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

# Onboarding

> Invite a seller, set the checklist they complete before they can sell, and approve them when it is done.

Bringing a seller onto a marketplace is a process with a decision at the end of it, not a switch. You invite them, they work through a checklist you have defined, they ask to be reviewed, and you approve — or send them back.

## The lifecycle

| Status           | Meaning                                             |
| ---------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| Pending          | Created, nothing sent yet                           |
| Invited          | Invitation sent, not yet accepted                   |
| Onboarding       | Working through the requirements                    |
| Ready for review | Waiting on you                                      |
| Approved         | Live — they can sell                                |
| Rejected         | Sent back, with a reason; they return to Onboarding |
| Suspended        | Paused by you                                       |
| Canceled         | Gone                                                |

Only an **approved** seller can sell.

## 1. Invite a seller

Navigate to **Sellers**, click **Add seller** and name them. On their page, click **Invite** and enter the email of the person who will run the account. They receive a link; accepting it creates their sign-in and lands them in the seller panel, where the checklist is waiting.

## 2. The checklist

What a seller must do before selling differs by marketplace — a hardware marketplace wants insurance documents, a craft marketplace wants a filled-in profile and one product. So the checklist is yours to define, under **Settings → Seller requirements**.

Every store starts with seven, all required:

| Requirement      | Done when                                                      |
| ---------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Accept terms     | The seller has read and accepted your marketplace terms        |
| Complete profile | Their public profile is filled in                              |
| Billing address  | They have given the address payouts are billed from            |
| Returns address  | They have given the address customer returns go to             |
| Delivery method  | They offer at least one way to ship                            |
| Shipping box     | They have recorded the size and weight of the box they ship in |
| Minimum products | They have listed at least the number you set                   |

Six more are available to add: a **document** upload for you to review, a **seller confirmation** they attest to, a **manual check** you perform, a **seller policy** they must publish, **required custom fields** they must fill in, and — for marketplaces that pay through a provider — a **payout account** they connect.

For each one you choose:

* **Required** or recommended. Required items must be done before you can approve the seller; recommended ones are shown but do not block.
* **Active** — switch off to stop asking for it without deleting it.
* **Instructions** — what the seller sees, and why you need it.

<Note>
  With no requirements at all, a seller can ask to be reviewed straight away.
</Note>

Requirements are checked three ways, which is what lets one list cover very different demands: some are **computed** from the seller's own data (a billing address exists, three products are listed), some are **attested** by the seller (accepting terms), and some are **verified** by you (a document, a manual check).

## 3. Review and approve

When the seller finishes, they submit for review and move to **Ready for review**. Open their page:

* The **Onboarding** card shows every requirement and its state. Documents they uploaded are there to open; anything you verify by hand is marked complete by you.
* **Approve** makes them live. A required item still incomplete blocks this — approving anyway is a deliberate override, recorded as such.
* **Send back** returns them to Onboarding with a reason they will see.

Your developers can turn on automatic approval, so a seller who completes every required item is approved the moment they submit.

## Related

* [Managing sellers](/docs/user/sellers/managing-sellers) — suspending, reinstating, and the rest of a seller's page
* [Payouts](/docs/user/sellers/payouts) — the payout account requirement, and what happens once they sell