Terms of Service

Last updated: [DATE — fill in]

1. Acceptance

By creating an account or using LodgeReady at lodgeready.com ("the Service"), you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

2. What the Service is (and is not)

LodgeReady is a document-readiness tool. It helps you prepare and check documents you intend to submit with an Australian visa application.

The Service is not migration advice, not legal advice, and not an eligibility assessment. LodgeReady is not a registered migration agent with the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA). The AI analysis is a preparation aid only and does not predict, assess or guarantee visa outcomes.

You must independently verify all current visa requirements at immi.homeaffairs.gov.au and, where appropriate, engage a MARA-registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner.

3. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old, or have the consent and supervision of a parent or legal guardian, to create an account. You must use the Service for a lawful purpose.

4. Your account

• You must provide accurate registration information and verify your email address before your account becomes active.
• You are responsible for keeping your password confidential and for activity on your account.
• Notify us immediately at hello@lodgeready.com if you suspect unauthorised access.

5. Plans, trial and billing

Payment processing is not yet integrated. Until it is, paid plans may be enabled manually or in limited form. We will notify you and update these Terms before charging any payment method. Once billing is live, you will be able to cancel any time; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period. Refunds will follow the Australian Consumer Law and any specific terms posted at the time billing launches.

6. Acceptable use

You must not:

• Upload documents belonging to another person without their authority (or, for minors, without parental/guardian authority).
• Upload malware, exploit code, or otherwise attempt to compromise the Service.
• Use the Service to prepare or support a fraudulent or knowingly false visa application.
• Attempt to reverse-engineer, scrape, or resell the Service.

We may suspend or terminate accounts that breach this section.

7. Translator marketplace

If you request a translation, you are connected with a NAATI-certified translator on the platform.

• Invoicing and payment flow directly between you and the translator. LodgeReady does not take a markup.
• The translator is responsible for the accuracy and quality of their translation.
• We facilitate the connection and document handoff but are not a party to the translation contract.

8. AI analysis

When you request a readiness check, the document is decrypted and sent to our AI provider (currently Anthropic). The AI returns guidance. The AI:

• Does not guarantee correctness.
• Does not predict whether a visa will be granted.
• May be wrong. You are responsible for reviewing every output before acting on it.

9. Intellectual property

• We own the Service, including software, design, and content we provide.
• You retain ownership of the documents you upload. You grant us a limited, non-exclusive licence to store, process, decrypt for analysis, and transmit those documents solely to operate the Service for you.

10. Consumer guarantees and warranties

Our Service comes with consumer guarantees under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL) that cannot be excluded. Nothing in these Terms attempts to exclude those guarantees.

Subject to those guarantees, the Service is provided "as is" and we do not warrant that it will be uninterrupted, error-free, or fit for any specific outcome (including any specific visa outcome).

11. Limitation of liability

Subject to the ACL and other non-excludable rights:

• Our total liability to you for any claim arising out of the Service is limited to the greater of (a) AUD $100 or (b) the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim.
• We are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, including loss of visa outcome, loss of travel plans, loss of profit, or loss of opportunity.

12. Termination

• You may delete your account at any time by contacting hello@lodgeready.com or using in-app deletion.
• We may suspend or terminate your account for breach of these Terms, for legal reasons, or on reasonable notice.
• Sections that are intended to survive (IP, liability, governing law) survive termination.

13. Governing law and disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of New South Wales, Australia [flag: confirm jurisdiction with your lawyer — change if operator is based in another state]. You and we submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of that state.

Before formal proceedings, the parties agree to attempt to resolve disputes by good-faith discussion via hello@lodgeready.com.

14. Changes to these Terms

We may update these Terms. The "Last updated" date will change. We will notify registered users of material changes by email. Continued use after notice constitutes acceptance.

15. Contact

Email: hello@lodgeready.com