Terms of Service

Version 2.0 · last updated 31 October 2026.

Status of this document

This document is a working draft. It describes how BOXBIRDS works today. It is being reviewed by counsel, and the operator’s company name, registration number and address will be added here. Until then, write to hello@boxbirds.app with any question about it.

About these terms

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) are an agreement between you and the operator of BOXBIRDS (“BOXBIRDS”, “we”, “us”) covering the BOXBIRDS website and apps (the “Service”). They apply to everyone who uses the Service.

You accept these Terms when you tick the box at registration or continue to use your account. If you do not agree, do not create an account or use the Service.

These Terms include the sender declaration and the rules on prohibited items, payments, cancellations and disputes set out below. The Privacy policy explains how we handle personal data. It is a notice, not a contract you are asked to consent to. The Partner programme terms apply only if you join the partner programme. Carriers who set up payouts also accept Stripe’s terms (see “Fees and payments”).

These Terms are written in English and translated into Russian. If the two versions differ, the English version controls, unless the law where you live requires otherwise.

What BOXBIRDS is, and what it is not

BOXBIRDS is an online marketplace. It helps people who need documents or keys taken somewhere (“senders”) find people already travelling that way (“carriers”), agree terms, talk and confirm handovers. The person who receives the item at the destination is the “recipient”. One person can be a sender on one deal and a carrier on another.

BOXBIRDS is not a carrier, courier, freight forwarder, transport broker or logistics company. We do not accept, collect, hold, pack, store or transport items. We do not employ carriers, choose them for you, set their routes or schedules, or tell them how to travel. The agreement to carry an item is made between the sender and the carrier. We are not a party to it, apart from our role in taking payment on secure deals, described below.

We do not check what is inside an item, verify that a journey will happen, or guarantee delivery. We do not provide shipping insurance, customs brokerage, or legal or tax advice. When we enforce these Terms, decide a dispute or stop a deal, we do not take possession of any item or become a party to the carriage.

Who can use BOXBIRDS

You must be at least 18 and able to enter into a binding contract where you live. You must not be barred from using the Service under any law that applies to you, including sanctions laws (see “Customs, airlines and sanctions”).

Keep your account details accurate and your password private, and use one account. Anything done from your account is treated as done by you. Tell us at hello@boxbirds.app if you think someone else has used it.

BOXBIRDS does not verify identities at registration today, so do not assume another user has been checked. To receive payouts, a carrier must complete Stripe’s own verification, which Stripe runs and holds. We or Stripe may ask for identity, tax, residence or other information when the law, Stripe’s rules or a risk review requires it. If you do not provide it, you may not be able to take part in a deal or receive a payout.

Where the Service is available

You can open the Service from anywhere, but that does not mean a deal is allowed on every route. We may limit routes, countries, categories, payment methods and accounts because of the law, sanctions, airline or customs rules, payment-provider coverage or risk.

Secure deals, paid by card through BOXBIRDS, are available only where Stripe supports the payment and the payout. In particular:

• routes between two cities outside Russia are secure deals;
• on a route with a city in Russia, the sender chooses a secure deal or a noticeboard deal; noticeboard is the default, because cards issued in Russia cannot pay through Stripe;
• routes between two cities in Russia are noticeboard deals only;
• carriers based in Russia cannot receive payouts through Stripe, so they cannot take secure deals.

You are responsible for checking that the deal, the item, the route, the handovers and any payment are lawful in every country the item leaves, passes through and enters.

What may be carried

Only two categories may be carried: documents and keys. “Envelope”, “folder” and “box” describe the packaging of documents. They are not permission to send anything else.

Documents means ordinary paper documents, such as letters, contracts, certificates, forms and printed papers, that may lawfully be carried on the whole route. These are not allowed: passports, national identity cards, driving licences, visas, residence permits and other government identity documents; bank and other payment cards; cash, cheques, bearer instruments, securities and anything else with cash value; and any document that may not lawfully be handed to another person.

Keys means physical keys to property or vehicles that the sender is entitled to hand over, on an ordinary key ring. A standard car or door remote key with a small built-in coin-cell battery counts as a key. Trackers, phones, smart devices, other electronics and anything with a larger battery do not.

The item must be exactly what the sender described and the carrier agreed to carry. An envelope, folder, box or key ring may contain nothing else. A hidden, added, swapped, mixed or wrongly described item is a serious breach of these Terms, even if the extra item would otherwise be legal.

Prohibited items and conduct

Never post, hand over, carry, receive or ask anyone to carry:

• drugs, narcotics and controlled substances, and any medicine, prescription or not;
• weapons, firearms, ammunition and their parts, explosives and fireworks;
• dangerous goods of any kind, including flammable, corrosive, toxic, pressurised or radioactive items, and batteries or electronics other than the key fobs allowed above;
• cash, gift cards, payment cards, precious metals, jewellery, gemstones and other valuables;
• alcohol, tobacco and vaping products, food and other perishables, plants, animals and biological material;
• counterfeit, stolen, infringing or illegal goods and illegal content;
• anything under sanctions, or that needs an export or import licence or permit that has not been obtained;
• anything banned or restricted by an airline, an airport, a customs authority or the law of any country on the route.

You must not hide anything from a carrier or an authority; describe contents, ownership or value falsely; ask anyone to make a false customs declaration or avoid security screening; split or disguise a prohibited item; use BOXBIRDS for smuggling, money laundering or fraud; or carry someone else’s property without their permission.

Where rules conflict, the stricter one applies. Agreement between users does not make a prohibited item allowed. Breaking these rules can lead to the deal being cancelled, a payment being held or refunded as these Terms allow, the account being closed, and a report to the authorities.

The sender declaration

Each time a sender posts a request or asks a carrier to take an item, the sender makes this declaration:

“I confirm that this item contains only the documents or keys I have described. It contains no hidden or undeclared items, no drugs, medicines, weapons, cash or valuables, no batteries or electronics other than an ordinary key fob, and nothing else outside the selected category. I own it or am authorised to send it. To the best of my knowledge it is lawful to carry on this route under the customs, aviation, sanctions and export rules that apply. I will not add to, swap or change the contents. I will hand it over unsealed so the carrier can check it. I understand that a false declaration may lead to refusal, cancellation, the closure of my account and a report to the authorities.”

The declaration is part of the deal. It does not replace the carrier’s own check, and it does not make anything prohibited acceptable.

What senders must do

As a sender you must:

• choose the right category and describe the item, its quantity and its approximate value truthfully;
• send only what you own or are authorised to send, and nothing on the prohibited list;
• give accurate handover details, and keep door codes, alarm codes and full addresses out of public fields;
• hand the item over unsealed, so the carrier can see that it is paper or keys without reading it. You may seal it in front of the carrier once they have checked it;
• name a recipient who is an adult and entitled to receive the item, and tell them how the handover will work;
• provide any customs paperwork the law requires for the item, and pay any duty or tax that falls on it, unless you and the carrier agree otherwise in writing;
• confirm handovers and delivery truthfully, and never pressure a carrier to take something without checking it.

What carriers must do, and the right to refuse

As a carrier you decide for yourself whether to post a trip, whether to make an offer, what to charge and whether to accept a deal. BOXBIRDS never requires you to travel, work set hours, take a minimum number of deals or accept any request.

Never accept a sealed item you have not seen inside. Before you take an item, check that it matches the description: paper or keys, and nothing else. You do not need to read private documents to do this. You may refuse any item that you cannot check, that does not match, or that worries you, at any time before you take it. A refusal for a reason covered by these Terms is never held against you.

As a carrier you must:

• carry only what you agreed to carry, on your own trip;
• follow airline, airport, security, customs, import and export rules, and declare what must be declared. If you are asked whether anyone gave you something to carry, answer truthfully;
• take reasonable care of the item while you have it, and hand it only to the agreed recipient;
• tell the truth about your trip, the handovers and the delivery;
• not present yourself as an employee, agent or official courier of BOXBIRDS.

If you suspect an item is concealed, dangerous or illegal, do not take it. Stop the handover, report it through the Service, and contact the authorities where the law requires it or someone’s safety is at risk.

Agreeing a deal and handing over

A request or a trip is an invitation, not a promise. BOXBIRDS may suggest matches, but you choose who you deal with. A deal is agreed when both of you confirm the deal summary in the Service. The summary records the item, the route, the dates, the carrier’s reward, both handovers and any extra fees.

Each end of the journey has its own handover: at the airport, at the carrier’s address, or at the sender’s or the recipient’s address for an extra fee. An address handover for a fee must be agreed in the deal summary, either as a fixed fee or as a fee you agree between you.

Use the Service to record each step: the handover to the carrier, the journey and the delivery. A confirmation in the Service records what a user says happened. BOXBIRDS does not independently check the contents or the delivery. Promises made outside the Service do not change the deal summary. A carrier may not pass the item to anyone else or change the route without the sender’s agreement.

Fees and payments

The carrier’s reward and any agreed pickup or delivery fees belong to the carrier.

Secure deals. On a secure deal the sender pays by card through BOXBIRDS. The payment has two parts: the carrier’s share (the reward plus any agreed pickup and delivery fees) and the BOXBIRDS service fee. The service fee is $4.99 + 12% of the carrier’s share, or $2.99 + 10% during the sender’s first 90 days after registering. The full amount is shown before you pay.

The sender must pay within 15 hours of the deal being agreed. Each payment page stays open for 45 minutes. If payment is not made in time, the carrier is released and the request reopens. The handover cannot be confirmed, and phone numbers are not shared, until the payment is held.

Card payments are processed by Stripe; BOXBIRDS never sees your full card number. We hold the payment in our Stripe account until the deal ends. We then pay the carrier’s share to the carrier’s Stripe account when the sender confirms delivery, or 72 hours after the carrier marks the item delivered if no dispute has been opened. Stripe pays it out to the carrier’s bank account or card on its own schedule. If something goes wrong, the money is refunded or split as set out under “Cancellations and refunds” and “Disputes between users”.

Payment agent. A carrier who takes a secure deal appoints BOXBIRDS as their limited agent to receive the sender’s payment on their behalf. When the sender pays through BOXBIRDS, the sender has paid the carrier and owes the carrier nothing more for that deal. We hold the carrier’s share only as the carrier’s agent, only until the deal ends, and only to pay it out, refund it or split it under these Terms. BOXBIRDS is not a bank, an escrow agent or a money transmitter, and the money is not held in a separate trust or escrow account.

Stripe. To take secure deals, a carrier must set up payouts with Stripe and keep them switched on. Payouts are provided by Stripe under the Stripe Connected Account Agreement, which includes the Stripe Services Agreement; carriers outside the United States accept the recipient version of that agreement. You accept it during Stripe’s onboarding. You agree to give us and Stripe accurate information, and you authorise us to share it and information about your deals with Stripe. Stripe decides which countries it pays out to, and it may ask for more information or hold a payout.

Noticeboard deals. On a noticeboard deal no money passes through BOXBIRDS and there is no service fee. Any reward is settled between the sender and the carrier, by whatever means they choose, at their own risk. BOXBIRDS cannot refund, reverse or enforce a payment on a noticeboard deal.

Do not move a secure deal off BOXBIRDS to avoid the service fee, and do not use false payout details or someone else’s card.

Cancellations and refunds

Before a deal is agreed, an offer can be withdrawn and a request can be closed at no cost.

After a deal is agreed and before the handover, the sender may cancel and the carrier may step back. When the carrier steps back, the request reopens for other carriers.

On a secure deal, if the sender cancels or the carrier steps back before the handover, the whole payment is refunded, the service fee included. A payment that arrives after a deal has lapsed or been cancelled is refunded.

A carrier may refuse an item at the handover if it does not match the description, cannot be checked or looks unsafe. BOXBIRDS may then cancel the deal.

Once the item has been handed over, the deal cannot be cancelled; if something goes wrong, open a dispute. If the journey cannot go ahead lawfully or safely, the carrier must tell the sender at once, keep the item safe, follow lawful instructions from the authorities, and arrange its return or delivery. An item must never be abandoned, thrown away or passed to anyone else without agreement.

Requests and trips whose dates have passed expire automatically.

Refunds go back to the card that paid. How long they take is up to your bank. Your rights with your card issuer are not affected.

Disputes between users

Either side can open a dispute from the deal at any time after the deal is agreed and before it is completed, including during the 72 hours after the carrier marks the item delivered. Opening a dispute stops the deal from completing automatically. Each side can add its account of what happened and its evidence. Be truthful, and do not upload other people’s confidential documents.

BOXBIRDS reviews the deal record, the messages and what each side says, and decides.

On a secure deal, the decision sets what happens to the money:

• upheld for the sender, nobody at fault, or the facts cannot be established: the sender gets a full refund, the service fee included;
• upheld for the carrier: the carrier’s share is paid to the carrier;
• both at fault: half of the carrier’s share is refunded to the sender and half is paid to the carrier, and the service fee is kept.

Our decision settles the deal on BOXBIRDS and any payment we hold. It is not a court judgment, and it does not take away any legal rights you have against the other user. We pay compensation from our own money only where the law requires it.

A card chargeback, a review by Stripe or a sanctions block can override these timings, and we may hold a payout while a chargeback is open.

Customs, airlines and sanctions

Carrying another person’s documents or keys across a border can be subject to security, customs, export, immigration and privacy rules, even for an allowed item. In many countries the traveller is treated as the importer and bears the consequences, whatever they were told about the contents. Airlines may limit or forbid carrying items for other people. A listing or a payment on BOXBIRDS does not mean that an item can legally cross a border.

Every sender and carrier must follow the airline, airport, border, customs and export rules that apply, and make truthful declarations.

You may not use BOXBIRDS if you, or anyone you act for, are on a sanctions list of the United States, the United Nations, the European Union or the United Kingdom, or are located in a country or region under comprehensive US sanctions. You may not use BOXBIRDS to deal with such people or places, or to send anything to or from them. Do not give false information about your identity, location, route or payment to get around these limits. We may check accounts and deals against sanctions lists and refuse or stop a deal. We are never required to provide a service that would break sanctions or export-control law.

Safety, reports and enforcement

Treat other users with respect, and be truthful about who you are, your item, your trip, your price and the delivery. Do not:

• threaten, harass, stalk, abuse, discriminate against or exploit anyone;
• create fake profiles, reviews or deals, sell an account, or game the matches or the partner programme;
• ask for payment outside BOXBIRDS when a deal is a secure deal, or pressure anyone to skip a check;
• share other people’s personal, payment, address or access details without a lawful reason;
• scrape the Service, interfere with its security, or upload malware or spam.

Report a suspicious item, a mismatch, fraud, harassment or any other breach with the report button on the deal or at hello@boxbirds.app. If someone is in danger, call the emergency services first.

We may review reports and use reasonable automated or manual checks. We may remove listings, limit features, stop or cancel a deal, hold a payment where these Terms allow, suspend or close an account, keep relevant records, and share them with the authorities where the law requires or allows it. We do not undertake to check every listing, user or item. Where the law requires it, we will tell you why we took a decision about your account or content and how to challenge it. To ask us to review a decision, write to hello@boxbirds.app.

Taxes

Carriers and partners are responsible for the taxes on what they earn, in every country where those taxes apply. BOXBIRDS and Stripe may collect tax forms and tax numbers, report payments to tax authorities, withhold tax or hold a payout where the law requires it.

Your content and our messages

You own what you post. You give BOXBIRDS a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, copy, display, translate and process it for as long as we need to run, secure and improve the Service and to meet our legal obligations.

Requests, trips and routes on the board are public. Do not put addresses, phone numbers, passport numbers, access codes or anything else private into a public field or a note.

You agree that we may send account, deal, safety and legal notices to you electronically. We send marketing only if you choose to receive it, and you can stop it at any time.

Our platform

The Service, its software, design, name and logos belong to BOXBIRDS or its licensors. We give you a personal, revocable, non-exclusive and non-transferable right to use the Service under these Terms. Do not copy, reverse-engineer, resell or misuse it, except where the law allows. Do not use bots to create listings, offers or matches.

No warranties and no insurance

To the extent the law allows, the Service is provided “as is” and “as available”. We do not promise that it will always be available, that you will find a match, that other users are who they say they are, that a listing is accurate or lawful, that a route is safe, or that a delivery, payment or payout will happen on time. Badges and suggestions are information, not a guarantee. BOXBIRDS does not insure items. Nothing in these Terms excludes a guarantee or right that the law does not allow us to exclude.

Responsibility and indemnity

The sender is responsible for the item and its declaration, including any hidden, added, swapped or wrongly described contents. The carrier is responsible for their own conduct, for following carriage and travel rules, and for the item while they have it. Each user is responsible for their own taxes, licences and declarations.

To the extent the law allows, if you break these Terms or the law, you will compensate BOXBIRDS and its directors, officers, employees and agents for the third-party claims, fines that may lawfully be passed on, reasonable legal fees and other losses that result. This never makes you responsible for our own negligence, misconduct or failure to meet our legal duties.

Limitation of liability

To the extent the law allows:

• BOXBIRDS is not liable for indirect, special, incidental, consequential or punitive loss, or for lost profits, data, opportunities or reputation, arising from the Service or from a deal between users;
• BOXBIRDS is not liable for the loss of or damage to an item, a journey that does not happen, a payment made or not made between users on a noticeboard deal, or anything done by an airline or a border, customs or other authority;
• BOXBIRDS’s total liability to you for all claims is limited to the greater of US$100 and the service fees you paid us in the 12 months before the event that gave rise to the claim.

Nothing in these Terms limits liability for fraud, wilful misconduct, gross negligence, death or personal injury caused by negligence, or any other liability that cannot lawfully be limited. Some places do not allow some of these limits, so they may not all apply to you.

Closing your account and changes to these terms

You can delete your account in your profile at any time. We may ask you to finish or cancel deals in progress first, and we keep the records the law requires (see the Privacy policy).

We may suspend or close an account for a serious breach of these Terms, suspected fraud or prohibited items, sanctions, safety, legal requirements or a payment provider’s restrictions. Where the breach involves prohibited items or a risk to someone’s safety, we may do so without warning. Closing an account does not cancel obligations already owed.

We may change these Terms as the Service changes. We will post the new version here with a new date and tell you about material changes before they take effect. Where the law requires your agreement, we will ask for it. A deal already agreed stays under the terms that applied when it was agreed.

Disputes with BOXBIRDS and governing law

If you have a complaint about BOXBIRDS itself, rather than a dispute with another user, write to hello@boxbirds.app. We will try to resolve it with you within 30 days. This does not stop you from contacting a regulator or bringing an urgent claim.

These Terms are governed by the law of the State of Delaware, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules. Claims not covered by mandatory consumer rules may be brought in the state or federal courts located in Delaware. If you are a consumer, nothing in these Terms takes away the protection of the mandatory laws of the country where you live, or your right to bring a claim in its courts.

General

These Terms, with the documents they refer to, are the whole agreement between you and BOXBIRDS about the Service. If any part is found invalid, the rest stays in force. If we do not enforce a term straight away, we can still enforce it later. You may not transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without our consent. We may transfer ours to a company that takes over the Service, provided your rights are not reduced. We are not responsible for delays or failures caused by events outside our reasonable control. The parts of these Terms that by their nature should continue after the agreement ends, including those on money owed, responsibility, indemnity, liability and governing law, continue.

Contact

Questions about these Terms, complaints and reports: hello@boxbirds.app. Privacy requests: privacy@boxbirds.app.

The operator’s company name, registration number and address will be published here.