Onboard creators and supporters

Onboard creators to receive payments and payouts, and supporters to send tips, memberships, or gifts.

Creator platforms connect creators with their audience. Fans support creators through one-off tips, memberships, or gifts. Creators need to receive funds and get paid out; supporters need to pay. frameOS supports both with individual accounts and capability-based onboarding: creators get full verification and payout capabilities, while supporters need only the ability to pay with card or bank account.

Use this guide if you're building a creator platform where:

• Creators receive payments from supporters and need payouts to card or bank account.
• Supporters (customers) send payments to creators — tips, memberships, or gifts — and only need to add a payment method.
• You want fraud protection for creators receiving funds via Creator Shield.
• Frame handles onboarding via hosted flow or you use the API with onboarding sessions.
• Each creator and each supporter has an individual frameOS account with capabilities scoped to their role.

We recommend this configuration when you get started with creator platforms on frameOS. You can compose the flow yourself, use the iOS or Android SDK, or build the API integration directly.

In addition to the flows below, consider how you'll handle payout options for creators and compliance and verification.

Account types

Creator platforms have two account types with different capabilities:

Supporters only need to add a payment method to fund tips or purchases — no KYC or payout setup. Creators need identity verification and payout configuration before they can receive funds.

Choose your flow: Creators | Supporters

Before you begin

Sign up at the Frame Developer Portal and obtain your sandbox API key. Use sandbox keys for development and testing — they do not move real money or trigger live verification services.

Creators

Capabilities

Creators receive payments and payouts. Request capabilities for identity verification, payout methods, and fraud protection:

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.framepayments.com/v1/accounts \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer sk_test_YOUR_SANDBOX_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
  "type": "individual",
  "capabilities": [
    "kyc",
    "kyc_prefill",
    "creator_shield",
    "card_send",
    "bank_account_send",
    "card_receive",
    "bank_account_receive",
    "geo_compliance"
  ],
  "profile": {
    "individual": {
      "email": "creator@example.com",
      "name": {
        "first_name": "Jordan",
        "last_name": "Creator"
      },
      "phone": {
        "number": "3107484186",
        "country_code": "1"
      }
    }
  }
}'

Onboarding flow

1. Inspect the response and currently_due — The API returns the account with capabilities in pending status. The response includes currently_due — field paths scoped to requirements that must still be collected or verified. Use it to understand what the creator needs to provide.

2. Create an onboarding session — Create an onboarding session and redirect the creator to the session URL. Frame's hosted UI guides them through identity verification, payout setup, and terms acceptance based on the capabilities you requested.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.framepayments.com/v1/onboarding_sessions \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer sk_test_YOUR_SANDBOX_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
  "account_id": "99c6b0da-2570-42a7-838a-5eaa318b07df",
  "return_url": "https://yoursite.com/onboarding-complete"
}'

Redirect the creator to the url in the response. On mobile, use the iOS or Android SDK to present the flow in-app.

3. Capabilities move to active — After the creator completes onboarding, Frame runs background services to approve the capabilities. In the Frame Dashboard, capabilities move from pending to active as each check completes. Creator accounts take longer due to KYC and Creator Shield. Use webhooks to be notified when capabilities change so your platform can unlock creator pages as soon as verification completes.

Payout options

The capabilities you enable for creators depend on how you want them to receive payouts:

• Push to card — Use card_receive so creators receive payouts to a debit card. Faster for creators; requires card verification and KYC.
• Bank account — Use bank_account_receive so creators receive payouts to a bank account. Often preferred for larger amounts; requires bank account verification and KYC.
• Both — Enable card_receive and bank_account_receive and let creators choose their preferred method during onboarding.

Creator Shield

Creator Shield is continuous fraud monitoring for creators who receive payments. Once KYC passes and the capability is active, it runs in the background on every inbound payment — creators don't need to do anything; the checks are invisible during normal operation.

When a payment is initiated to a creator, frameOS evaluates the account against:

• Adverse media — checks across news, legal, and public record sources for coverage tied to illegal or prohibited activity
• Frame's proprietary risk indexes — signals built from transaction patterns, platform history, and behavioral data across the Frame network

If a creator is flagged, incoming transactions are blocked and the account is marked as restricted in your Frame Dashboard. The restriction reason is visible so you have immediate context. Frame's risk operations team reaches out to your platform to walk through the restriction and determine next steps — restrictions are not resolved through the API.

See Creator Shield for full details.

Supporters

Capabilities

Supporters send payments to creators — tips, membership fees, or gifts. They only need card_send and bank_account_send to add and use a payment method. No KYC or payout setup is required.

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.framepayments.com/v1/accounts \
  --header 'Authorization: Bearer sk_test_YOUR_SANDBOX_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
  "type": "individual",
  "capabilities": ["card_send", "bank_account_send"],
  "profile": {
    "individual": {
      "email": "supporter@example.com",
      "name": {
        "first_name": "Sam",
        "last_name": "Supporter"
      }
    }
  }
}'

Onboarding flow

1. Inspect the response and currently_due — Supporter accounts have fewer currently_due items than creators (payment method, terms). Use currently_due to understand what the supporter needs to provide.

2. Create an onboarding session — Create an onboarding session and redirect the supporter to the session URL. Frame's hosted UI shows a streamlined flow to add a payment method — no identity verification or payout setup.

3. Capabilities move to active — Supporters with card_send and bank_account_send only typically activate quickly. Use webhooks to be notified when capabilities change so your platform can unlock checkout as soon as onboarding completes.

Compliance and verification

Creator platforms move money between supporters and creators. frameOS helps you stay compliant:

• KYC — Required for creators who receive payouts. KYC prefill can speed onboarding when you already have verified phone data. Supporters with only card_send and bank_account_send do not require KYC — their flow is lighter and focused on payment method setup.
• Terms of service — Frame collects acceptance of terms during onboarding; you can pass terms_of_service when creating the account if the user accepts in your UI first.
• Geocompliance — Optional. Add geo_compliance to creator accounts if you need to enforce location-based rules or restrict access by jurisdiction.

Resources

Accounts: Full reference for creating accounts and managing capabilities.

Onboarding Sessions: Use hosted onboarding to collect identity, payment methods, and compliance information.

Creator Shield: Fraud protection for creators receiving payments.

Quick start: Get up and running with frameOS in minutes.

KYC and KYC Prefill: Identity verification and prefill flows.

Payouts: Card and bank account payout options.

SDKs: iOS, Android, and server-side SDKs for building your integration.