Paycation
One of the common scams in the business opportunity world is the online travel website scam. It is a scam where you are charged an upfront fee and a monthly fee to gain access to a travel website program and to get commissions from people you recruit into the travel program. My subscribers have requested I take a look into Paycation. Here is what I have found.
Paycation Scam Claims
Paycation gives you the opportunity to become financially independent by working your own home-based business with all the tools, training and support you need to become successful.
Growing an international business is quite simple.
Paycation has created the strongest compensation plan in history to give everyone the opportunity for financial success.
We have people earning serious income just booking travel.
Exposing the Reality in this Paycation review
Paycation launched in 2014 and is based out of Texas.
Paycation is one of the many MLM companies David Manning has started. His MLM companies typically have a life of about 3 years or less. Then he starts another company. He is the person behind Traverus, TravelWorks International , and Hi 5.
– Source Corporationwiki.com
The travel service that Paycation uses is Xstream Travel. David Manning owns Xstream Travel.
Update: Paycation is now using Priceline to power their travel site.
Cost:
Independent Associate $40.00 and $29.95 monthly.
Referral Travel Consultant (RTC) $99.95 and $59.95 monthly. $40.00 Annual renewal fee.
Certified Travel Consultant (CTC) $149.95 and $59.95 monthly. $40.00 Annual renewal fee.
Nearly all of the commissions and bonuses paid out in Paycation’s compensation plan revolve around recruitment and the payment of monthly fees. The $10 – $25 commissions on the recruitment of new people alone brings Paycation into pyramid scheme territory.
Beware of any plan that offers commissions for recruiting new distributors, particularly when there is no product involved or when there is a separate, up-front membership fee.
– Source FTC Former General Counsel
The type of scam that Paycation is running has been tried before and was sued in California.
August 5, 2008 California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. announced a lawsuit against YourTravelBiz.com for operating a ‘gigantic pyramid scheme’ that recruited tens of thousands of members with deceptive claims that members could earn huge sums of money through its online travel agencies.
– Source Oag.ca.gov
There are no travel agent certifications required by law in the US. If you find a site that hints you need to take their course in order to become a travel agent, run the other direction!
– Source Hostagencyreviews.com
To qualify to receive a CLIA ID many agencies are requiring the following:
Due to recent developments in the cruise and travel industry we have been asked to put into effect a plan that defines our agents’ ability to receive Travel Agent cards (CLIA and IATA). There have been several major agencies (YourTravelBiz.com, JOYSTAR etc.) that have been deemed card mill agencies for giving out these cards to agents that have not hit specific requirements.
Any agent wishing to receive CLIA or IATA certification through our agency must earn $5,000 of commissions and those must have traveled in the last 12 months. We require this to protect the integrity of those agents, agencies and suppliers who have vetted and established themselves as travel agents with a booking history for a period of time.
– Source Cruisemoms.com
To qualify for membership, a travel agency must be a CLIA Member; agents are required to earn a minimum of $5,000 in total cruise commissions over the past 12 months (verified or waived by the agency). The commissions are gross prior to split or share with agency.
– Source Cruising.org
In my opinion, Paycation is a card mill agency like YourTravelBiz.com because they wave the $5000 requirement to get a CLIA ID.
“Now it says here that I hereby certify that I have earned $5000 or more in travel cruise commissions. Don’t worry about that Xstream Travel will wave that.” – Source Michael Rivera
Paycation charges you more in fees than Priceline for the same trip. Why are you paying Paycation over $700 per year to join their program when you can join Priceline as an affiliate for free? Also, Priceline will pay you commissions on airline tickets.
Compensation Plan
There are 3 ways to get involved with Paycation Travel
1. Travel Club Member Independent Associate
Join as an Independent Associate, Travel Club Member, for $40.00 and a $29.95 monthly fee. Includes Travel Club Membership (IA’s earn on personal sales and are eligible to qualify for the Paycation Residual Commission Program).
This package comes with your own Travel Club website and back office to track your organizational growth and commissions.
IA’s if qualified earn in the Paycation Commission program and on personal sales to customers. This allows you to earn personal sales on each Travel Club sold to a customer and the sale of a Referral Travel Consultant Package.
2. Referral Travel Consultant (RTC) $99.95
Join as a Referral Travel Consultant (RTC) $99.95 and $59.95 monthly. As a Travel Consultant you are eligible for Tax Benefits.
This package includes the Paycation Travel Club and comes with your personal online travel website plus travel booking portal and back office to track your organizational growth and commissions. Referral Travel Consultants also earn 65% of the Travel Commissions on all travel they refer to their travel portal and 20% on travel referred to the corporate travel department. As a Referral Travel Consultant you can participate in the commission program and qualify for coded bonuses and leadership bonuses. The RTC monthly subscription fee is $59.95. There is a $40.00 Annual renewal fee.
3. Certified Travel Consultant (CTC) $149.95
Certified Travel Consultant (CTC) Once an RTC takes the Certified Travel Training and passes the certification test they will be upgrade to a Certified Travel Consultant for Xstream Travel.
As a CTC you get everything in the RTC package and will maximize travel commissions and work direct with top travel suppliers in the travel industry. You earn 75% of the commission on all travel you book direct or refer to your travel portal and 20% of all travel commissions on travel you refer to the corporate travel office. The CTC monthly subscription fee is $59.95. There is a $40.00 Annual renewal fee.
Personal Sales (Paid Weekly)
As a Paycation Independent Associate (IA), you may now earn Personal Sales Commissions on sales that YOU generate.
You earn:
- Paycation Travel Club – $10.00 (customer or IA)
- Referral Travel Consultant (RTC) – $25.00
- Certified Travel Consultant (CTC) – $50.00
There is No Limit on the number of Independent Associates (IA) you can personally enroll and earn Personal Sales Commissions.
Coded Bonus
Qualified RTC’s or higher rank are paid “Coded Bonus” commissions on all personally Enrolled active IA’s after your first two – with no limits. So, beginning with your third personal IA, you will be eligible to earn both the “Personal Sales” commissions AND “Coded Bonus” commissions on RTC’s and CTC’s.
The code pays:
- Referral Travel Consultant – $10.00
- Certified Travel Consultant – $20.00
Not only will you be “coded” to these IA’s, but you will be “coded” to their first 2 IA’s and the first 2 IA’s of their first 2 and so on.
Matching Coded Bonus (codes paid on and to qualified RTC’s and CTC’s only)
If you are a Qualified RTC or CTC you are eligible to receive “Matching Coded Bonuses” on any “Coded Bonus” your Personal RTC’s or CTC’s earn. This is really exciting, because if they earn “Coded Bonus Commissions”, you are eligible to earn a 150% or 100% match, as described below.
First Two Personally Sponsored RTC or CTC (150%):
On your first two personally enrolled RTC’s or CTC’s; you are eligible to receive a 150% “Matching Coded Bonus” on the commissions they earn from “Coded Bonuses”.
From Third Personally Sponsored RTC or CTC (100%):
In addition, starting from your third personally enrolled Independent Associate (IA), you will be eligible to receive a 100% “Matching Coded Bonus” on the commissions they earn from the “Coded Bonus”.
Residual Coded Bonus (paid on and to qualified RTC’s and CTC’s only)
The “Residual Coded Bonus” applies only to sales generated during the current pay period and all future periods thereafter, as long as the Independent Associate (IA) remains active on their monthly subscription fees. These are RTC’s or CTC’s that you have already earned “Coded Bonus” commissions on. For each active RTC or CTC monthly BV coded to you, you receive 8% of that BV in the “Residual Coded Bonus” each month! This can add up to be a huge residual income that is paid every month.
80% of the BV will go towards paying out matrix and codes and 20% to Leadership Bonus Programs.
Matching Residual Coded Bonus (paid on and to qualified Regional RTC’s and CTC’s only)
The “Matching Residual Coded Bonus” If you are an active RTC or CTC you will earn a 100% match on all the coded bonuses your personally enrolled active RTC’s and CTC’s earn.
80% of the BV will go towards paying out matrix and codes and 20% to Leadership Bonus Programs.
Residual Coded Business Builder Program (paid on and to qualified RTC’s and CTC’s.)
If you are a Qualified Paycation National or above, starting with your seventh personally enrolled RTC or CTC and continuing with unlimited width, you are eligible to receive a “Business Builder Bonus”. The bonus is paid starting with your seventh person, personally enrolled, then paid on that person’s first six personal enrollments, then that person’s first six enrollments etc., to infinity. This “Coded Business Builder Program” is paid out residually on the 15th of every month. The “Business Builder Bonus” is paid on RTC’s and CTC’s only and is paid to qualified Nationals and higher ranks.
80% of the BV will go towards paying out matrix, codes and builder codes.
For each active Business Builder code, you will receive 5% of the qualifying BV for RTC’s and CTC’s in your builder coded legs.
3×7 Matrix Residual Bonuses
80% of all monthly residual BV goes to the Matrix and residual codes 20% goes to bonus programs.
New IA’s are eligible to earn residual commissions if qualified. New IA’s will be placed in your matrix. The Power Matrix design is a 3×7 Forced Matrix. That means when qualified, it pays 3 levels wide by 7 levels deep. In a 3×7 matrix, each level triples in size starting with 3 on your first level and 9 on your second level, third level equals 27, and so on.
To be “qualified,” you must be an active IA. If for any reason you do not meet the minimum requirement for qualification at the end of any given month, you will not be paid.
When you follow our proven education and marketing systems, once your matrix commissions are enough to pay for your monthly subscription fee, we will automatically deduct it from your Paycation Commission Program check, so you will never pay “Out-of-Pocket”.
The $29.95 monthly IA Paycation Travel Club fee carries a 15 BV.
The $59.95 RTC and CTC monthly fee carries a 50.00 BV.
Matrix Residual Bonus dollar amount paid on each level, per person
Level 1 – $2.00
Level 2 – $6.00
Level 3 – $2.00
Level 4 – $2.00
Level 5 – $8.00
Level 6 – $8.00
Level 7 – $8.00
Active IA’s with 1 personally enrolled RTC or higher rank qualify for levels 1 through 4. Active RTC’s or higher rank with 3 personally enrolled active RTC’s or higher rank qualify for 5 levels of the matrix. Active RTC’s or higher rank with 6 personally enrolled active RTC’s or higher rank earn on level 6 and are eligible for a 10% match on matrix commissions earned by their personally enrolled RTC’s or higher rank. Active RTC’s or higher rank with 10 personally enrolled active RTC’s or higher rank earn on level 7.
Regional active RTC’s or higher rank earn 8% Matrix match on all earnings by RTC’s or higher rank coded to them.
*Matrix Matching Bonuses paid on $30.00 commission and higher.
Very simply, in a 3×7 forced matrix, a maximum of three IA’s fall on your front line, and all other IA’s enrolled by you or those above you are forced down to your second level and beyond – called “spillover.” When those below you enroll IA’s, they too can only have three on their front line, so all others “spillover” to the next level. In the event that an Independent Associate (IA) in your matrix is Terminated or Cancelled your matrix will dynamically compress bringing people from directly below the affected position up higher in your pay line.
RTC and CTC Rank Qualification and Bonuses
Executive
You must be an active RTC or CTC with a minimum of three (3) personally Enrolled active RTC’s or CTC’s. Executive’s are eligible to earn residual coded bonuses.
Regional Executive
You must be an active Executive with a minimum of six (6) personal active RTC’s or higher rank enrolled. As a Regional Executive you now earn Residual Matching Coded Bonuses on all of the coded bonuses your personally enrolled RTC’s or higher earn. Eligible to qualify for the Regional Diamond Team.
National Executive
You must be an active Regional Executive with a minimum of ten (10) personal active RTC’s or higher rank. Eligible for all the benefits of a regional plus earn a business builder coded bonus starting with your 7th RTC or CTC leg. The builder bonus is like the regular coded bonus except your code is on the first six instead of the first two enrollees in your 7th leg and every personal leg thereafter. Eligible to qualify for the National Diamond Team.
International Executive
You must be an active National Executive with a minimum of fifteen (15) personal active RTC’s or higher rank and have a minimum of 3 active National Executives or higher rank in enrollment legs. (Only 1 National counts per leg). Eligible for a $600.00 dollar Monthly Lifestyle Bonus * A leg starts with each personally enrolled IA. (The 3 National Executives or higher rank do not have to be personally enrolled). Eligible to qualify for the International Diamond Team.
Similar Report: QNET
Presidential Executive
You must be an active International Executive with a minimum of twenty (20) personal active RTC’s or higher rank and have a minimum of 3 active International Executives or higher rank in enrollment legs, only one International per leg counts. Eligible for a $1000.00 dollar Monthly Lifestyle Bonus. *A leg starts with each personally enrolled IA. (The 3 International Executives or higher rank do not have to be personally enrolled). Eligible to qualify for the Presidential Diamond Team.
Lifestyle Bonus
Qualified International Executives earn a $600.00 monthly bonus.
Qualified Presidential Executives earn a $1000.00 monthly bonus.
Qualified Diamond Team Members earn the Diamond Team Bonus and NOT the lifestyle Bonuses. Lifestyle bonuses do not carry forward to the Diamond Team Bonuses. Lifestyle Bonus Qualifications based on active residual payments of $59.95.
Travel Commissions
Referral Travel Consultants (RTC) – as a RTC you can only book travel from your personal website.
- You will make 65% of the commission amount paid to Paycation.
Certified Travel Agents (CTC) – to become a CTC you must take the online CTC Travel Training Course.
You will make 75% of the commission amount paid to Paycation.
- By taking the CTC Travel Training Course you can contact venders directly to book travel as a
- Paycation Independent Agent as well as book travel from your personal website.
- Group travel is booked with venders direct and higher commission can be earned when booked direct.
Both RTC and CTC agents can refer travel to the home office and make 20% of the travel commission paid to Paycation by submitting a Travel referral form found in the Agent Area.
*No travel commission paid on bookings that contain only airfare.*
– SOURCE PAYCATION.COM
Income disclosure
They do not offer an income disclosure that shows that people are making money with this business opportunity.
Refund Policy
You can cancel at any time prior to midnight of the third business day (seven days in VA) after signing up. To cancel you have to mail or deliver a written, signed and dated Cancellation Notice, or send a telegram, to Paycation Travel NOT LATER THAN MIDNIGHT of the third business day.
– Source Paycation Return Policy
There are many free affiliate programs that will allow you to sell travel and you get commissions for airfare with these free programs.
Examples of free travel affiliate programs:
TripAdvisor Affiliate Program
50-80% commission on revenue generated via TripAdvisor commerce links.
Hotwire Affiliate Program
- Earn 2%* commission for hotel and rental car bookings.
- Earn 2%* commission for discount air and package bookings.
- Earn $2 for every regularly priced airline ticket.
- Earn these fees for all bookings made within 7 days of your referral.
- Gain direct access to a dedicated support team.
- Receive monthly payments if you earn at least $10 per month.
Priceline.com Travel Affiliate Program
- Airline Tickets 3% / $7 / $5
- Hotel Rooms 7% / 5% / 3%
- Rental Cars 3% / 3%
- Vacation Packages 3%
- Cruises 3% ($45 Avg.)
It costs $0-$7 per month for your own WordPress website. On your website you can sell travel from anyone you want. You are not stuck with one company.
Paycation Review Conclusion
In my opinion, the Paycation business opportunity is an endless recruitment travel scam just like YourTravelBiz.com which was sued in California. The travel commissions and website they offer are just a cover for running a pyramid scheme. They don’t even pay commissions on airfare which free affiliate programs do. The vast majority of commissions they pay outcome from new people that are recruited into this scam. Each individual who profits does so primarily from the payments of others who are themselves making payments in order to obtain their own profit. Avoid the Paycation scam.
QNET
