> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.pvium.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Quickstart

> Send an instant or scheduled payout

Use the quick payout flow to pay one or a few people from the dashboard — records, screening, and documents included — without setting up a custom integration.

Quick payouts support two payout types, controlled by the payment date:

* **Instant payouts**: leave the payment date unset and funds move as soon as you pay.
* **Scheduled payouts**: set a payment date and recipients can claim from that date.

## Before you begin

Choose the right environment:

* **Sandbox**: use [sandbox.pvium.com](https://sandbox.pvium.com) to test payout setup, recipient validation, and approval workflows.
* **Production**: use [pvium.com](https://pvium.com) for live payouts.

You need:

* A Pvium account
* A payout account with funds available
* Permission to create and approve payouts
* A way to identify each recipient: Pvium handle, wallet address, email, or a GitHub, X, Discord, or Telegram handle
* Payout amounts for each recipient
* Tax certificates, such as W-8 or W-9 records, when required

<Tip>
  Start in sandbox before sending live payouts in production.
</Tip>

## Send your first payout

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open quick payout">
    Sign in to the Pvium dashboard for your environment and start a quick payout.

    Quick payout is designed for paying one or a few people, with records, screening, and documents handled in the same flow.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Choose how recipients are handled">
    Pick a recipient mode:

    * **Direct — pay immediately**: you add the recipients yourself and pay right away. Suitable when you are handling compliance externally.
    * **Verified payees only**: each recipient must provide the legal information needed to stay compliant before they can be paid.

    Then choose the **rail** the payout settles on, and continue.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Set the payment details">
    Optionally give the payout a **label** so it is easy to find in records later.

    Set the **payment date**:

    * Leave it unset to pay instantly — funds move as soon as you pay.
    * Pick a date to schedule the payout — recipients can claim from that date.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Add receivers">
    Select **Add receiver** to open the payee picker. You can:

    * Select from **connected accounts** — authorized team members who have connected their accounts via OAuth.
    * Add new payees by Pvium handle, wallet address, email, or a GitHub, X, Discord, or Telegram handle.

    Enter the amount for each receiver, adjust per-receiver claim dates if needed, and confirm the **total payout** shown next to Continue.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Review and sign">
    The **Sign to Confirm Payout** dialog summarizes the rail, recipient count, total amount, and scheduled claim date. Check these against what you intended — this is where an incorrect recipient, amount, or date gets caught.

    Signing makes the payout tamper-proof: after you sign, the recipients, amounts, and other details cannot be changed — even by Pvium. Signing does not move money yet.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Fund the payout">
    Fund the signed payout from your payout account. Pvium does not hold your money before this point — funds move only when you fund the payout, and only against the exact details you signed.

    Instant payouts pay out as soon as you fund them. Scheduled payouts become claimable on the payment date.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Track delivery">
    Track each payout through its lifecycle.

    The dashboard shows whether a payout was created, signed, funded, delivered, failed, expired, or canceled.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Export records">
    Export payout records for reconciliation, audit review, and accounting tools such as QuickBooks.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## What Pvium controls for

Pvium is designed for operational risk as much as payment execution. A finance team needs confidence that payouts happen once, to the right people, with records they can explain later.

Pvium helps with:

* Payment execution: clear payout states, retry paths, and delivery tracking
* Recipient risk: recipient checks, ownership verification, and revocation paths for undelivered payouts where supported
* Compliance risk: tax certificate collection, sanctions screening, AML checks, payout records, and audit trails
* Internal fraud risk: permissions, approvals, and separation between payout creation and payout approval
* Human error: payout previews, total confirmation, and validation before funding
* Vendor risk: funds that stay with your organization and exportable payout history

## Next steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Payout types" icon="layers" href="/concepts/payout-types">
    Learn when to use instant, scheduled, pooled, and milestone payouts.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Non-custodial architecture" icon="shield-check" href="/concepts/non-custodial-payouts">
    Learn what non-custodial means and why it matters for payout operations.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>