Last Updated: March 31, 2023

1. Use restrictions.

You may not use Affirm for the following purposes:

• To exchange funds where no bona fide goods or services are sold.
• To evade card network chargeback monitoring programs.
• To share customer data with another merchant for cross-selling a product or service.

To offer the Affirm payment method to customers in the country noted under “Applicable Country” in the table below, the following conditions apply:

2. Affirm branding; IP; Text Messaging.

(a) Marketing Compliance. If you want to market Affirm on your website beyond using the Affirm Messaging Element, you must adhere to Affirm’s marketing compliance guides applicable to your country and use the Affirm toolkit applicable to your country that relates to the Affirm financing option you offer your customers.

(b) IP. By offering Affirm, you also grant Affirm a non-exclusive and non-transferable limited license to use your legal or trade name for servicing your customers and for marketing your offering of Affirm to existing or potential customers on Affirm owned or controlled channels, such as Affirm’s mobile application, website, email marketing, and social media channels. Affirm will stop using your legal and trade name for these purposes promptly following your request. If you no longer wish to receive merchant success services from Affirm, you can request that Affirm stop providing such services to you at any time and Affirm will promptly cease offering such services to you following your request.

(c) Text Messages.  You may not reference Affirm or include any Affirm custom marketing assets in any messaging on SMS or similar text messaging applications (“Text Message”) unless otherwise agreed to by Affirm. If you and Affirm agree to include any Affirm custom marketing assets or reference Affirm in any Text Message, you will comply with the following laws corresponding to the country where you are offering Affirm, their state-law or provincial-law analogues, and any other applicable rules relating to telemarketing.

3. Prohibited and restricted business categories.

(a) In addition to the categories of businesses restricted from using Stripe overall, the following categories are prohibited from using Affirm in all countries or subject to additional requirements*.

• Boat dealers
• Business to business services
• Employment agencies (including, but not limited to, temporary help services)
• Higher education services (Canada)
• Post-Secondary Educational Expenses (United States)*
• Home improvement services (including, but not limited to, contractors and special trade contractors)
• Live animals
• NFTs
• Healthcare Services*
• Professional services (including, but not limited to, legal, consulting, and accounting)
• Snowmobile dealers
• Stenographic and secretarial support services
• Titled goods and auto loans
• Other categories at the discretion of Affirm and Stripe

(b) *Healthcare Services. To the extent you are approved to offer Affirm for Healthcare Services, the following will apply to your use of Affirm:

• If you sell products or services that (i) constitute the practice of medicine or the practice of dentistry; or (ii) are within the scope of practice of any licensed professional for which an individual must obtain a professional license in order to perform or be supervised by a licensed professional (“Healthcare Services”), you will comply with the Service Terms set forth in the table below corresponding to the country where you are offering Affirm.
• Connected Accounts: If you enable any Stripe Connected Accounts that sell products or services that constitute Healthcare Services to enable Affirm (or enable Affirm for Connected Accounts), you will make available the Service Terms set forth in the table below corresponding to the country where you are offering Affirm to your Connected Account (for example, in your technical documentation, merchant agreement, merchant dashboard, or via email) promptly following the enablement of Affirm.

(c) * Post-Secondary Educational Expenses:

• United States only. You represent and warrant that you are not an “institution of higher education”, as defined under the Higher Education Act (20 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1002) and implementing regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 600). Examples of “institutions of higher education” are certain for-profit schools and vocational schools that are regulated by the U.S. Department of Education. You further represent and warrant that you would not qualify as an “institution of higher education” even if you are to become accredited by an accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. You will notify Affirm if these representations and warranties become untrue.
  • If you are uncertain as to whether you are an "institution of higher education”, you should seek the advice of legal counsel. This guide is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice.

(d) In-Home Services: If you sell products or services in customers’ homes, you will not discuss, mention or otherwise talk about Affirm or take payment with customers on Affirm while in such customers’ home.

4. Refunds.

(a) General.  Returns are subject to your return policy displayed on your website. In the event of a valid customer return, you agree to do the following:

• Issue full or partial refunds and not store credit.
• Promptly process such refunds.

Neither you nor your customer can use Affirm to pay for return-related fees (for example, restocking fees).

(b) Canada Only:

• Quebec Rescission.  In the event that, after receiving a copy of the loan agreement between Affirm and customer, such customer residing in Quebec contacts Affirm to exercise his or her right to cancel within the time permitted under applicable Quebec law following a Successful Transaction (“Quebec Rescission”) and you have shipped the purchased good or service, Affirm will send the customer a communication confirming the cancellation of the transaction and advising the customer that, while no interest or other amounts are due under the loan agreement as a result of the Quebec Rescission, in order to effectuate the Quebec Rescission, such customer must either (x) repay the principal amount of the applicable loan amount directly to Affirm or (y) return the applicable good or service to you in accordance with the your policies. In the event the customer elects to effectuate the Quebec Rescission by returning the good or service to you, (i) Affirm will notify you that the customer has made such an election and (ii) upon notice from you to Affirm that the applicable customer has successfully returned the good or service to you, Affirm will, (A) reduce the principal amount of the applicable loan of the customer to zero, (B) reduce or set off the amount of any proceeds it paid to you under the cancelled loan (including, for the avoidance of doubt, any amounts originally paid by the customer to Affirm as a down payment) from the next-occurring disbursement, and (C) if any down payment was paid by the customer, Affirm will promptly refund the same amount to the payment instrument used by the customer to make the down payment. In the event the customer elects to repay the principal amount of the applicable loan directly to Affirm, then upon receipt of such payment Affirm will (1) reduce the principal amount of the applicable loan of the customer to zero, and (2) if any down payment was paid by the customer, promptly refund the same amount to the payment instrument used by the customer to make the down payment.

5. Disputes and Fraud.

By offering Affirm, you agree to resolve disputes directly with your customers in a timely manner, based on your policies. If you can’t resolve a dispute with your customer, you agree to the following dispute resolution process:

• Affirm works directly with Stripe.
• Stripe works directly with you.
• You will comply with, and promptly respond to, reasonable requests from Stripe or Affirm relating to the dispute.

Stripe also works with you and Affirm to prevent fraudulent transactions and minimize loss. In the event of a fraudulent transaction, you will comply with any request from Stripe to stop shipment or cancel a transaction.

6. Financing Options.

Affirm is offered by the applicable Affirm entity listed below or through its affiliates or bank partners.  Affirm will determine customer underwriting, credit decisioning, customer APRs, loan amounts and cart amounts for customers using Affirm. Affirm offers the following financing options based on your country:

• *The “Pay in 4” option is a closed-end installment loan for customers to finance the purchase of your products and services at 0% APR, which is repaid in four or fewer bi-weekly installments over an eight-week loan term. Affirm uses its state or provincial (as applicable) lending licensed subsidiary to originate these loans resulting from a customer’s use of the Pay in 4 financing option. 
  • In the United States, the Pay in 4 financing option will be available in the following territories: (i) all states in the US; (ii) the District of Columbia; and (iii) any other state, territory or jurisdiction authorized by Affirm.
  • In Canada, the Pay in 4 financing option will be available in the following territories: (i) all Canadian provinces and territories; and (ii) any other province, territory or jurisdiction authorized by Affirm.
• *The “Installments” financing option is a closed-end installment loan for customers to finance the purchase of your products and services at 0% or interest bearing rates with various loan terms. Affirm uses (i) one or more state-chartered banks or other FDIC-insured institution(s) or (ii) its state lending licensed subsidiary to originate these loans resulting from a customer’s use of the Installments financing option. The Installments financing option will be available in the following territories: (i) all states in the US; (ii) the District of Columbia; (iii) Guam; (iv) Puerto Rico; (v) the US Virgin Islands; and (vi) any other state, territory or jurisdiction authorized by Affirm.
• *The “Monthly Payments” financing option is a closed-end installment loan for customers to finance the purchase of your products and services at 0% or an interest bearing rate with various loan terms.  Affirm, itself or through its affiliates, will be the creditor at origination for any loans resulting from a customer’s use of the Monthly Payments Product. The Monthly Payments Product will be available in all Canadian provinces and territories.

Affirm via Stripe enables an “Adaptive Checkout” experience which means customers get personalized financing options for each transaction, which may include Pay in 4, Installments, or both.

Affirm may also ask your customer to make an initial, one-time down payment of the purchase price for your products and services. You acknowledge that any down payment made by a customer to Affirm is considered the same as a payment made directly to you and you appoint Affirm Loan Services LLC as your payment collection agent for accepting any down payment on your behalf.

7. In-Store Terms.

The following terms apply if you offer Affirm in-store.

United States Only:

(a) Affirm authorizes your personnel to market and offer Affirm to customers by performing in-store activities that facilitate customers’ use of Affirm to purchase your products (the “In-Store Activities”). You are only authorized to perform In-Store Activities at your physical retail stores agreed between you and Affirm (“Locations”).

(b) If you want to offer Affirm in-store, you will comply (and require your personnel to comply) with the Affirm training materials prior to performing In-Store Activities. Affirm may update the training materials from time-to-time. You will, upon Affirm’s request, certify to Affirm that all personnel have completed Affirm’s required training. Affirm may provide additional training at Affirm’s discretion. Affirm may from time-to-time at its sole discretion, make changes to the training materials and provide additional training materials. Your personnel will not make any statements, commitments, representations or warranties with respect to Affirm, except as authorized by Affirm in the training materials. 

(c) If you want to market Affirm in-store, you must use Affirm pre-approved marketing language and disclosures for In-Store Activities (“Affirm Approved Marketing Materials”) and print and deploy at your own expense at each Location. If you deploy Affirm Approved Marketing Materials at a Location, you will place them at (A) the product level on or near pricing information, and (B) at or near the register. Affirm may audit your placement of Affirm Approved Marketing Materials at Locations to confirm you have complied with these requirements.  

(d) You are solely responsible and liable for your personnels’ performance of the In-Store Activities and for resolving all employment-related matters related to such personnel. Affirm may suspend your authorization to perform In-Store Activities upon reasonable prior notice to you, including if you or your personnel don’t comply with the requirements in this Section 7.

8. Stripe Connect Platforms.

If you enable any Stripe custom Connected Accounts to enable Affirm (or enable Affirm for custom Connected Accounts), you will (i) make available Affirm’s marketing compliance guides set forth in Section 2 above to your custom Connected Account (for example, in your technical documentation, merchant agreement, merchant dashboard, or via email) promptly following the enablement of Affirm, or (ii) ensure that custom Connected Accounts do not offer or market Affirm to customers other than by displaying the Affirm Messaging Element, unless otherwise agreed to by Affirm.

9. Affirm Enforcement Rights.

By enabling Affirm, you acknowledge that Affirm, including Affirm Loan Services LLC, are third party beneficiaries of the Stripe Services Agreement and may enforce Stripe’s rights under the Stripe Services Agreement directly against you.

10. Information Sharing.

You agree that your information can be shared with Affirm. For more information, see Stripe’s Privacy Center.

11. No discrimination.

You agree not to discriminate against or otherwise disadvantage your customers who want to use Affirm relative to other payment methods.

12. Termination rights.

In addition to the termination and suspension rights included in the Stripe Services Agreement, Affirm has certain additional rights to suspend or terminate your use of Affirm, such as for breach of the prohibited business categories listed above or for high dispute rates that aren’t promptly remedied.