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Recruitment terms of business with fees by salary band

Your fee scale, exclusivity options and guarantee in one set of terms, read and signed online by the client's finance and procurement teams.

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QuoteCloud turns your terms of business into an online document: fee percentages by salary band as a table block, contingent, exclusive or retained options, your replacement guarantee or rebate scale as a locked company block, and an expiry date for the annual review. The hiring manager and procurement both sign online; fees are invoiced by you on the start date.

Three pages of sample terms of business from a fictional agency, Ashby Lane Recruitment, for Harbourline Logistics, taking turns at the front: the cover (permanent recruitment terms, expiring 30 June 2027); the placement fee scale (15% under $100,000, 18% from $100,000, 20% from $150,000 and 22% from $200,000 of first-year base salary, with a Head of Finance on $165,000 in the 20% band, a fee of $33,000.00 plus tax, and the options contingent, exclusive for 4 weeks or retained); and the guarantee as a locked company block (a free replacement within 3 months, or a sliding rebate within 12 weeks).

What the consultant edits, what the client chooses, what stays locked

Harbourline Logistics' terms for the year, read top to bottom. Every part is a block from the agency's own template, and the client's finance team sees exactly what procurement sees.

  1. Consultant edits

    The client and the year the terms cover

    Client, dates and a short introduction are the only parts a consultant fills in. The expiry date goes on the document itself, so next year's annual review starts from a list, not a calendar reminder.

    Ashby Lane RecruitmentTerms of business AL-TOB-2027 Sample · fictional business
    Two women shaking hands across an office desk

    Terms of business

    Permanent recruitment terms of business

    Prepared for Harbourline Logistics · 3 June 2026 · Expires 30 June 2027

    The fees, guarantee and terms that apply to every permanent role Harbourline Logistics asks Ashby Lane to fill between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027, agreed once and signed online by finance and procurement.

  2. Locked block

    One fee scale for every permanent role

    Your percentages of first-year base salary by band, as a table block, with contingent, exclusive and retained written out underneath. Saved in the content library and locked, so every client gets the same scale and the discount is shown separately.

    Content locking: Business plan

    Placement fees % of first-year base salary, + tax

    Base salaryFeeOn $165,000
    Up to $99,99915%–
    $100,000 – $149,99918%–
    $150,000 – $199,99920%$33,000.00
    $200,000 and above22%–

    Head of Finance at $165,000 base falls in the $150,000 – $199,999 band: 20%, a fee of $33,000.00 + tax.

    How we work the role

    • ContingentBand rateFee payable on the start date. No fee unless we place.
    • Exclusive · 4 weeksBand rate − 2 pointsWe work the role alone for 4 weeks; the fee is still payable on the start date.
    • Retained search25% flatSenior roles: engagement, shortlist and placement fees, each a share of the estimated fee.
  3. Client chooses

    Replacement or rebate, chosen per role

    Your guarantee wording, written once and locked. The client picks the replacement or the rebate scale for each role when they brief you. More on guarantees and rebates.

    Our guarantee Choose one per role

    Locked company block

    Free replacement3 months

    If your new hire leaves within 3 months of starting, we recruit a replacement at no further fee, once.

    Sliding rebate12 weeks

    If your new hire leaves within 12 weeks, we credit part of the fee on this scale.

    • Weeks 1–475% credited
    • Weeks 5–850% credited
    • Weeks 9–1225% credited

    Applies when

    • Fees paid within terms
    • The hire leaves for reasons other than redundancy or restructure
    • You tell us within 7 days of the last day worked
  4. Locked block

    Clauses your director signed off

    Introductions, fees, invoicing, exclusivity and expiry, written in your words. The terms say Ashby Lane invoices each fee on the start date: QuoteCloud carries the clause and never raises the invoice.

    Terms

    Starts1 Jul 2026
    Expires30 Jun 2027
    1. IntroductionsA candidate is introduced when we send you their details. An introduction is valid for 12 months.
    2. FeesThe placement fee for each role is a percentage of the first-year base salary, by the band in this schedule.
    3. InvoicingAshby Lane invoices the fee on the candidate's start date. Payment is due within 14 days.
    4. GuaranteeThe replacement or rebate chosen for the role applies, on the conditions set out above.
    5. ExclusivityWhere a role is exclusive, we work it alone for 4 weeks at 2 points under the band rate.
    6. ExpiryThese terms end on 30 June 2027. We'll send you next year's terms to review before then.
  5. Client comments

    Procurement asks in the document

    The agreed discount and exclusivity are noted in plain words. Procurement's question about supervisor roles is a comment on the terms, answered by the consultant where both sides can see it.

    What's agreed

    • One fee scale for every permanent role at Harbourline Logistics, from payroll to the executive team.
    • A 15% discount on every band for the year, in return for exclusivity on finance and supply-chain roles.
    • No CVs or candidate details in this document: shortlists are shared separately, with each candidate's consent.
    • Contract and temp staff are covered by a separate rate card.

    Daniel FerrisCan we choose the rebate instead of the replacement for warehouse supervisor roles?

    Jonah, Ashby LaneYes. Pick the guarantee per role when you brief us: the rebate scale applies to any role you choose.

  6. Client signs

    Finance and procurement both sign

    Each signer has their own signature block and signs in their own browser. Nothing is paid on signing: these are terms, and fees follow placements. See signers and approvals.

    Accept these terms

    1 of 2 signed

    • Chloe TanChief financial officer, Harbourline Logistics Signed4 Jun, 10:18 am
    • Daniel FerrisProcurement manager, Harbourline Logistics Awaiting signature

    Terms summary

    Fees
    15–22% by band
    Discount
    15% for FY2027
    Guarantee
    Replacement or rebate
    Expires
    30 Jun 2027

    Certificate of authenticity and audit trail attached

Exclusive or contingent, chosen when the role is confirmed

Under the year's terms, each new role can have its own short confirmation: the role, the estimated salary and how you'll work it. Contingent and exclusive are a single-choice group, so the client picks one and the estimated fee follows.

Try it in the sample: choose contingent instead of exclusive, or add psychometric testing. Nothing is paid on signing; the fee is invoiced on the start date.

  • Single-choice groups and optional rows in the price table
  • The fee as a line: estimated salary × band rate, or a Formula column on Business
  • A summary beside the signature instead of a payment

Price tables: Essentials and up

How pricing tables work
Ashby Lane RecruitmentRole confirmation AL-TOB-2044-R03 Sample · fictional business

How we work this role

Estimated fee

ItemQtyRateAmount
Placement fee
Exclusive · 4 weeksEst. base $150,000 · invoiced by Ashby Lane on the start date
1 role $27,000 $27,000.00
Options Tick to add
 1 campaign $1,800 $1,800.00
3 candidate $450 $1,350.00
Subtotal
$28,800.00
Tax (10%)
$2,880.00
Total
$31,680.00

Confirm the role

Owen Mercer · Head of engineering, Kiteline Software

Signed online · 18 Aug, 3:12 pm

Role summary

Worked
Exclusive · 4 weeks
Fee
On the start date
Paid on signing
Nothing
Terms
AL-TOB-2044

Certificate of authenticity and audit trail attached

What changes once your terms live in QuoteCloud

The value shows up in the jobs around the terms: drafting them, agreeing them and finding them again a year later.

The jobWord terms by emailWith QuoteCloud
The fee scale Copied from last year's PDF, with a consultant's own percentages typed over the top. One locked fee-scale block from the content library, the same in every client's terms.
Procurement's changes A redlined Word file, then another, then a PDF nobody compared with the redline. Questions as comments on the document, answered in place; changes go out as a revised version.
The guarantee Six months promised on a call, three months in the master terms. Your wording, locked on the Business plan, with the client's choice recorded at signing.
Signatures Printed, signed by one person, scanned, and chased for the second. Every signer signs online in their own block, with a certificate of authenticity and an audit trail.
Next year Somebody remembers in July that the terms ran out in June. An expiry date on every document and an Expiring Soon filter that lists who is next.

Put your terms of business online

Free for 14 days, no credit card required. Send us your current Word terms and we'll convert them into a template during the trial.

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Sample terms · AL-TOB-2027

The fee both sides can read before anyone is placed

A Head of Finance on $165,000 falls in the 20% band of the sample scale. The client sees the figure in the terms they sign, and the agency invoices it on the start date from its own accounts.

$33,000.00 Placement fee + tax at 20% of $165,000, from the sample fee scale

What goes into a set of terms

Six parts most agencies agree with a client once a year, each a block you write once and reuse.

  • Fee scale by band

    Percentages of first-year base salary, with your bands and the worked example clients ask for.

  • How you work a role

    Contingent, exclusive for a set period or retained, with the rate for each. More on retained search.

  • Guarantee

    A free replacement or a sliding rebate, with its conditions, written in your words.

  • Introductions

    When a candidate counts as introduced, and for how long, as your own clause.

  • Invoicing and payment

    When you invoice and when payment is due. QuoteCloud carries the clause; your accounts raise the invoice.

  • Expiry

    An expiry date on the document, so the yearly review starts from the Expiring Soon filter.

From your Word terms to signed online terms

Five steps the first time; after that, a new client's terms take minutes.

  1. Convert your terms

    We convert one template free during the trial on Essentials, Business or Enterprise.

  2. Save the blocks

    Fee scale, guarantee and clauses go into the content library; lock them on Business.

  3. Create the client's terms

    Start from the template, add the client, the dates and any agreed discount.

  4. Send to every signer

    The CFO and procurement each get a link; questions come back as comments.

  5. Signed, with an expiry

    Both sign online; the terms carry their expiry date for next year's review.

Terms of business questions

Can I set placement fees as a percentage of salary by band?

Yes. Put your fee scale in the terms as a table block: each salary band and its percentage of first-year base salary, with a worked example. For a specific role, the fee can be a price-table line built from the salary and a Percentage column, or a Formula column on the Business plan. QuoteCloud shows your scale; it doesn't work out fees from candidate data.

How do clients choose between contingent and exclusive terms?

Write the options into the terms, or put them in a role confirmation as a single-choice group in the price table, so the client picks one and the estimated fee follows. The chosen option is recorded when the client signs. Fees are still invoiced by your agency on the start date.

Can procurement mark up our terms?

Procurement can comment on any part of the document and you reply in the same thread. QuoteCloud doesn't offer real-time co-editing, so agreed changes are made by your team and sent as a revised version; version history is on the Business plan. Lock the fee scale and guarantee so they can't be changed by mistake.

Is anything paid when the client signs the terms?

Usually not. Terms of business set out fees that become payable on each start date, and you invoice them from your accounts. QuoteCloud can take one payment on signing through Stripe or PayPal, which suits a retained engagement fee, but it never invoices placements or bills later fees.

Does QuoteCloud check our terms are legally sound?

No. The terms, the guarantee and the fee scale are your agency's own wording, and QuoteCloud carries them exactly as you write them. Have your terms reviewed by your own adviser. QuoteCloud's eSignatures are legally binding and eIDAS compliant, with a certificate of authenticity and an audit trail.

How do we handle the yearly review of client terms?

Give every set of terms an expiry date. The Expiring Soon filter lists the clients whose terms end first, and on Essentials and up you can bulk send next year's terms to the whole client list. Nothing renews by itself: each client signs the new terms.

More recruitment questions

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