Setting Up Qualification Rules
What Are Qualification Rules?
Qualification rules define the conditions a conversion must meet before it triggers a commission. Instead of paying for every signup or deposit, you pay only for conversions that meet quality criteria. This is the most direct way to protect your program from low-quality and fraudulent conversions.
Common Qualification Conditions
- Minimum deposit amount (e.g., deposit must be $50+ to qualify)
- Activity requirement (e.g., player must place 3+ bets within 7 days)
- Verification status (e.g., account must complete KYC before commission triggers)
- Geographic filter (e.g., only conversions from approved countries qualify)
- Device and IP rules (e.g., no conversions from known proxy IPs)
- Time-based rules (e.g., conversion must happen within attribution window)
Qualification by Vertical
| Vertical | Common Rule | Why |
|---|---|---|
| iGaming | FTD minimum $20 + 3 bets within 7 days | Filters bonus abusers who deposit and withdraw |
| Forex | Account verified + first trade executed | Ensures real trading activity, not just signups |
| Prop Trading | Payment confirmed + challenge started | Prevents chargebacks and abandoned purchases |
Automated Enforcement
Qualification rules should be enforced automatically by your tracking platform. When a conversion event fires, the system checks qualification conditions before marking it as commissionable. Unqualified conversions are held, flagged, or rejected -- not paid. Manual enforcement is too slow and error-prone at scale.
Balancing Strictness and Partner Trust
Rules that are too strict frustrate legitimate affiliates whose conversions get rejected unfairly. Rules that are too loose let fraud through. Start with moderate thresholds and adjust based on data. Communicate qualification rules clearly to partners so they understand what counts and what does not.
Always tell partners your qualification rules upfront. Partners who know the rules optimize their traffic accordingly. Partners who discover rules only when their commissions get rejected lose trust fast.
Key Takeaways
- Qualification rules define which conversions earn commissions -- not every conversion qualifies
- Common conditions include minimum deposits, activity requirements, and verification status
- Enforce rules automatically through your platform -- manual enforcement breaks at scale
- Communicate rules to partners upfront to maintain trust and help them optimize traffic quality
Explore Further
Key terms and tools related to this lesson. Deepen your understanding and see how Track360 supports these concepts.
Affiliate Fraud
Affiliate fraud is the deliberate manipulation of affiliate tracking, attribution, or conversion data to earn commissions that were not legitimately generated.
Qualification Rules
Qualification rules are the conditions a referred customer must meet before the affiliate earns a commission, such as minimum deposit amounts, wagering requirements, or identity verification.
Publisher
A publisher is an individual or company that promotes an advertiser's products or services through an affiliate program in exchange for commissions on conversions they drive.
CPA (Cost Per Acquisition)
CPA is a commission model where an affiliate earns a fixed payment for each qualifying action, such as a deposit, registration, or purchase, that a referred user completes.