International

Bienvenidos. Aloha. Hallo.
Velkommen. こんにちは

ScratchBang is based in the U.S. and is open to artists and fans here and around the planet, even in Idaho. If you're outside of the States, the information on this page will apply to your participation on the site.

If you are in one of the European Union countries, there's some important information below and on our Fees & Taxes page. Spoiler alert: the situation is that we currently cannot process payments from any EU countries due to the VAT compliance requirements that would be placed on us. We know, we know... it's not pretty.

Payments and PayPal

All subscription payments are processed in US dollars by PayPal. A payment originating from a PayPal account associated with another country's currency will be converted to its USD equivalent. Conversion fees may be charged to the subscriber. PayPal will convert subscription payments to an artist and make a deposit to your PayPal account in your selected currency. Check with PayPal regarding your options related to this conversion and to maintaining multiple currencies in your PayPal account.

If you aren't in the United States, you should review any PayPal restrictions that might exist for your country at paypal.com/worldwide. PayPal payment processing restrictions may mean that you cannot offer or purchase subscriptions.

PayPal has an Acceptable Use Policy. It and the ScratchBang Terms of Service govern ScratchBang subscription payments processed by PayPal. Artists and fans in countries other than the U.S. can select their versions on the PayPal Legal Documents page via the drop-down menu.

Languages

The main language of ScratchBang is English. Count the number of worldwide speakers and it should probably be Mandarin, but we'll have to work on that.

Non-English profile videos should be accompanied by a transcript translated into English. Written sections of an artist's profile should be accompanied by translations into English.

Comments and discussions should also be in English, or at least have an English translation of the non-English text.

European Union VAT

The European Union VAT law changes that went into effect in January 2015 would require that ScratchBang collect VAT on behalf of artists based on their fans' locations in the EU. There are onerous data collection, data retention, and processing requirements that do not work with the PayPal-based payment processing that ScratchBang uses. And unlike with physical product sales that have a high minimum threshold before VAT needs to be paid, the new law requires VAT payments for all digital services payments, regardless of amount. That means all payments from the EU are affected.

Because of the current VAT requirements, and with much regret, ScratchBang has configured PayPal to decline payments originating from the 28 EU countries. We're sorry that ScratchBang isn't currently available for artists and fans in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, The Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

If you want to dig into the issues surrounding the VAT changes, a good place to start is the EU VAT Action Campaign site and its Update and FAQ pages.