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Saturday, 3 October 2026Fashion, style and modelingLTEN
Money and rights

Pocket money

Also called: weekly allowance

Pocket money is the weekly sum paid out for food and small costs abroad; it is an advance on the model's earnings and is deducted later.

How it works

When a model arrives in a new market and has not earned yet, the agency pays out a small weekly sum to live on. Its size depends on prices in the city and the agency's rules.

A common mistake is to treat pocket money as a wage. In fact every euro goes on the statement and is taken off earnings, so eight weeks of pocket money can be a large share of costs.

It is worth keeping count: note when and how much you received, so you can compare it with the statement later.

In practice

In her first week in Tokyo a model receives ¥15,000 of pocket money for food and transport. She notes every payment on her phone. By the fourth week she has several jobs, so she asks for the pocket money to stop. Her statement shows three weeks of pocket money, as it should.

What to watch for

  • Find out the weekly amount before you travel.
  • Note every payment.
  • Once you are earning, you can decline pocket money and cut costs.

Related terms

Money and rightsAdvanceAn advance is money or costs the agency pays for the model up front and later deducts from their earnings.Money and rightsModel apartmentA model apartment is housing rented by an agency in which several of its models live abroad; the rent is deducted from each of their earnings.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.Money and rightsAgency debtA negative balance arises when advanced costs exceed earnings after commission; the model then owes the agency.Agencies and representationPlacement agencyA placement agency represents a model in one particular market, such as Paris or Tokyo, and works together with the model's mother agency.
Questions and answers

Frequently asked

01Do you pay back pocket money?

It is deducted from earnings. If earnings fall short, the sum stays in a negative balance.

02Is pocket money paid everywhere?

Mostly where the agency advances travel and housing, especially in Asian markets.

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