Learn how to handle hourly disputes on Upwork — from why clients can dispute hours to how to respond, get updates, and understand payment and JSS impacts.
In this article
- Why can clients dispute a freelancer's hours?
- What happens if my client disputes the hours I submitted?
- How do I review and reply to the hourly dispute my client filed?
- What happens if I decline the hourly dispute?
- What happens if I accept the hourly dispute?
- How do I get an update on my dispute?
- What if I don’t respond to a dispute?
- Do disputes impact my Job Success Score (JSS)?
- I want to give my client part of their money back. How do I do that?
Why can clients dispute a freelancer's hours?
Clients can file a dispute if they believe the hours you logged during the previous week don’t accurately reflect the work done. This could be because of unclear activity, excessive idle time, or missing work memos/screenshots in your work diary. Note: You'll always get paid for hours that qualify for Hourly Payment Protection.
What happens if my client disputes the hours I submitted?
We will pause your contract and set the weekly limit to zero hours.
You’ll need to respond to the dispute. You can either accept it or decline it, but responding is key. If you don’t reply:
- We'll review the dispute on your behalf
- We’ll protect any hours that qualify for Hourly Payment Protection
- Hours that don’t meet those requirements may not be paid
For agencies
If you’re in an agency and your client files a dispute against you, we will notify both you and your agency manager. You can both respond to the dispute. Regardless of who responds first, we will require the agency manager to participate in the consultation with an Upwork dispute specialist. Excessive disputes against an agency's freelancers may result in suspension of the agency as a whole.
How do I review and reply to the hourly dispute my client filed?
- Go to Deliver work > Contract history
- and find the job with the dispute
- Select See dispute
- You’ll see the dispute details, including the timeline to take action. If you accept the dispute, you’ll release the funds back to the client. If you decline the dispute, a dispute specialist will step in to investigate and resolve the dispute within one business day.
- Fill out the form and Submit
What happens if I decline the hourly dispute?
We will review your work diary to evaluate the disputed hours against the criteria of Hourly Payment Protection within one business day.
- If all disputed hours are found to meet the criteria, we will pay you according to the usual weekly billing cycle
- If any of the disputed hours do not meet the criteria, we will refund the hours that are non-compliant to the client
What happens if I accept the hourly dispute?
We refund all of your disputed hours to your client, meaning you will not be paid.
Pro Tip: You can help protect yourself from disputes by making sure that the hours you document are accurate and reflect work for the correct client. Be sure to review your hours each week at the end of the work week, so that you can correct any errors before we bill your client.
How do I get an update on my dispute?
To see the latest status of a dispute:
- Go to Deliver work > Contract history
- Find the contract and choose See dispute
What if I don’t respond to a dispute?
If you don’t respond to a dispute by the deadline we give you, we will investigate the issue without your input and you’ll be paid for any hours eligible for Hourly Payment Protection.
Do disputes impact my Job Success Score (JSS)?
Yes, repeated disputes can have an impact on your JSS.
I want to give my client part of their funds back. How?
If you and your client decide that some of the funds should be returned, you can issue a refund.