UGC Contract Checklist: 12 Things I Check Before I Sign (Or Send My Own)

I’m not a lawyer, and this isn’t legal advice. It’s the checklist I’ve built after two years of brand contracts, one bad one, and a lot of Googling at midnight. If a clause below is missing or weird, I ask. Brands respect creators who read the contract. The ones who don’t respect it aren’t the ones you want.

Before we start: you don’t always need a “contract”

For a $200 single video with a small brand, a clear email is a contract. Deliverables, price, usage, timeline, payment terms, and the brand replying “confirmed.” Save the thread. For bigger deals, bundles, retainers, or anything with paid usage, get it in a document. If the brand doesn’t have one, send yours (mine’s at the end).

The 12 things I check

1. Deliverables, exactly

Number of videos, length of each, format (vertical 9:16), whether captions and on-screen text are included, whether raw footage is included. “3 videos” is not enough. “3 vertical videos, 15–45 seconds each, edited with captions, delivered as MP4” is.

2. Usage rights

The big one. Organic vs paid, duration, territory, and whether it’s on their account or mine. If the contract says “perpetual, worldwide, all media” and the price is the base rate, I send my usage rates. Full breakdown here. This clause alone is worth reading twice.

3. Exclusivity

Is there any? How long, and what counts as a competitor? I want “direct competitors in [product category]” and a specific number of days. “The beauty industry” for six months would mean I can’t work. Priced per month, or not agreed.

4. Revisions

How many rounds, and what counts as a round. I include one round for a single video, two for a bundle. “Unlimited revisions until satisfied” is a trap: it means the project never ends. Also check that a revision means “changes to the edit,” not “reshoot the whole thing.”

5. Timeline, both directions

My delivery deadline, and their approval deadline. If the brand takes three weeks to approve the script, my delivery date moves. The contract should say that. It should also say when the product ships, because I can’t film a serum I don’t have.

6. Payment terms

50% deposit to book the slot, 50% on delivery. That’s standard with small and mid brands and I hold to it. Big brands and agencies will say net-30 (they pay 30 days after the invoice). I accept net-30 for bigger projects only, with a late fee in writing (1.5% per month is common), and never for a first project with an unknown brand.

Also: how do they pay? I invoice through a payment tool; if they insist on a platform that takes a cut, I ask who covers the fee.

7. Kill fee

If the brand cancels after I’ve started, what happens? My clause: deposit is non-refundable once filming has started; if they cancel after approving the edit, the full amount is due. Without this, a “we changed direction” email costs you a week of work.

8. Approval and “reasonable” changes

The brand should approve the script or concept before filming. After that, changes to the concept are a new deliverable, not a revision. The contract should say what “approval” looks like (an email is fine) so there’s no “we never really approved it.”

9. Portfolio rights

Can I show the work? I want a clause that says I may display the deliverables as examples of my services on my website and social. Some brands ask me to wait until the campaign is live, which is fair. “You may not display this work” is a no unless the price covers it, because my portfolio is how I get the next job.

10. Raw footage and ownership

Who owns the raw files? Default: I do, and the brand licenses the edited deliverables. If they want raw footage, it’s an add-on (what I charge) and the usage terms apply to it too. Watch for “work for hire,” which means they own everything you shoot, forever. That’s a buyout, and it’s priced like one.

11. Claims and compliance

The brand is responsible for the accuracy of product claims they ask me to make. I say what I experienced; I don’t say “clinically proven” unless they’ve shown me the proof, and the contract should put claims liability on them. Also, when I post the video on my own channels (if that’s part of the deal), it gets an #ad disclosure, no exceptions.

12. Cancellation, disputes, and where

Boring, but read it: what law applies (I’m in New York, I’d prefer New York), how to terminate, whether either side can end a retainer with notice (30 days is standard). If a contract has a mandatory arbitration clause in another country, ask why.

Red flags that make me pause

• “All rights in perpetuity” at the base rate.
• Payment “upon campaign completion” (which could be never).
• Exclusivity with no end date.
• “Creator may not disclose the collaboration” combined with “creator may not use the work in portfolio.” Both together means you’re invisible.
• A brand that gets irritated when you ask questions. Ask anyway.

The one-page agreement I send

When a brand has nothing, I send a simple document with these sections: Parties. Deliverables (number, length, format, captions). Timeline (product ship date, script approval, delivery). Fee and payment (deposit, balance, due dates, late fee). Usage (organic term, paid term and price, whitelisting, territory). Exclusivity (none unless listed). Revisions (rounds). Cancellation (kill fee). Portfolio (allowed). Ownership (raw footage stays mine). Claims (brand’s responsibility). Signatures, or “reply ‘agreed’ to this email.”

It fits on one page, it takes brands two minutes to read, and it’s never once lost me a deal. It’s also built into my rate card template, which is the free download below if you want the structure without writing it from scratch.

A contract isn’t about distrust. It’s how two people who’ve never met agree on what “done” means. The brands worth working with feel the same way.