Ostello Educator Terms & Conditions

Subject to successful verification and approval, Ostello may permit the Educator to offer educational services through the Platform.

The relationship between Ostello and the Educator is that of independent contracting parties. Nothing in these Terms creates an employer-employee relationship, partnership, joint venture, agency, or franchise relationship between the parties.

The Educator is responsible for determining their availability and accepting only those commitments that they reasonably expect to fulfil.

The Educator must provide accurate and complete information during onboarding, including, where applicable:

• Full name and contact information
• Educational qualifications and teaching experience
• Areas of expertise
• Resume or professional profile
• Profile photograph and introduction video
• Identity or verification information requested by Ostello
• Any other information reasonably required for verification

Ostello may verify the information provided. False, misleading, incomplete, or fraudulent information may result in rejection, suspension, or termination of the Educator account.

The Educator agrees to:

• Provide professional and high-quality educational services.
• Maintain accurate availability and honour confirmed learner bookings.
• Attend confirmed sessions on time and conduct them for the complete duration.
• Maintain professional communication with learners.
• Follow Ostello’s booking, cancellation, attendance, and session procedures.
• Respond to relevant learner or support communications within a reasonable time.
• Promptly report unavoidable circumstances that prevent a scheduled session.
• Protect learner information and confidentiality.
• Not misuse payment mechanisms or manipulate bookings, attendance, ratings, reviews, or payouts.
• Comply with these Terms and all applicable Ostello policies.

Educators are responsible for maintaining accurate availability on the Platform. Making a time slot available and accepting a booking may create a Learner Commitment.

Confirmed bookings must be honoured unless the Learner or Ostello cancels, a genuine unavoidable circumstance occurs, Ostello Support approves cancellation, or another permitted circumstance applies.

Educators must regularly check the Platform, dashboard, notifications, and booking information. Suspected incorrect bookings must be reported immediately and must not be ignored, cancelled, or abandoned outside the applicable process.

Learners may select an Educator based on availability, profile, experience, teaching style, pricing, and other Platform information. Once a Learner Commitment is created, the Educator is expected to honour it.

Sudden discontinuation can disrupt learning, require a replacement Educator, cause rescheduling or refunds, create operational costs, and damage learner trust. Educators must follow the resignation and transition process.

An Educator with seven (7) or more Active Learners is considered to have a Significant Learner Commitment. This identifies circumstances where sudden discontinuation may substantially affect multiple learners.

These Terms apply regardless of the number of Active Learners; having fewer than seven does not remove contractual obligations.

An Educator wishing to discontinue must notify Ostello Support through an official communication channel and comply with the notice period in the Educator Agreement, onboarding terms, or other accepted written terms.

During notice, existing Learner Commitments must continue unless Ostello approves an alternative in writing. A resignation request does not automatically release existing commitments.

Sudden Discontinuation includes:

• Stopping sessions without the applicable notice period.
• Refusing confirmed sessions or abandoning Active Learners.
• Attempting account closure while commitments remain.
• Stopping confirmed availability without approval.
• Otherwise discontinuing without completing the transition process.

This excludes genuine emergencies, circumstances protected by applicable law, or reasons expressly approved by Ostello.

Accepting Learner Commitments creates responsibilities toward learners. Ostello may require an Educator who later discontinues to complete the notice period or fulfil existing commitments through an approved transition.

The arrangement may depend on learner count, remaining sessions, course duration, operational needs, and resignation circumstances.

Subject to applicable law, Ostello may take appropriate action, including:

• Immediate suspension and removal of availability.
• Cancellation or reassignment of bookings and replacement educators.
• Learner refunds and recovery of amounts legitimately payable to Ostello.
• Adjustments for refunds, reversals, chargebacks, disputes, or learner-related liabilities.
• Contractual compensation or deductions expressly agreed under these Terms.
• Withholding pending account reconciliation.
• Termination of the Educator’s association.

Any compensation or forfeiture mechanism applies only to the extent permitted by the applicable agreement and law.

Payouts are subject to Ostello’s applicable payout structure. Amounts shown as available may require reconciliation before release.

• Learner refunds, chargebacks, reversals, and disputed transactions
• Cancelled, invalid, duplicate, or erroneous payments
• Commissions, taxes, statutory deductions, and amounts owed to Ostello
• Fraudulent or unauthorised transactions
• Contractually agreed compensation or other legitimate liabilities

Withdrawals may be temporarily suspended while an account review and reconciliation are completed.

Sudden discontinuation after accepting Learner Commitments can cause operational disruption and financial exposure. Where accepted terms specify compensation, deduction, or another consequence, Ostello may apply it subject to applicable law.

Any amount is intended to compensate legitimate losses, operational and learner-management costs, replacements, refunds, and consequences of breach, and will not exceed what is legally permissible.

Ostello may allow an Educator to complete existing Learner Commitments instead of serving the full notice period. Any payout adjustment will be communicated in writing before acceptance.

Where a 25% contractual adjustment applies, it may be calculated against the Eligible Withdrawal Amount after standard deductions. It does not automatically apply merely because an Educator resigns; applicability depends on accepted terms and circumstances.

Ostello may reasonably place an account on hold to:

• Review a resignation or verify learner commitments.
• Reconcile payouts, process refunds, or investigate payment irregularities.
• Investigate complaints or suspected misuse.
• Protect learners or determine consequences of an alleged breach.

During a hold, new bookings or withdrawals may be restricted pending review.

Educators should avoid cancelling confirmed sessions except where reasonably necessary. Repeated or late cancellations and non-attendance may lead to warnings, slot restrictions, suspension, account review, applicable payout adjustments, or termination.

In an unavoidable emergency, contact Ostello Support as soon as reasonably possible.

Educators must follow the applicable waiting and attendance procedure when a Learner joins late. Session duration, attendance status, or payout calculations must not be independently altered unless the Platform permits it or Ostello Support authorises it.

Educators must conduct demo and trial sessions according to Ostello’s process and remain available for the required waiting period. If a Learner fails to join, follow the Platform’s attendance and support process.

Educators must act professionally. Prohibited conduct includes:

• Harassment, threats, abuse, discrimination, or inappropriate communication.
• Sharing inappropriate material or misrepresenting qualifications.
• Manipulating ratings, reviews, bookings, or attendance.
• Fraud, misuse of learner information, or unauthorised solicitation.
• Conduct materially harming learner safety, trust, or Ostello’s reputation.

Educators must not encourage learners to bypass Ostello’s Platform or payment system.

• Requesting direct payments or unauthorised external arrangements.
• Asking learners to cancel an Ostello booking and pay privately.
• Using learner information for unauthorised commercial arrangements.
• Avoiding applicable commissions or Platform charges.

Violations may result in immediate suspension or termination, subject to applicable law.

Learner information may be used only to provide educational services. Educators must:

• Keep information confidential and use it only for legitimate educational purposes.
• Never sell, share, or use it for unrelated commercial activity.
• Never disclose it to unauthorised persons.
• Comply with Ostello’s Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection requirements.

These obligations continue after the Educator’s association ends.

Unless agreed otherwise, Educators retain ownership of original teaching materials subject to rights granted under the applicable agreement. Educators grant Ostello rights reasonably needed to display profiles and approved content, promote services, facilitate bookings, operate and market the Platform, and provide recordings, analytics, and educational services where applicable consent permits.

Educators must not upload or provide content that infringes third-party intellectual property rights.

Where appropriately disclosed or consented to, recordings may be processed for learner review, quality assurance, performance analysis, safety, dispute resolution, Platform improvement, and other communicated legitimate purposes.

Educators must not independently record, distribute, publish, or commercially exploit learner interactions without appropriate permission.

Learners may provide feedback. Ostello may use it to improve the Platform, support learners, assess quality, and determine eligibility for Platform features. Educators must not manipulate, incentivise, threaten, or interfere with genuine feedback.

Educators are responsible for login confidentiality, must immediately report suspected compromise, and must not share their account with another person.

Ostello may investigate activity appearing fraudulent, abusive, deceptive, or illegitimate, including:

• Fake bookings, artificial sessions, or false learner activity.
• Attendance or payment manipulation.
• Multiple accounts or misrepresentation.
• Promotional abuse or attempts to circumvent Platform controls.

Appropriate action may include suspension, payout review, recovery, or termination, subject to law.

Ostello may suspend or terminate an Educator who:

• Materially or repeatedly breaches these Terms or Platform rules.
• Abandons commitments or creates significant learner disruption.
• Engages in fraud, misconduct, circumvention, or unauthorised payments.
• Provides false information or misuses learner information.
• Materially harms learners or Ostello.

Termination does not extinguish obligations or liabilities arising beforehand.

Educators may request closure through Ostello Support. Ostello may first review active learners, sessions, refunds, disputes, chargebacks, payouts, notice requirements, and outstanding obligations.

Closure does not release obligations arising before closure.

The Educator is an independent service provider, not an Ostello employee, and is responsible for applicable taxes, registrations, professional obligations, and legal compliance. Nothing creates an employment relationship.

The Educator is responsible for tax compliance and must provide reasonably requested documentation. Ostello may deduct or withhold taxes where required by law.

Ostello may update these Terms. Material changes may be notified by email, Platform, dashboard, WhatsApp, or another registered channel. Where required, renewed acceptance may be needed before accepting new Learner Commitments.

Acceptance by button, checkbox, OTP, electronic signature, or another authenticated digital process constitutes acceptance. Ostello may retain records including date, time, account information, and Terms version.

The parties will first seek good-faith resolution through Ostello Support. Unresolved disputes will follow the applicable Educator Agreement and law.

Jurisdiction: Gurugram/Gurgaon, Haryana, India. Governing Law: Laws of India.

If a provision is invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, the remainder continues to the extent permitted by law. The parties will endeavour to replace it with a valid provision reflecting the original commercial intent.

These Terms, the applicable Educator Agreement, payout terms, Platform terms, and incorporated policies govern the Educator’s association with Ostello and supersede inconsistent earlier understandings unless expressly preserved in writing.

By accepting these Terms, the Educator confirms that they:

• Have read and understood these Terms.
• Understand that learner bookings create commitments and agree to honour them.
• Understand applicable resignation, notice, payout, and discontinuation consequences.
• Agree to follow Platform rules and protect learner information.
• Agree not to circumvent Ostello’s payment or booking systems.
• Agree to be bound by these Terms.