What is a commission clawback?
A clawback reverses commission already paid on a deal that later falls through, such as a cancellation, refund, or downgrade.
By Commishify Editorial Team · Published · Last reviewed
The basic idea
A clawback is an adjustment to the original earning, not an unexplained new charge. The reversal should reference the deal, original rate, reason, effective period, and approval history so the rep and finance team can understand it.
A worked example
A $20,000 approved deal paid at 10% created $2,000 of commission. If the customer cancels under the plan terms, a full clawback records -$2,000; a partial downgrade records only the eligible portion. The rep’s statement and the next export should show the adjustment.
What should move with it
Reconcile the rep balance, quota and attainment views, statement, and payroll-ready export according to the plan. A durable audit trail makes disputes about the underlying event—not about which spreadsheet was edited.
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