Terms

1.1 These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Ceylon Seva platform — our mobile application, website and related technology services (the "Platform") — operated by Ceylon Seva (Pvt) Ltd, a company incorporated in Sri Lanka (Reg. No. PV 00240573), of 189/1 Matara Road, Unawatuna, Galle ("Ceylon Seva", "we", "us").

1.2 By creating an account you accept these Terms and our Privacy Policy. The role-specific terms in clause 4 are accepted separately, when you complete registration for a particular role. If you do not agree, you must not use the Platform.

1.3 You must be at least eighteen (18) years old and have legal capacity to enter into a binding contract.

2.1 You accept these Terms by creating an account and indicating your agreement (for example, by ticking "I agree" or completing sign-up). Your acceptance is recorded electronically, together with the version of the Terms accepted and the date.

2.2 The role-specific terms referred to in clause 4 are accepted separately, by electronic signature, when you complete registration for a particular role, as set out in those agreements.

2.3 We maintain a version history of these Terms. Where we make a material change, we will ask you to accept the updated version before continued use (clause 20).

3.1 The Platform is exclusively a technology service that connects individuals who offer or provide services ("Workers") with businesses and households that wish to engage them ("Clients"), and provides supporting features such as registration, vetting, matching, scheduling, communications, payment facilitation, ratings and dispute-escalation tools.

3.2 Ceylon Seva is not the employer of any Worker, does not supply labour or staffing as principal, and is not a party to the service arrangement between a Worker and a Client. We merely facilitate the connection and dealings between Worker and Client, who contract with one another as principals.

3.3 No employment, agency, partnership or joint-venture relationship is created between Ceylon Seva and any Worker by these Terms or by use of the Platform, and no Worker has authority to bind or make representations on behalf of Ceylon Seva.

3.4 Ceylon Seva does not provide the underlying services that Workers offer, does not guarantee their availability, quality, timing or outcome, and does not direct how a Worker performs an engagement.

4.1 All engagements — independent contractors. Workers offer and provide their services through the Platform as independent contractors. This applies to every engagement, whether the Client is a business or a household. The Client engages the Worker directly through the Platform; the Worker is free to accept or decline engagements, to provide services to others, and to determine how the services are performed. Ceylon Seva is not the employer of any Worker and does not supply labour or staffing as principal.

4.2 Business and household Clients. Business Clients are governed by the Client Agreement (Business). Household Clients — private individuals or households engaging a Worker for domestic or household services — are governed by the Household Client Agreement. Workers, whether they serve business or household Clients, are governed by the Independent Contractor Agreement.

4.3 The role-specific terms referred to in clauses 4.1 and 4.2 are incorporated into these Terms by reference and are accepted by you at the relevant onboarding step. Where a role-specific agreement conflicts with these Terms on a matter it specifically addresses, the role-specific agreement prevails.

4.4 Statutory contributions. Ceylon Seva does not make EPF/ETF or other statutory employment contributions in respect of any Worker, and does not administer, receive or remit such contributions on behalf of any Client. Domestic workers in direct household employment are in any event excluded from mandatory EPF/ETF coverage under Sri Lankan law.

5.1 You must provide true, complete and current information, keep your login credentials secure, and are responsible for activity under your account. Notify us promptly of any unauthorised use.

5.2 We may verify your identity and information. Vetting, ratings and verification are provided to support trust on the Platform but are not a guarantee of any Worker or Client (clause 14).

6.1 Ceylon Seva charges the platform service commission and disbursement fee stated in the Fee Structure at https://ceylonseva.work/fees. The Fee Structure sets out the rates, the basis of calculation and when each amount is charged. Fees are charged to the Client, not deducted from the Worker's agreed service fee.

6.2 Ceylon Seva collects the Worker's fee as collecting agent and remits the amount collected for the Worker. The Worker's fee is the Worker's income, not Ceylon Seva's revenue. Ceylon Seva's own fees are its consideration for the Platform services.

6.3 Client payments through the Platform are by credit or debit card in Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR). A saved card is represented by a payment-provider token; card details are entered through the payment provider. Saving or verifying a card is not payment for an engagement. Verification may create a temporary authorisation that is released; it is not a verification charge.

6.4 Ceylon Seva is a collecting agent, not a guarantor of the Client's payment. Its obligation to remit a Worker's fee is limited to amounts collected for that Worker. Where an amount is not collected, the Client remains responsible for the amount properly due to the Worker. Ceylon Seva does not fund the shortfall from its own money, except as clause 7.12 provides for chargebacks. Clauses 7.6, 7.9 and 7.12 describe collection holds, payment failures and chargebacks.

6.5 A card authorisation reserves available funds or credit; it is not a settled payment. A release of an unused authorisation is different from a refund of money already charged. The card-issuing bank determines when a release appears on the cardholder's account.

6.6 The Fee Structure is incorporated into these Terms. Its stated rates and calculation bases govern amounts described here without a rate. A change is published and notified under the Fee Structure and clause 20; it does not silently amend a previously accepted document.

7.1 Booking and commission coverage. A Worker may accept or decline an offer. The Client reviews and confirms the roster. When the required roster is complete, or the Client chooses to proceed with a partial roster, the Platform displays the matching-fee charge for confirmation. A booking is secured when that charge succeeds. The initial commission-covered period runs for up to fourteen (14) days from the engagement's start date, ending earlier if the engagement ends. The covered dates are fixed when the booking is secured and are not restarted or enlarged by a later date change or extension. Billing weeks run Monday to Sunday in Sri Lanka time.

7.2 Matching fee. The matching fee is the service commission on scheduled work in the initial commission-covered period, together with the disbursement fee on that commission, as set out in the Fee Structure. It is charged to the saved card only when the Client confirms the displayed charge. It is not refunded if the Client later cancels. An abandoned confirmation charges nothing. A declined matching-fee payment does not secure the booking; the Client may update the card and try again. This clause does not exclude correction of duplicate, erroneous or excessive charges under clause 7.10.

7.3 Automatic charging and weekly reservations. After the matching fee is paid, the Client is asked separately to authorise automatic charging for the booking. Once authorised, Ceylon Seva reserves the scheduled cost of each week on the saved card, with the margin stated in the Fee Structure, and collects the amount due after the weekly cut-off. The first reservation is sought three days before the first working day; subsequent reservations are sought before the following week. Commission already charged for the initial commission-covered period is not charged again on those days. A week that straddles the end of that period carries further commission only on the later days. The margin is collection headroom, not an additional fee or an amount the Client owes. Two weekly reservations may temporarily coexist because the next week is reserved before the current week settles.

7.4 Hours, confirmation and disputes. The weekly cut-off is Monday at 02:00 Sri Lanka time, for the week just ended. Review the recorded hours promptly and raise any disagreement before the cut-off.

At the cut-off, each day is settled as follows. A confirmed day is settled at the confirmed hours. A day that is neither confirmed nor disputed is settled at its scheduled hours. A disputed day is settled at the hours agreed or determined before the cut-off; if the dispute is still open, it closes at the cut-off and the day is settled at its scheduled hours — the hours the Client booked and the Worker accepted. Ceylon Seva will use reasonable endeavours to resolve a dispute before the cut-off, and clause 7.14 applies to any determination it makes.

Confirming a day's hours is the Client's acceptance that the work was performed on that day and that it is correctly charged. A day settled at the cut-off without a dispute is accepted on the same basis. This acceptance concerns what the Platform charges and pays; it does not affect the Client's rights against the Worker under clause 7.15, or any right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

Hours are settled within their week. Once a billing week has been settled, its days are not reopened, corrected or adjusted, and a dispute or confirmation raised afterwards does not change what was charged or paid for that week.

The final week of an engagement. A dispute on a day in the final week of an engagement — the week containing the last day on which the Worker is scheduled to work — is never closed automatically, however long it stays open. That week is settled only once Ceylon Seva has decided each open dispute on it, so that the final statement rests on hours a person has decided. Ceylon Seva will decide them without undue delay. Settlement then follows that decision rather than waiting for the next weekly cut-off, and the final statement and the related Worker payment follow from it. Other engagements are unaffected and settle as usual.

A concern raised after a week has settled must be taken to the support team, which can explain the outcome and address the engagement going forward. These arrangements do not remove any rights or obligations under applicable law, and do not affect a Client's or Worker's rights against one another under clause 7.15.

7.5 Weekly settlement and statements. After the cut-off, Ceylon Seva collects the week's amount due from the reservation and releases any unused part. Timing may be affected by payment-provider processing or an unresolved transaction. The weekly statement in Finances covers Monday to Sunday for the engagement, identifies the dates worked, and records the amount already collected; it is not a second demand for payment. A separately payable invoice is identified as such in Finances.

7.6 Amounts exceeding a reservation. Where the accepted weekly amount exceeds the reservation, the additional amount is presented for payment by card. Payment for the affected Worker's additional earnings is held until the corresponding Client payment clears. Other funded earnings are treated separately. An amount properly due but uncollected remains a debt of the Client.

7.7 Client cancellation. Before a booking is secured and no matching fee has been paid, no matching fee is retained. After the booking is secured but before work begins, the matching-fee charge is retained, existing weekly reservations are released in full, and half of the retained matching-fee charge is allocated among the confirmed Workers as cancellation compensation, subject to the rounding rules in the Fee Structure. There is no separate twenty-four-hour cancellation threshold. After work has begun, completed weeks remain payable and the engagement ends at the end of the current billing week; that week is payable on its scheduled hours, and no later week is charged. Any later reservation is released. Worker payment remains subject to collection under clause 6.4. Cancellation must be recorded through the Platform or arranged with the support team.

7.8 Booking deadline. A booking must have its roster completed, or a partial roster accepted, and its matching fee paid at least seventy-two (72) hours before the first working day. Otherwise it is cancelled. Automatic charging must also be authorised in time to fund the first week; declining that authorisation or failing to provide it by the deadline after paying the matching fee results in the pre-start cancellation treatment in clause 7.7. The Platform notifies the Client and affected Workers.

7.9 Failed collection and pause. A failed weekly authorisation or terminal collection failure may pause the engagement. The Platform notifies the Client and affected Workers that the engagement is paused; Workers do not accrue scheduled earnings for the suspended period and are free to accept other engagements during it. Eligible card collection attempts are retried approximately daily; the Platform does not promise a fixed fourteen-day retry period. Successful collection may allow the booking to resume for its remaining eligible dates. If an operator closes an unpaid pause, the Client is blocked from further use and a separately payable claim is raised as described in the Fee Structure. A failed authorisation claim excludes the reservation margin. Workers receive no payment for an unworked refused week. Any discretionary payment to Workers in that situation is handled offline, case by case, and is not an automatic entitlement. A payment still awaiting a definite provider outcome is investigated rather than treated as a definite refusal.

7.10 Erroneous charges and refunds. Duplicate charges, charges made in error and amounts above what is properly due must be raised with Ceylon Seva through the Platform or at [email protected], quoting the booking and transaction reference. A request should be made within thirty (30) days of the charge. Ceylon Seva will acknowledge a request within three (3) business days and, where approved, initiate the appropriate reversal or refund to the original card within fourteen (14) business days of approval. Subsequent bank processing time is outside Ceylon Seva's control. Nothing here limits a refund or remedy required by applicable law. Unused authorisations are released under clause 7.11; they are not prepaid balances or credits for later bookings.

7.11 Unused reservations. Ceylon Seva releases unused weekly reservations after settlement or a cancellation that releases the week. A release does not refund the matching fee or amounts already properly collected. No cash, cheque, bank-transfer refund or offset against a future booking is offered through the ordinary card collection flow.

7.12 Chargebacks. If a Client believes a charge is incorrect, it should raise it with Ceylon Seva through the Platform first, so that it can be investigated. This does not affect the Client's rights as a cardholder. Days the Client confirmed, and days settled at the cut-off without a dispute, are work the Client accepted under clause 7.4. If the Client disputes a charge for accepted work with its card issuer instead, Ceylon Seva will contest it, using the acceptance record and the engagement records as evidence.

While a chargeback is open, the affected engagement may be paused. A pause ordinarily takes effect from the following week, but Ceylon Seva may pause the engagement sooner, including during a week that has already been paid for. While a chargeback is open the Client cannot publish new bookings; the Client's other running engagements continue.

A chargeback never reduces or withholds a Worker's pay for work settled under clause 7.4: Workers are paid for that work on the normal schedule while the chargeback is open. If the chargeback is decided against Ceylon Seva, Ceylon Seva bears that loss towards the Worker. The amount for accepted work nonetheless remains owed by the Client: Ceylon Seva takes over the Worker's claim for it and may recover it from the Client, and clause 18 applies.

7.13 Refund and cancellation policy. This clause, together with the cancellation section of the Fee Structure, is Ceylon Seva's refund and cancellation policy. In summary: a Client may cancel a booking at any time through the Platform or with the support team. Once the booking is secured, the matching fee is retained and is not refundable. Where the cancellation takes effect before work has begun, half of the retained matching-fee charge is allocated among the confirmed Workers as cancellation compensation, and the twenty-four-hour threshold does not apply. Where work has already begun, no such allocation arises: completed weeks remain payable, the engagement ends at the end of the current billing week and that week is payable on its scheduled hours, and no later week is charged. Clause 7.7 governs in both cases and prevails over this summary. Unused weekly card reservations are released, which is a release of an authorisation and not a refund of money charged (clauses 7.5 and 7.11). Work already performed and properly due remains payable. Duplicate charges, charges made in error and amounts above what is properly due are refunded to the original card under clause 7.10, on request to [email protected] within thirty (30) days of the charge, acknowledged within three (3) business days and, where approved, initiated within fourteen (14) business days. Refunds are made only to the original card; no cash, cheque, bank-transfer refund, account credit or offset against a future booking is offered. Nothing in this clause limits any refund or remedy required by applicable law.

7.14 Determination of recorded hours. Where a Client and a Worker disagree about the hours recorded for an engagement, Ceylon Seva will use reasonable endeavours to help them resolve the disagreement between themselves. If it is not resolved, Ceylon Seva may, at any time before the cut-off for the billing week in question, determine the hours to be treated as worked for the engagement, and accordingly the amounts to be billed to the Client and paid to the Worker through the Platform. Except in the final week of an engagement, where no such determination has been made by the cut-off, the day is settled at its scheduled hours under clause 7.4 — that is, at the hours the Client booked and the Worker accepted — and no determination under this clause is made for it. In the final week the deadline does not apply: clause 7.4 keeps the dispute open, Ceylon Seva determines it under this clause after the cut-off, and the week is settled on that determination. Ceylon Seva will make a determination in good faith and on the records available to it, including scheduled hours, confirmations, engagement communications and any evidence the Client or the Worker provides. In making it Ceylon Seva acts as an expert and not as an arbitrator. Ceylon Seva's determination is final and binding on you for all Platform purposes — billing, collection, statements, Worker payment and the closing of the billing week — except in the case of manifest error, fraud or bad faith. Ceylon Seva will notify the outcome and, on request, give the basis for it.

7.15 What clause 7.14 does not decide. Clause 7.14 governs what the Platform bills and pays. It does not determine the rights of a Client and a Worker against one another under the service contract between them, to which Ceylon Seva is not a party (clause 3.2), and it does not prevent either of them from pursuing a claim against the other. Nothing in clause 7.14 excludes or limits any right or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, or affects the jurisdiction of any court or tribunal under clause 21.

8.1 Ceylon Seva may, from time to time and at its sole and absolute discretion, operate reward, recognition or promotional programmes for Workers, funded from Ceylon Seva's own revenue. Ceylon Seva may publish factors it may take into account — such as engagements completed, ratings, platform activity, the absence of substantiated complaints, or whether the Worker has engagements or payments scheduled through the Platform — but any such factors are illustrative only, do not constitute a formula or a promise, and do not bind Ceylon Seva, which retains an overriding discretion to grant, withhold, vary or withdraw any reward in any case.

8.2 Any reward under such a programme is an ex gratia payment, made voluntarily and as a matter of goodwill. It is not wages, not a statutory benefit (including EPF/ETF), not gratuity, not a profit share, and not a contractual or guaranteed entitlement of any kind. Participation is a privilege, not a right. Ceylon Seva may vary, suspend, discontinue or withdraw any programme or any reward at any time, with or without notice, in its sole discretion.

8.3 Ceylon Seva decides in its sole discretion whether to grant a reward. Once Ceylon Seva has determined a reward and notified it as payable, Ceylon Seva will pay it in accordance with the programme then in force. That payment discharges a determined award only; it does not create any entitlement to any future reward, and does not alter the ex gratia and wholly discretionary character of the programme described in clauses 8.1 and 8.2.

8.4 Nothing in any such programme creates or evidences an employment relationship between Ceylon Seva and any Worker, and no reward affects a Worker's status as an independent contractor.

9.1 Nature of the programme. Ceylon Seva may operate a referral programme under which it pays a stated referral fee to an account holder who introduces a new Worker or Client to the Platform. A referral fee is contractual consideration for the act of introduction, and is separate and distinct from the discretionary reward and recognition programmes described in clause 8. Clause 8 does not apply to referral fees, and this clause does not apply to rewards.

9.2 Who may participate. Any account holder in good standing may participate, whatever their role. Participation is not a service provided to Ceylon Seva under a contract for services, does not form part of any engagement, and is entirely voluntary — whether, and how often, you refer anyone is your own choice and is outside Ceylon Seva's direction or control.

9.3 The three programmes. A referral belongs to one of three programmes, according to the role the referred person registers for: as a Worker, as a business Client, or as a household Client. The type of referral, and so the amount payable, is determined by what the referred person registers as, not by your own role. A referral qualifies when the referred person reaches the threshold for that programme, measured as confirmed worked hours where the referred person is a Worker, and as billed hours where the referred person is a Client. The threshold for each programme, and the referral fee payable, are set out in the Fee Structure. Where the Platform advertises a maximum — for example, an amount you may earn "up to" — that figure is the highest of the three fees and is not the amount payable for every referral.

9.4 Time limit. A referral must reach its threshold within three hundred and sixty-five (365) days of the date the referred person registers. A referral that has not qualified by the end of that period lapses, and no fee is payable for it. The Platform shows how many qualifying hours each pending referral has completed against the threshold, and the date on which each referral expires.

9.5 Qualifying and payment. A referral qualifies only when the conditions for its programme are met in full within the period in clause 9.4. Ceylon Seva determines whether they have been met, acting reasonably and on the records held by the Platform. Where a referral qualifies, Ceylon Seva will pay the referral fee for that programme as set out in the Fee Structure. A referral fee is paid once per referred person. It is paid from Ceylon Seva's own funds, is not charged to any Client and is not deducted from any Worker's agreed service fee. There is no limit on the number of referrals you may make or on the total referral fees payable to you, unless a limit is stated in the Fee Structure.

9.6 Conditions and misuse. A referral does not qualify, and any fee already paid may be recovered, where the referral is of yourself or of an account you control; where an account is created using false, duplicated or another person's details; where the referral is procured by spam, impersonation or misleading claims about the Platform; or where the introduction is otherwise made in bad faith or in breach of these Terms. Ceylon Seva may withhold payment while it investigates, and may suspend participation for repeated or serious misuse.

9.7 Changes to the programmes. Ceylon Seva may change a referral fee or a threshold, or suspend or end any programme, at any time. A change to a fee or threshold is published and notified in accordance with the Fee Structure before it takes effect. Any such change takes effect prospectively only, for referred persons who register after it takes effect. Every referral is paid the fee, and assessed on the threshold, published on the date the referred person registered, whether or not the schedule changes before the referral qualifies.

9.8 Status and taxes. A referral fee is not wages, not a statutory benefit (including EPF/ETF), not gratuity, and not remuneration for services provided to any Client. Nothing in this clause creates or evidences an employment, agency or partnership relationship with Ceylon Seva, and receiving a referral fee does not affect a Worker's status as an independent contractor. You are responsible for your own taxes on any referral fee you receive.

10.1 Ceylon Seva does not insure Workers, Clients or the work they carry out through the Platform. Workers and Clients are each responsible for arranging any insurance appropriate to their engagement.

11.1 You must use the Platform only for its intended purpose and in accordance with applicable law. You must not misuse the Platform, scrape or reverse-engineer it, transmit unlawful or misleading content, allow others to use your account, or attempt unauthorised access.

11.2 You must comply with any community guidelines, codes of conduct and policies we publish.

12.1 In using the Platform you may access the personal data of other users in order to fulfil an engagement. You may use such data only for that purpose, must not disclose it to third parties, and must keep it secure, in accordance with applicable data-protection law and our Privacy Policy.

13.1 All intellectual property in and relating to the Platform (software, brand, designs, data) remains the exclusive property of Ceylon Seva and its group, including the platform intellectual property held by the group's holding company and licensed to Ceylon Seva. You receive a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Platform during your use, and no other rights.

14.1 Information about Workers or Clients shown on the Platform is provided by them or generated by automated systems and is not independently guaranteed. Vetting or a rating does not constitute Ceylon Seva's endorsement, certification or approval of any user, nor a guarantee of their conduct, quality or suitability.

15.1 The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind to the maximum extent permitted by law.

15.2 By engaging or providing services through the Platform, you acknowledge that Ceylon Seva merely facilitates the connection between Worker and Client as principals (clause 3.2), and that Ceylon Seva is not liable for the acts or omissions of any Worker or Client, including any breach, negligence, misconduct, loss or damage. Your recourse in respect of an engagement is against the other party to that engagement.

15.3 To the maximum extent permitted by law, Ceylon Seva is not liable for indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages, or for service interruptions, loss of data, or matters beyond its reasonable control. Ceylon Seva's aggregate liability to you for all claims arising out of or in connection with these Terms and your use of the Platform is limited to one hundred thousand Sri Lankan Rupees (LKR 100,000). Nothing in this clause limits or excludes any liability that cannot lawfully be limited or excluded, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

16.1 You will indemnify and hold Ceylon Seva and its group harmless from claims, losses and expenses arising from your breach of these Terms, your breach of applicable law or another's rights, or your misuse of the Platform.

17.1 Ceylon Seva processes personal data in accordance with its Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection law, including the Personal Data Protection Act, No. 9 of 2022 (as amended), as and when its provisions come into operation. The Privacy Policy forms part of these Terms. Ceylon Seva is a data controller in respect of the Platform.

18.1 You may stop using the Platform and request account closure. Closure does not cancel an engagement without the applicable cancellation consequences or extinguish amounts properly due. An active engagement must be ended through the Platform under clause 7.7. Ceylon Seva may suspend or terminate access for breach, unpaid amounts, or to protect users or the Platform. Accrued payment obligations, dispute and chargeback provisions, confidentiality, intellectual property, disclaimers, limitation of liability, indemnities and governing law survive termination.

19.1 We may change, update or discontinue features of the Platform from time to time, for reasons including improvement, legal change, security and commercial circumstance.

20.1 We may amend these Terms from time to time. For non-material changes, the updated version is effective on posting. For material changes, we will require your acceptance of the updated version (recorded as in clause 2) before continued use. The version you accepted, and its acceptance record, govern your dealings up to any re-acceptance.

21.1 These Terms are governed by the laws of Sri Lanka, and the courts of Colombo have exclusive jurisdiction over any dispute.

22.1 If any provision is held invalid, the rest continues in force. We may assign these Terms within our group; you may not assign your rights without our consent. These Terms, with the role-specific terms and the Privacy Policy, are the entire agreement between you and Ceylon Seva regarding the Platform. Notices to you may be given through the Platform or by email to your registered address.

22.2 Questions about these Terms may be sent to [email protected]. Ceylon Seva (Pvt) Ltd, Reg. No. PV 00240573, 189/1 Matara Road, Unawatuna, Galle 80600, Sri Lanka.