In a deal, you can add cost items under the Costs section. Each cost item has three settings that determine how it is handled: Paid by, Handled by, and Add to Venue Costs. This article explains what each setting does and how it affects the Artist Statement and the Dashboard.
👉 Did you know you can save cost items as templates? Read more about cost templates in ABOSS Agency Help Centre
Table of contents
Paid by
Handled by
Add to Venue Costs
Costs in the Dashboard
1. Paid by
The Paid by setting determines how a cost item affects the calculations in the Artist Statement. There are five options.
The option you select influences the calculation in the Artist Statement, displayed in the top right of the deal. You can hover over the amounts to view the calculation behind each figure.
Paid by Promoter
The cost is visible in the Artist Statement under Costs, but has no effect on any other calculation. The booking fee, withholding tax, and amounts due to the booker and artist remain unchanged.
Example: a deal with a gross fee of 5,000, a booking fee of 20% (inclusive), and a withholding tax of 10%. A cost item of 100 is set to Paid by Promoter. The Artist Statement shows:
Costs: 100
Booking fee: 1,000
Withholding tax: 500
Due to artist: 4,000 (no deduction for the cost item)
The promoter covers the cost directly, so it does not affect the artist's or agency's share.
Paid by Artist/Agency
The cost is deducted from the gross fee before the booking fee and withholding tax are calculated. Both amounts are therefore lower, because they are based on a reduced amount (Gross Fee minus Costs).
Example: same deal, cost item of 100 set to Paid by Artist/Agency.
Costs: 100
Booking fee: (5,000 minus 100) × 20% = 980
Withholding tax: (5,000 minus 100) × 10% = 490
Nett fee: 5,000 minus 100 minus 980 minus 490 = 3,430
Due to artist: 3,430
Both the agency and the artist bear a share of the cost through the reduced base amount.
Paid by Artist
The cost does not affect the booking fee or withholding tax. Instead, it is deducted from the nett fee when calculating the amount due to the artist.
Example: same deal, cost item of 100 set to Paid by Artist.
Costs: 100
Booking fee: 1,000 (unchanged, calculated over full gross fee)
Withholding tax: 490
Nett fee: 3,510
Due to artist: 3,510 minus 100 = 3,410
The agency's share is not affected. Only the artist bears the cost.
Paid by Agency
The cost is deducted from the booking fee when calculating the amount due to the booker. The amount due to the artist is not affected.
Example: same deal, cost item of 100 set to Paid by Agency.
Costs: 100
Booking fee: 1,000
Due to booker: 1,000 minus 100 = 900
Due to artist: 3,510 (unchanged)
The agency absorbs the cost from its own fee. The artist receives the full nett fee.
Paid by Venue
The cost has no effect on any calculation in the Artist Statement. All amounts remain unchanged and the Costs field shows 0. This works the same as Paid by Promoter in terms of financial impact, but the distinction is useful for clarity in contracts and invoices when the venue is the paying party rather than the promoter.
[Screenshot: Artist Statement with Paid by Venue, showing Costs 0 and all amounts unchanged]
2. Handled by
The Handled by setting is informational only. It records which party arranges or manages the cost in practice, but has no effect on any amount in the Artist Statement.
3. Add to Venue Costs
When this toggle is enabled, the cost item is added to the Venue Costs field, which is displayed below the Artist Statement. This has no effect on the Artist Statement calculations themselves.
4. Costs in the Dashboard
Cost items set to Paid by Artist/Agency, Paid by Artist, or Paid by Agency are reflected in the Dashboard. Cost items set to Paid by Promoter or Paid by Venue are not, as these are covered by an external party and do not affect the agency's or artist's financials.