Payment terms

To become or remain a Bluetooth Member (as such term is defined in the Bluetooth SIG Bylaws) in good standing, Members must pay and remain current on all applicable fees (as set forth in the Bluetooth SIG Schedule of dues and fees) in accordance with the following Bluetooth Payment Terms:

Bluetooth General Payment Terms
1. Precedence. Unless specifically otherwise stated, the Payment Terms listed here control with regard to all invoices and payments of dues and fees owed to Bluetooth SIG.
2. Payment Method. All payments shall be made by ACH or wire, or if offered, by credit card or otherwise offline. If you choose to pay offline, you will pay the invoice issued to you by Bluetooth SIG, according to the terms stated on the invoice. If you provide credit card payment information (as applicable), you agree that Bluetooth SIG or its third-party payment processor may charge your credit card immediately.
3. Fee Changes. Upon approval from the Board of Directors, fees specified in the Bluetooth SIG Schedule of dues and fees, including Annual Membership Dues and Product Qualification Fees may change with a minimum of sixty (60) days’ notice.
4. Invoices. Any invoices issued by Bluetooth SIG will remain valid for a period of thirty (30) days from the date of issuance. Any invoice that remains outstanding for more than thirty (30) days will be deemed expired. If any invoice expires or is cancelled before payment is received, a new Fee payment request must be submitted to Bluetooth SIG for processing.
5. Refunds. Refunds, including but not limited to refunds for Annual Membership Dues or Product Qualification Fees (including prepaid Product Qualification Fees evidenced by Receipt Numbers), or partial billing periods, are generally not provided under any circumstances, except as mandated by applicable law.
6. Modifications. Bluetooth SIG reserves the right to modify and amend these payment terms and conditions as necessary, in its sole discretion, including the introduction of new fees from time to time, as approved by the Board of Directors.
Bluetooth Membership Payment Terms
1. New Members. In order to become a new Member, in addition to (1) completing the New Member Application process available at join.bluetooth.com/new-account and signing the required membership agreements during the New Member Application process, and (2) accepting the Terms of Use, Code of Conduct, and additional documents as required by Bluetooth SIG, applicants must, pay the application fee and any applicable Annual Membership Dues in accordance with these terms.
2. Annual Membership Dues. Contributing Adopter and Associate Members must remain current on all fees specified in the Bluetooth SIG Schedule of dues and fees, including annual dues, in order to maintain status in the applicable member class and to continue enjoying all associated rights and benefits of the applicable membership class.
3. Automatic Payments. The Bluetooth SIG automatically processes payment upon membership activation for Contributing Adopter and Associate Members; and unless a Member opts out in writing, the Bluetooth SIG, will process successive Annual Membership Dues automatically upon such dues becoming due and payable (“Membership Anniversary Date”). An invoice reminder will be issued to all Members at least sixty (60) days before the Membership Anniversary Date. Unless Member downgrades membership under Section 5 (below) or withdrawals membership (pursuant to the member agreements or the Bylaws) prior to the Membership Anniversary Date, and Member does not opt out of automatic payments, membership will continue and all applicable fees will apply.
4. Membership Upgrades. Members may upgrade membership at any time in the membership section of Bluetooth.com by paying the applicable fees. Bluetooth SIG will count the pro rata portion of any previous annual dues (as applicable) towards a new upgraded membership. Upgrading membership will reset the Membership Anniversary Date to the date on which the upgrade is successfully processed.
5. Membership Downgrades. Promoter, Associate, or Contributing Adopter Members can downgrade memberships at any time in the membership section of Bluetooth.com. No refunds are provided under any circumstances and Members will continue to have the same access to working groups and committees (as applicable), including any access to information permitted for other Members in such member class, and continue to receive any applicable discounts on fees, until the next Membership Anniversary Date. If an Associate or Contributing Adopter Member does not pay the applicable fees within 14 days from the Membership Anniversary Date, then such Member will automatically be demoted to a category of membership that is not required to pay annual dues, and upon demotion, such Member will have only those rights of membership granted to a member of such new class of membership (e.g. Adopter Members).
Bluetooth Qualification Payment Terms
1. Product Qualification Fee. Member companies must pay the applicable Product Qualification Fee for its member class, and any other associated qualification fees, specified in the Bluetooth SIG Schedule of dues and fees, or otherwise, before finalizing the Bluetooth Qualification Process. Until payment is processed and funds are received you will not be able to complete the Bluetooth Qualification Process. Product Qualification Fees are paid on behalf of the Member Company, regardless of payment method.
2. Receipt Numbers. Members may pre-pay a Product Qualification Fee and be issued a Receipt Number (as defined in the Qualification Program Reference Document (“QPRD”)) by Bluetooth SIG. Each Receipt Number is evidence of pre-payment of the amount paid and may be used as evidence of pre-paying the, or any portion of the, Product Qualification Fee (described above) when finalizing the Bluetooth Qualification Process for a product. This Section III.2 describes treatment of a Receipt Number under different circumstances.
  1. Reassignment. Bluetooth SIG may reassign, without notice, Receipt Numbers within a Member Company’s accounts if requested by the Member Company.
  2. Expiration. Receipt Numbers issued to Promoter and Associate Members expire 12 months from receipt of payment. Receipt Numbers issued to Adopter and Contributing Adopter Members expire 6 months from receipt of payment. Receipt Numbers become invalid after expiration.
  3. Transfers. Receipt Numbers cannot be transferred or reassigned to another Member Company.
  4. Effect of changes in Membership Class on Receipt Number Expiration. If any Promoter or Associate Member downgrades its membership class (as described above in Section II.5 “Membership Downgrades”) for any reason, including failing to pay the applicable Membership fees within 14 days from the Membership Anniversary Date, the expiration date of any Receipt Number that is not used as of the date of downgrade will automatically be adjusted to match the terms of the new membership class, even if that means such Receipt Number has already expired. Further, once the membership class is downgraded, the expiration date of any adjusted Receipt Number will not revert back to the original expiration date at any time, even if the Member becomes an Associate member at a later date. For example, a Receipt Number that is issued to an Associate Member on January 1 with a 12-month expiration and that Associate Member downgrades on May 1 by not paying its applicable membership fees, the expiration date of the applicable Receipt Number will be adjusted to expire on July 1.
  5. Effect of changes in Product Qualification Fees on Receipt Numbers. If any Promoter, Associate, or Contributing Adopter Member downgrades its membership class (as described above in Section II.5 “Membership Downgrades”) for any reason, including failing to pay the applicable Membership fees within 14 days from the Membership Anniversary Date, and an unused Receipt Number is not yet expired under the new membership class terms, the Member intending to used such Receipt Number will be required to pay the difference between the current Product Qualification Fee and the previously paid fee.
3. Qualification Discounts. Discounts based on membership class will no longer apply as of the date that a Member downgrades to a new class of membership (e.g., from Associate to Adopter). Outstanding invoices reflecting discounts on qualifications will be automatically adjusted accordingly to match the terms of the new membership class. Member will be responsible for any increase of fees on any outstanding invoice.
4. Subsequent or Subsetting Product Qualifications. The Product Qualification Fee applies to the first Product (as defined in the QPRD) submission from a Member Company marketing and selling such Product under its trademark(s) or brand (Submitting Company) involving a specific Design, whether pre-existing or new. Subsequent submissions from that Submitting Company featuring the same Design do not incur this fee. Submissions from that Submitting Company with subset or reassessed Designs (as described in QPRD, Sections 3.2.2.2.1 and 3.2.2.2.2) are also exempt from the Product Qualification Fee.