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PASS Personal Tutoring

Terms of Service

Version 2026-06-17 · Closed beta

Beta notice. PASS is currently in a closed beta. The service is provided as-is, may change without notice, and is not yet recommended for mission-critical academic decisions. These terms are good-faith drafts pending attorney review.

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of the PASS platform operated by Seals Enterprises LLC d/b/a PASS ("PASS", "we", "us", "our"). By creating an account or using PASS, you agree to these Terms, our Privacy Policy, our Academic Integrity Policy, our Community Guidelines, and our Refund Policy.

1. The service

PASS is an online marketplace that connects students and parents ("Learners") with peer tutors ("Tutors") who have been reviewed by PASS before approval. PASS itself is not a tutoring provider, school, or educational institution. Tutors are independent contractors, not employees or agents of PASS. PASS does not supervise the content or quality of any individual tutoring session beyond the safety and integrity rules in these Terms.

2. Eligibility

  • You must be at least 13 years old to create an account.
  • Users under 18 must have verifiable parental or legal-guardian consent (the COPPA-style consent flow built into PASS).
  • Tutors must accurately represent their school affiliation, coursework, and eligibility. PASS reviews tutor applications before approval and may require additional verification (such as school affiliation, coursework, identity, or eligibility) before a tutor can accept bookings.
  • You agree to provide accurate information and to keep your account secure. You are responsible for activity on your account.

3. Bookings, payments, and platform fee

  • Tutors set their own hourly rates. The total price of any session is shown before checkout.
  • Learners pay up front at the time of booking. Payments are processed by Stripe; PASS does not store full card numbers.
  • PASS charges a 15% platform fee. Tutors keep 85% of the booking price (subject to refunds, chargebacks, and disputes).
  • Tutor payouts are released weekly for completed sessions after the dispute window has closed (see §4). Payouts require a verified payment account and accurate tax information once thresholds apply.
  • Beta: Stripe is operating in test mode for the closed beta. No real money moves until PASS notifies users in writing that live payments are enabled.

4. Cancellations, refunds, and disputes

See our full Refund Policy. Summary:

  • Sessions cancelled 24+ hours before start time are refunded in full.
  • Late cancellations and no-shows are reviewed case by case.
  • Learners have 48 hours after a session ends to open a dispute. Admins respond within five business days.
  • During the closed beta, PASS may offer goodwill refunds at its discretion for issues caused by platform bugs.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to:

  • Harass, threaten, or discriminate against any user.
  • Request, provide, or facilitate academic dishonesty (see our Academic Integrity Policy) — including taking exams or completing graded work on a student's behalf.
  • Circumvent PASS payments by taking transactions off-platform; this is a permanent-ban offense and may result in fee recovery.
  • Scrape, reverse engineer, resell, or misuse the platform or its data.
  • Upload malware, infringing material, or content that violates law or third-party rights.
  • Misrepresent your identity, enrollment, age, or qualifications.

6. Minor safety

For learners under 18, a parent or guardian must verify consent before the learner can book sessions. Tutors agree to follow PASS minor-safety rules (see Safety): no off-platform communication, no requests for personal contact info, sessions only through approved tools, and immediate reporting of any safety concern to support@passtutoring.com.

7. Tutor review & independent-contractor status

Tutor approval is a baseline review, not an endorsement. PASS may request additional verification (such as school affiliation, coursework, identity, or eligibility) before a tutor can accept bookings, and additional safety requirements may apply before tutors can work with minor learners. Tutors are independent contractors responsible for their own taxes, equipment, and conduct. PASS does not direct the manner of instruction beyond these Terms and the linked policies.

8. User content & license

You retain ownership of content you submit (profile, messages, reviews, materials). You grant PASS a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to host, display, and distribute that content on the platform solely to operate and improve the service. You represent that you have the rights necessary to grant this license.

9. Intellectual property & DMCA

PASS branding, software, and content are owned by PASS or its licensors. To report copyright infringement, email support@passtutoring.com with: a description of the work, the URL of the alleged infringement, your contact info, a good-faith statement, a statement under penalty of perjury that you are authorized to act for the rights holder, and your signature.

10. Termination

You can close your account at any time from your settings. We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms, the law, or pose a safety risk — usually with notice, immediately when necessary. Surviving sections include §§3–5, 8–14.

11. Disclaimers

PASS is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, and any warranty that tutoring will produce a particular academic outcome. We do not guarantee grade improvements.

12. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, PASS is not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost profits or data, arising from your use of the service. Our total liability for any claim is limited to the greater of (a) the fees you paid to PASS in the three months before the claim, or (b) USD 100.

13. Indemnity

You agree to defend and indemnify PASS from claims arising out of your use of the service, your content, or your violation of these Terms or applicable law.

14. Dispute resolution & governing law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules. Disputes will first be addressed via good-faith email negotiation. If unresolved within 30 days, disputes will be resolved by binding individual arbitration administered by a recognized arbitration provider, except that either party may bring a small-claims action in their local court. Class actions are waived to the extent permitted by law.

15. Changes

We may update these Terms. Material changes will be communicated by email or in-app notice at least 14 days before they take effect. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance.

16. Contact

Questions about these Terms: support@passtutoring.com. Privacy questions: privacy@passtutoring.com. Mailing address available upon verified legal request.