PATRONITO PLATFORM TERMS OF USE

Effective Date: January 1, 2026

Welcome to the Patronito platform. Please read these Terms of Use (the "Terms" or "Agreement") carefully.

By creating an account or by accessing and using the Platform in any other way (as defined below), you confirm that you have read, understood, and unconditionally agree to be bound by this Agreement. You are entering into this Agreement with the Organization that corresponds to your location or the type of project:

a) For users outside the EU and for international projects, your partner is the Canadian non-profit organization United Patrons ((BN): 708235551TZ0001, based at Woodbine Steeles Corporate Centre, 7030 Woodbine Avenue, Markham ON, Canada, Ontario Corporation Number (OCN): 1001025182). 

b) For users from the EU/EEA and for local Czech projects, your partner is Nadace Patroni Česka (ID: 23301660, based at: Křižíkova 661, 256 01 Benešov, Czech Republic).

The term "Organization" (or "we") further in the text always refers to your specific entity. These organizations operate on identical principles but are not legally liable for each other.

Some localized versions of the Platform may be managed by local partner organizations, which will be reflected in the terms of use for that specific location. All local partners are contractually obligated to comply with principles and conditions identical to this Agreement.

This Agreement governs your entire use of the Platform and Services. If you do not agree with these Terms, you may not use the Platform or the Services.

These Terms serve as the primary contract, which legally incorporates by reference and forms an integral part of the Agreement with you along with the following documents:

• Privacy Policy

• Community Code of Ethics

• Grant Agreement and Project Implementation Contract
  

By accepting these Terms, you confirm that you have read and agree to all the documents listed above.

1. Definitions of Key Terms

For the purposes of this Agreement and all related documents, the following terms have these meanings:

Platform: The Patronito ecosystem, including the website at www.patronito.com, mobile applications, and all related services and technologies provided by the Organization.

Organization (United Patrons and Nadace Patroni Česka): The Canadian non-profit organization United Patrons, Ontario Corporation Number (OCN): 1001025182, based at Woodbine Steeles Corporate Centre, 7030 Woodbine Avenue, Markham ON, Canada and for the Czech Republic and the European Economic Area, this refers to Nadace Patroni Česka, ID: 23301660, based at: Křižíkova 661, 256 01 Benešov.

User: Any physical person or legal entity that accesses or uses the Platform.

Patron: A User who provides a Donation with the desire to support a specific project.

Guarantor (Leader): A User or legal entity applying for a grant for their project. There is no automatic legal right to receive a grant; it is subject to our approval.

Donation: A voluntary and non-refundable financial contribution directly to the Organization's assets. By making a donation, you give us a non-binding recommendation on which project you wish to support. This is not a "conditional gift," and the Organization does not act as a payment intermediary or a third-party escrow service.

Project: A specific project funded by donations provided to the Organization through the Patronito platform and outside of it.

2. Scope of Services and Nature of the Platform

The Patronito Platform is a tool for facilitating the funding of socially beneficial projects and for building a community that supports these projects. Users acknowledge and agree that the Platform is not an e-commerce store, investment platform, bank, broker, financial institution, or provider of financial advice.

All information provided through the Platform is intended for general informational purposes only and is not meant to serve as professional advice. The Organization does not provide legal, financial, tax, or other expert advice.

The Organization reserves the right, at any time and for any reason, with or without prior notice, to modify, suspend, or permanently terminate the provision of any part of the Services or the Platform as a whole. You agree that the Organization is not liable to you or any third party for any consequences of such a modification, suspension, or termination.

3. User Accounts

3.1 Registration and Data Accuracy

To access certain features of the Platform, you must create a user account. You agree that all information provided during registration and while using the Platform is and will remain accurate, up-to-date, and complete. You are responsible for regularly updating your details. Providing false, inaccurate, or incomplete information constitutes a breach of this Agreement and may result in the immediate suspension or permanent cancellation of your account.

3.2 Age Limits

The Platform is not intended for persons under 16 years of age. By creating an account, you declare and guarantee that you are at least 16 years old. If you are a minor in your jurisdiction (usually a person under 18 or 19 years old), you may only use the Platform with the verifiable consent and under the supervision of a parent or legal guardian who agrees to these Terms and assumes full responsibility for you.

3.3 Account Security

You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and for all activities that happen under your account. You agree not to share your password with any third party. You must immediately notify the Organization of any unauthorized use of your account. The Organization is not liable for any losses or damages resulting from your failure to secure your account.

3.4 Account Suspension and Termination

The Organization reserves the right, at its sole and unrestricted discretion, to suspend or permanently terminate your account and access to the Platform for any reason, particularly in the event of a breach of these Terms or any referenced document. Such a decision may be made without prior notice. You agree that the Organization is not liable to you or any third party for the suspension or termination of your account. The termination of an account does not cancel the provisions of this Agreement that by their nature should survive (e.g., provisions on intellectual property, indemnification, limitation of liability, and dispute resolution).

4. Project Life Cycle: Relationships and Responsibilities

This section defines the key legal relationships and responsibilities between Patrons, Guarantors, and the Organization. This model is designed to ensure transparency, manage risks, and protect all involved parties.

4.1 Relationship Between Patron and Organization

Providing a Donation: By making a donation, you give money directly to the Organization with the desire to support a specific project. We take full responsibility for ensuring your funds are used meaningfully. This model protects the Patron because the Organization is the contractual partner responsible for overseeing the finances.

4.2 Relationship Between Organization and Grant Applicants - Guarantors

If a project succeeds within the community, we approve it and sign a separate grant agreement with the Guarantor. We monitor and continuously check the fulfillment of this agreement. This agreement details the conditions for providing the funds (grant), the schedule, the Guarantor's duties, and the mechanisms for supervision and reporting. These Terms establish the basic framework of the Guarantor's duties toward the Organization and the community.

4.3 Duties of the Project Guarantor

As a Guarantor, you commit to the Organization and all Patrons who contribute to raising the funds to the following:

• Use of Funds: To use all received financial funds exclusively for the purposes and in accordance with the budget as described on the Project page.

• Maximum Effort: To put forth a "high standard of effort" to successfully complete the Project.

• Honest Communication: To communicate regularly, truthfully, and transparently with Patrons and the Organization regarding the Project's progress, including any delays, problems, or changes to the plan. A material misrepresentation of facts is considered a severe breach of this Agreement.

4.4 Patron Declarations and Risks

Before making a Donation, you must actively confirm that you understand and agree to the following:

• Supporting a Creative Process: You are not purchasing a product or service; you are supporting the creative process of implementing a project with full awareness of the risk that the Project may not be successfully completed.

• No Guarantee: The completion of the Project is not guaranteed. Unforeseeable circumstances may arise that make completion impossible.

• Estimated Dates: All timelines and delivery dates listed in the Project are only estimates and are subject to change.

• Guarantor's Responsibility: The primary responsibility for executing the Project lies with the Guarantor in their contractual relationship with the Organization, unless the Organization itself acts as the Guarantor.

4.5 Role and Rights of the Organization

The Organization acts as the administrator and supervisor of the Projects funded through the Platform.

• Recipient of Donations: The Organization United Patrons (Nadace Patroni Česka in the Czech Republic) is the direct and sole recipient of all Donations provided by Patrons.

• Supervision: The Organization is responsible for monitoring the fulfillment of the Guarantor's contractual duties.

• Intervention Rights: If the Guarantor severely breaches their duties (e.g., misuses funds, fails to communicate, fails to execute the Project), the Organization reserves the right to suspend further grant financing, transfer the implementation of the Project to another entity, or as a last resort, if this is not possible, use the remaining funds for another Project with a similar purpose.

• Donor Guarantee: In cases of proven fraud or intentional misuse of funds by the Guarantor, the Organization provides protection to Patrons through a voluntary "Donor Guarantee" of up to $100 USD (or the equivalent in CZK in the Czech Republic) per Donation.

• Protection and Recovery: If a Guarantor intentionally or through gross negligence fails to complete the project or misappropriates funds, we will do our utmost to recover the money through legal means within the jurisdiction where the grant was provided. The recovered money (after deducting legal costs) will then be donated to another project in the same category, and we will inform you about this transparently.

5. Financial Terms

5.1 Providing Donations and Tips

The Platform facilitates two types of financial contributions:

• Project Donations: Financial donations designated to support a specific project of the organization or a grant.

• Voluntary Tips: Voluntary tips from donors are used to cover our operations. However, we are radically transparent—if we collect 20% more in tips in a calendar year than our actual operating costs, we will transfer this surplus directly into grants for the best projects of that year.

This distinction is crucial for transparency and correct accounting processing within the non-profit organization.

All donations are given to the non-profit organization, which awards them through Grants for individual projects. The provision of a donation to a specific Project by a Patron is solely an expression of the community's will regarding how the funds should be allocated. The Organization commits to making maximum effort to ensure the project is executed in collaboration with the Guarantor. If a Grant cannot be fulfilled, the funds are provided to a project in the same category to fulfill the donor's intent and the community's desire regarding the type of Projects that should be funded.

5.2 Cost Structure

Radical transparency of the cost structure. We take a maximum of 10% from your donation intended for a project to cover necessary fees (payment gateways, server operations, project screening, administrative costs associated with project management). The remaining 90% goes directly to the fund for your selected projects.

5.3 Payment Processors

To process payments, we use third-party services such as Stripe, Inc., PayPal, Inc., and Finby. By using the Platform to provide or receive funds, you agree that you will also be bound by the terms and conditions of these payment processors. The Organization is not responsible for their services, actions, or omissions.

5.4 No Refunds

All Donations and tips are final and non-refundable. The only exceptions are situations covered by the "Donor Guarantee," or cases where the Organization, at its sole discretion, decides to refund a Donation.

5.5 Tax Obligations

You are solely responsible for determining, reporting, and paying any applicable taxes (e.g., income tax, VAT) arising from your activities on the Platform, whether it involves making Donations, receiving Project grants, or receiving any reward from the platform as a form of appreciation for your activity. The Organization does not provide tax advice and assumes no responsibility for your tax obligations, which are solely determined by the jurisdiction under which you fall.

6. Intellectual Property and User Content

6.1 Organization's Ownership

All content, software, trademarks, logos, and other materials created by the Organization and available on the Platform (with the exception of User Content) are the exclusive property of the Organization or its licensors and are protected by intellectual property laws.

6.2 User Content

You retain all ownership rights to the content you create and upload to the Platform, such as descriptions in Grant applications, images, videos, comments, and other materials (hereinafter referred to as "User Content"), as well as on your user profile.

6.3 License to the Organization

By uploading User Content to the Platform, you grant the Organization, its affiliates, and partners a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, transferable, and fully sub-licensable license to use, reproduce, distribute, display, modify, create derivative works from, and otherwise utilize this User Content in connection with the operation, promotion, and marketing of the Platform and its Projects across all media. This license is necessary for the proper functioning of the Platform.

6.4 User Declarations

You represent and warrant that:

• You are the owner of all User Content you post, or you have all the necessary rights, licenses, and permissions to publish it and to grant the license described in section 6.3.

• Your User Content does not infringe upon the copyrights, trademarks, privacy rights, or any other rights of third parties.

6.5 Reporting Copyright Infringements

We respect the intellectual property of others. If you believe your User Content has been copied in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please contact us at the email address info@patronito.com with a detailed description of the claimed infringement.

7. Disclaimer of Warranties, Limitation of Liability, and Indemnification

7.1 Disclaimer of Warranties

The Platform and all Services are provided "as is" and "as available," without any warranties, either express or implied. The Organization expressly disclaims all warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, and any warranties arising from trade practices. The Organization does not guarantee that the Platform will operate uninterrupted, error-free, securely, or that it will meet your requirements.

As a non-profit organization, we commit to making reasonable efforts, within our policy of minimizing operational costs, to ensure that all of the organization's applications are highly functional and provide you with an effective and pleasant environment for supporting the community and individual projects.

7.2 Limitation of Liability

Limitation of liability: Our financial liability to you is limited to the amount you have donated with us over the past 12 months, or $100 USD / CZK equivalent (whichever is higher) or to the maximum extent permitted by applicable law. We are not liable for indirect damages or lost profits. Exception for the EU: If you are an EU consumer, this blanket limitation does not apply where local laws prohibit it (e.g., in cases of personal injury or damage caused by our intentional misconduct).

7.3 Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless the Organization, its affiliates, directors, employees, and agents from all claims, damages, obligations, losses, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) that arise from or are related to:

• Your use of or access to the Platform;

• Your violation of any provision of this Agreement;

• Your User Content;

• Your violation of any law or third-party right.

8. Dispute Resolution and Governing Law

8.1 Governing Law and Jurisdiction

Law and courts: These Terms are generally governed by the laws of Ontario, Canada. However, if you are a consumer from the Czech Republic or the EU, you retain the right to protection under your domestic laws and may resolve any disputes in your local courts.

8.2 Binding Arbitration (for Users in the USA and Canada)

If you reside in the United States of America or Canada, you agree that all disputes between you and the Organization will be resolved by binding, individual arbitration, and you waive your right to a jury trial and the right to participate in any class action or representative proceeding. If you are a consumer residing in Ontario, Canada, the requirements to arbitrate and the class action waiver do not apply to you to the extent prohibited by the Ontario Consumer Protection Act, 2002.

8.3 Online Dispute Resolution in the EU (for Users in the EEA)

Out-of-court resolution (EU): Since the European ODR platform was officially discontinued in July 2025, as a consumer from the Czech Republic, you can resolve potential disputes (that we cannot resolve together) out of court through the Czech Trade Inspection Authority (adr.coi.cz).

9. Final Provisions

9.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with all referenced documents, constitute the complete and exclusive agreement between you and the Organization regarding your use of the Platform and supersede all prior oral or written communications.

9.2 Severability

If any provision of this Agreement is found to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, that provision will be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that the remaining provisions of this Agreement remain in full force and effect.

9.3 Governing Language

The primary and binding version of this Agreement is in English. However, if you are dealing with Nadace Patroni Česka and accessing the platform from the EU, the Czech version of the document is decisive in the event of any ambiguities to protect your rights.

9.4 Changes to the Terms

The Organization reserves the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will notify you of important changes to the Terms at least 15 days in advance (via email or a website notification). If you do not agree with the new rules, you may cancel your account without any penalties during this period.

9.5 Contact Information

If you have any questions or require legal communication, please contact us at the following addresses:

UNITED PATRONS Woodbine Steeles Corporate Centre 7030 Woodbine Avenue Markham ON, Canada Email:  info@patronito.com

Nadace Patroni Česka Křižíkova 661 256 01 Benešov Czech Republic Email:  info@patronito.com