> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://whalescorp.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Agency Agreement — Tax Optimization for Merchants

Rather than the merchant buying and reselling cheques (which creates a large revenue base for local tax), the merchant acts as a **commission agent** of the issuer.

## Legal distinction

| Model | Merchant Revenue Base | Tax Exposure |
| :- | :- | :- |
| **Reseller** | Full sale price (e.g. €97) | High — full VAT on €97 |
| **Agent** | Agent commission only (e.g. €0.50) | Low — VAT only on €0.50 |

Under the agency model:

* The merchant sells **on behalf of the issuer**, not on their own account
* The merchant's declared revenue = **agent's remuneration only** (the markup they retain)
* The face value pass-through is not the merchant's revenue — it flows through to the issuer
* This is the standard structure used by payment intermediaries, prepaid card distributors, and gift card networks globally

## What this means for the platform's document model

The merchant does not receive a normal sales invoice from the issuer for each batch. Instead:

1. **Agency Agreement** (contract, outside platform scope) — establishes the legal relationship
2. **Agent's Report** (агентский отчёт) — periodic document from merchant to issuer: "I sold X cheques, collected €Y, remitting €Z, keeping €W as my commission"
3. **Settlement Statement** — from issuer confirming receipt and reconciling the period
4. **Rebate Notice** — from issuer to merchant: "your rebate for this period is \$X"


This documentation is built and hosted on [Mintlify](https://mintlify.com), a developer documentation platform.