Negative carryover explained, with real programme terms

Negative carryover decides what happens to a revenue share affiliate in a month when the customers they referred win more than they lose. With carryover, the negative balance rolls forward and must be earned back before the affiliate is paid again. Without it, the balance resets to zero and next month starts clean. Between those two sit several variants, and the one in your deal can be worth more than a few points on the headline rate.

This guide explains the variants and shows which eight programmes do what, from their published terms as read in October 2026. Terms change, so check the current clause before you rely on it.

How it works

When referred customers win more than they lose, NGR for the month is negative, and so is the revenue share on it. The programme then does one of two things: carry that negative figure into next month, or write it off.

888's terms put the carryover version plainly: the negative balance is deducted "from the Commission calculation for the subsequent calendar months until such time as the negative balance has been fully set-off" (clause 5.13). bet365's help pages add an important point for affiliates: you are not asked to repay earlier commission, but "you will not receive a new commission payment until your account balance returns to a positive position".

An example (illustrative)

The figures below are made up to show the mechanics. For example, an affiliate on 30% revenue share has four months like this:

The difference, £4,500, is exactly the negative month. Under carryover the affiliate shares the loss with the operator. Under reset the operator absorbs it alone.

The variants

Carry forward until cleared

The negative balance is set off against future commission with no time limit. William Hill: a negative monthly total "will be set-off against future payments due to the Affiliate until the full negative balance is set-off" (clause 8.3).

Carry forward, netted across verticals

bet365 carries negatives forward and nets them across products: "Negative commission balances in any vertical will be deducted from available commissions". A losing month in one vertical can hold back commission earned in another.

Discretionary carryover

Entain may, but is not obliged to, carry a negative monthly revenue share forward against all future revenue shares (clause 9.3). Its Greek appendix disapplies this: negatives there "shall be written off".

Carryover with a right to invoice

888 applies carryover to revenue share and may instead invoice the affiliate for the negative balance. It "will generally not apply the Policy to its 888Sport brand", except in some cases such as no new leads for three months (clauses 5.13 to 5.14).

Carryover by default, reset by agreement

FDJ United carries negatives into the next month unless the reward plan has been changed to a "no negative carryover" plan approved by its Head of Affiliates, in which case negatives reset each month (clause 6.16).

Monthly reset, with exceptions

Three programmes reset by default but keep certain negatives:

• LeoVegas resets negative months to zero, but carries forward negatives arising from fraud or where carryover was agreed in writing (clause 5.4.6). Net revenue is also ring-fenced per brand within an affiliate account (clause 5.2.2), so a losing brand does not drag down a winning one.
• Rank resets at the start of the next month, except negatives caused by chargeback adjustments, which carry over until cancelled out (clause 7.5).
• Super Partners resets negatives from customer winnings, non-cash items, cash items or progressive contributions, but carries over negatives from fraud costs.

Player-level ring-fencing for big winners

Programmes that reset monthly still need protection against one very large win. Two isolate the player instead of the whole account:

• LeoVegas treats a player with at least €10,000 negative net revenue in a month, while the brand is negative overall, as a "Big Winner". That player's loss is carried forward against that player's own future revenue for 12 months, then written off (clause 5.5).
• Super Partners treats a player at least $10,000 negative, with the brand at −$2,000 or worse, as a "High-Roller", carried forward against that player only.

Netting against CPA in a hybrid

In a hybrid deal, the negative can reach the CPA side. William Hill pays the CPAs due "less the applicable negative Net Gaming Revenue relating to such calendar month" (clause 8.4).

Which programmes do what

Five of the eight carry negatives forward by default. Three reset monthly but keep specific negatives, and two of those also ring-fence big winners.

Why each side wants what it wants

Operator view

Revenue share is meant to share the operator's results, and that includes losing months. Without any carryover, an affiliate is paid in good months and loses nothing in bad ones, so the operator funds all the variance. One large winner can wipe out months of margin on a cohort. Carryover, or at least ring-fencing big winners, keeps the deal a genuine share. The fraud and chargeback exceptions that even reset programmes keep exist for a clear reason: they stop an affiliate profiting from losses its own traffic caused.

Affiliate view

An uncapped carryover can leave you working for nothing for months because of one customer you did not control. Cross-vertical netting means a bad month in one product can hold back earnings in another. And a right to invoice the negative turns a pause in payments into a debt. The variant matters at least as much as the rate, so price it in when you compare offers.

Programmes also guard against affiliates sidestepping carryover. FDJ United bans using multiple affiliate sites or accounts "to hedge bets, offset losses" (clause 3.9(8)), and bans holding more than one affiliate account without written approval (clause 3.9(10)).

What to negotiate

If you are the affiliate

• Ask for reset with exceptions rather than full carryover, if your traffic is small or volatile. LeoVegas and FDJ United both allow their default carryover rule to be varied by agreement.
• Ask for a time limit. If a negative has not cleared after a set period, it is written off. LeoVegas's 12-month limit on Big Winners is a published precedent.
• Ask for player-level ring-fencing of very large winners instead of account-level carryover.
• Ask for per-brand or per-vertical ring-fencing so one product's bad month does not hold back another.
• Confirm there is no invoicing of negatives, and what happens to a negative balance if the deal ends.
• In a hybrid, ask whether negative revenue share can reduce your CPAs.

If you are the operator

• Keep carryover for fraud and chargebacks at the very least. Every reset programme above does.
• Consider ring-fencing big winners rather than carrying the whole account. It protects you against the event you actually fear, and it is easier for an affiliate to accept.
• Be specific about thresholds, time limits and which products are netted together. Discretion ("may, but is not obliged to") saves you a decision now and costs you trust later.
• Show the carried balance on every monthly statement, so the affiliate can see when it will clear.

What to do next

Find the carryover clause in your current terms and place it in the table above. Then check how it interacts with the NGR definition, because the deductions decide how often a month turns negative in the first place. If you are comparing offers, run a few months with one bad month in them, as in the example, before deciding which deal is better. The deal terms checklist covers the other terms to agree at the same time.