Cancellation fee in modeling: meaning, example and tips

How it works

The terms are set by the agency and stated in the booking confirmation. A common scheme: cancel a few days ahead and part of the fee is due; cancel on the last day, or once the model has arrived, and the whole fee is due. For outdoor shoots, weather is agreed separately.

The fee applies only to a confirmed booking. A client may release an option at any time for free, which is where the difference between an option and a booking becomes very practical.

The rule cuts both ways. If the model fails to turn up without good reason, the client loses money on the studio and the team, and the agency may deduct that from the model's earnings.

In practice

A client cancels a confirmed shoot the day before because the clothes did not arrive in time. The confirmation says that cancelling less than 48 hours ahead costs 100% of the fee. The agency invoices the client, and the model's statement shows a "cancellation fee" line with only commission taken off.

What to watch for

Ask the agency what its cancellation terms are.
If you fall ill, say so as early as you can: the agency may find a replacement.
Check that a cancellation fee appears on your statement.

Related terms

How a job happensBookingA booking is a confirmed job: the client and the agency have agreed the date, the hours, the fee and the usage, and the model has accepted.How a job happensOptionAn option is a client's provisional reservation: they ask the agency to hold the model's time for a certain day until they make a final decision.How a job happensDeal memoA deal memo is a short written summary of one job's terms: the total compensation, the payment term, the working time and the usage.Money and rightsDay rateThe day rate is what the client pays for a model's working day, usually eight hours; the half-day rate covers four.Money and rightsModel statementA statement is the agency's account of a model's income and expenses: every job, the commission, the costs advanced and the final balance.

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

01Does the model get paid if a job is cancelled?

If it was cancelled too late and the confirmation provides for a fee, yes, after the agency's commission.

02What is a weather permit?

A clause for outdoor shoots: if the weather is wrong the job is moved, and the model is paid an agreed part or nothing, as settled in advance.

Cancellation fee