bring an individual claim in small claims court, and either party may seek injunctive or other equitable relief in any court of competent jurisdiction to protect its confidential information or intellectual property. Any claim that is not subject to arbitration will be heard exclusively in the state or federal courts located in Delaware, United States, and both parties consent to the jurisdiction of those courts.

VetMark is the data controller for the personal information described here. Our contact details are in clause 33.

We collect this information directly from you, automatically through your use of the website, and occasionally from public professional sources such as a public portfolio or professional profile you have chosen to publish.

We do not ask for special category data such as health information, and we ask that you do not include it in an application. Where you provide it unprompted, we delete it unless we are legally required to retain it.

We use personal information to provide and operate the Services, specifically to:

• Respond to enquiries and provide quotations
• Assess applications and operate the Vetting process
• Match briefs to suitable Professionals and prepare shortlists
• Share relevant candidate information with a Client for the purpose of that Client's hiring decision
• Administer engagements, invoicing, payments and the replacement window
• Maintain records, resolve disputes and enforce our agreements
• Improve our screening rubrics and the Services generally
• Send service messages, and where you have opted in, occasional updates about VetMark
• Comply with legal, accounting and regulatory obligations

We do not sell personal information, and we do not share it with third parties for their own independent marketing purposes.

Where data protection law requires a legal basis for processing, we rely on the following.

• Contract. To take steps at your request before entering an agreement, and to perform an agreement with you.
• Legitimate interests. To operate, secure and improve the Services, to maintain records, to prevent fraud and to pursue or defend legal claims. We balance these interests against your rights and you may object as described in clause 26.
• Consent. For marketing communications and for non-essential cookies. You may withdraw consent at any time without affecting processing carried out before withdrawal.
• Legal obligation. To meet tax, accounting, and other statutory duties.

We share personal information only as described here.

• With Clients. Candidate information, including assessment evidence, is shared with a prospective Client for the purpose of that Client's hiring decision. We tell Professionals before this happens.
• With Professionals. Relevant brief and company information is shared with candidates being considered for a role.
• With service providers. Hosting, email, scheduling, customer relationship management, assessment tooling, accounting and payment providers who process data on our instructions under a written agreement.
• With advisors. Lawyers, accountants and insurers where necessary.
• For legal reasons. Where required by law, regulation, court order, or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
• On a business transfer. If VetMark is involved in a merger, acquisition or asset sale, information may transfer as part of that transaction, subject to this policy.

A current list of the categories of service provider we use is available on request by emailing john@vetmark.io.

VetMark operates across borders by design. Personal information may be transferred to, stored in and processed in countries other than the one you live in. In practice this means the United States, where our systems and most of our service providers are located, and the countries across Africa where Professionals are based. Those countries may have data protection laws that differ from the laws where you live.

Where we transfer personal information out of a jurisdiction that restricts such transfers, we rely on an appropriate safeguard, such as standard contractual clauses approved by the relevant authority, an adequacy decision, or another lawful transfer mechanism. You may request details of the safeguard applied to a specific transfer.

We keep personal information only as long as we need it for the purposes described, and then delete or anonymise it. Our standard periods are set out below and may be extended where a legal claim, audit or statutory obligation requires it.

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you and receive a copy
• Have inaccurate information corrected
• Have information deleted, where we have no overriding lawful reason to keep it
• Restrict or object to processing, including processing based on legitimate interests
• Receive your information in a portable format, or have it transmitted to another controller
• Withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent
• Not be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing that has a legal or similarly significant effect. We do not make hiring decisions by automated means, and our Vetting is assessed by people.

If you are in the United States

Residents of California and of other states with comprehensive privacy laws may have rights to know, delete, correct, and opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information and of targeted advertising. VetMark does not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined under those laws. You may exercise your rights using the contact details in clause 33, and we will not discriminate against you for doing so.

If you are in the EU or UK

You may lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority, though we would be glad of the chance to resolve the matter first.

If you are elsewhere

Many other countries give you comparable rights under their own data protection law, including the Nigeria Data Protection Act for individuals in Nigeria, and you may complain to your local supervisory authority. Wherever you live, you can exercise the rights listed above by emailing us, and we will apply them.

We respond to verified requests within the period required by the applicable law, and in any event without undue delay. We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.

We apply technical and organisational measures appropriate to the risk, including encryption in transit, access controls limiting personal information to those who need it, vendor due diligence, and confidentiality obligations on everyone who handles data on our behalf.

No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. Where a personal data breach occurs that is likely to result in a risk to your rights, we will notify the relevant authority and, where required, affected individuals, within the timeframes the applicable law sets.

The Services are intended for adults and are not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

Cookies are small files placed on your device that let a website function properly and let us understand how it is used. We group ours as follows.

Where consent is required, non-essential cookies are set only after you agree through our cookie banner. You can change or withdraw your choices at any time using the cookie preferences control in the website footer, and you can block or delete cookies through your browser settings, though some parts of the site may then not work as intended.

The individual cookies in use, together with their providers and lifespans, are listed inside the cookie preferences panel, and a copy is available on request by emailing john@vetmark.io. We honour Global Privacy Control signals where our systems receive them.

The Services rely on third-party providers for functions such as hosting, email, scheduling, customer relationship management and payments. Their handling of personal information is governed by their own terms and privacy notices, and by the data-processing agreements we hold with them.

Our website may link to third-party sites. We do not control them and are not responsible for their content, terms or privacy practices. Following an external link is at your own discretion.

We aim to make vetmark.io usable by as many people as possible and work towards the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA as a reference standard. If you encounter a barrier on this site, tell us at the address in clause 33 and describe the page and the problem. We will respond and, where we can, fix it.

We may update this page as the Services and the law develop. The effective date and version number at the top of the page always reflect the current document.

Where a change materially affects your rights or obligations, we will give reasonable notice by email to the address we hold for you, or by a prominent notice on the website, before it takes effect. Continued use of the Services after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the revised terms. If you do not accept a change, you should stop using the Services and, where an Engagement is in force, contact us to discuss it.

Changes do not apply retroactively to a dispute arising before the change took effect.

For any question about these terms, a privacy request, a cookie query or an accessibility issue, write to us and say clearly what you are asking for.

General and legal enquiries: john@vetmark.io
Privacy requests: john@vetmark.io
Arbitration opt out notices: john@vetmark.io

VetMark is a fully remote business and does not operate a public office, so email is the fastest and most reliable way to reach us. Please put the subject of your request in the subject line, for example "Privacy request" or "Arbitration opt out", so it is routed correctly.

We aim to acknowledge every message within 5 business days, and to resolve privacy requests within the period the applicable law allows.