# How to transfer a Mark: codes, acceptance and certificates

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/transfer-a-mark)

Giving a Mark to someone is free and takes a few minutes. Here is every step on both sides, what moves with the Mark, and how to hand one over cleanly from an agency to a client.

## The short version

- Transferring a Mark to someone else on Gradiently is free.
- To transfer a Mark you enter the recipient's username, then confirm with a six digit code Gradiently emails to you.
- The recipient has a few days to accept, and until they do you can withdraw the transfer; if they don't answer, the Mark stays yours.
- When the recipient accepts, the Mark, its licence and a new certificate of authenticity in their name are theirs, and the transfer can't be undone.
- A Mark listed on the Market has to be taken off the Market before it can be transferred.

To **transfer a Mark**, open it in your Marks, choose **Transfer**, type the recipient's Gradiently username and continue. We email you a six digit code to prove it's really you; enter it, confirm, and the Mark is on its way. The recipient then has a few days to accept. When they do, the Mark is theirs, with its licence and a new certificate of authenticity in their name. Transfers are free: nobody pays anything on either side.

Because a Mark has exactly one owner at a time, a transfer is a real handover, not a share. Once accepted, the Mark leaves your Marks and you can no longer export with it. That is why Gradiently asks for a code and a clear confirmation before anything moves.

## Why you would transfer a Mark

- **An agency handing a brand to its client.** The agency claims and designs with the Mark during the project, then transfers it so the client owns the look outright.
- **A founder moving a Mark to a company account,** or from a personal account to a cofounder who now runs the brand.
- **A gift.** A Mark that suits a friend's new studio, shop or band.
- **Tidying up.** You claimed a Mark for a project that went to someone else, and they should hold it.

If you want to be paid for a Mark instead, [list it on the Market](https://gradiently.design/guide/list-a-mark-on-the-market). If you simply want to let it go, **Release** returns it to the Market for anyone to claim.

## How to transfer a Mark, step by step

1. **Take it off the Market if it's listed** A listed Mark can be claimed by anyone at any moment, so Gradiently asks you to unlist it before it can be on its way to someone.
2. **Choose Transfer on the Mark** Type the recipient's username: the name in their profile address, `gradiently.design/<username>`. Gradiently shows when it has found them.
3. **Add a note if you like** Optional, and shown to them with the offer. Useful for a client: which project the Mark belongs to, and what happens next.
4. **Enter the code we email you** Six digits, valid for a short time. If it doesn't arrive, check spam or send a new one.
5. **Type their username and confirm** You confirm that once they accept, the Mark and its licence are theirs and you can't take it back. Then send it with the **Send it to** button, which shows their name.

> **Check the username twice** Gradiently asks you to type the recipient's username again for a reason. A transfer to the wrong account can only be put right if that person chooses to transfer the Mark back.

## What the recipient sees and does

The recipient gets an email and a notification that you want to give them the Mark, with your note. Their offer page shows the Mark, what accepting means, and when the offer ends. They can **Accept** or **Decline**. If they run more than one brand, they choose which one to add it to. Accepting costs them nothing, and they can later list it, give it on or release it.

One condition: the recipient must have verified their email address. If they haven't, Gradiently tells you and asks you to have them check their inbox first.

| Status | What it means | Who holds the Mark |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Being sent | You still need to enter the code we emailed you | You |
| Waiting for an answer | The recipient has the offer and a few days to reply | You |
| Accepted | The recipient said yes | The recipient |
| Declined | The recipient said no; we let you know | You |
| Withdrawn | You cancelled before they answered | You |
| Expired | Nobody answered in time | You |

Until the recipient accepts, nothing has moved. Only one status hands the Mark over.

## What moves with the Mark

| Part | After acceptance |
| --- | --- |
| Ownership | The recipient is the Mark's only owner. It leaves your Marks. |
| Licence | Moves with the Mark, so the recipient can design and export with it straight away |
| Certificate | A new certificate is issued in the recipient's name; yours is marked as replaced |
| History | The registry adds a Transferred to event, with the date |
| Creator | Never changes. Gradiently, which crafted the Mark, stays its creator |
| Files you already exported | Stay yours. A transfer doesn't reach into files you have downloaded |

A transfer moves the Mark and its licence. It doesn't change the recipe, the code or the creator.

Anyone can confirm the result at `gradiently.design/verify`. The recipient's certificate reads as current, and it notes the Mark was given to them by its previous owner. [Verifying a certificate](https://gradiently.design/guide/mark-certificate-verify) explains each line. After that, keeping the Mark is the new owner's business: free with Pro, or yearly without it, as covered in [keeping a Mark](https://gradiently.design/guide/keeping-a-mark).

## A clean handover from an agency to a client

Transfers are most useful at the end of a brand project. A tidy handover takes five minutes and leaves the client with proof they can check for themselves.

1. Ask the client to create a Gradiently account and verify their email before the final meeting.
2. Export the files you're delivering while the Mark is still yours, at every size the project needs.
3. Transfer the Mark, with a note naming the project and the Mark's code.
4. Once they accept, send them the new certificate number and ask them to check it at the verify page.
5. Record the Mark's code and certificate number in the brand style guide you hand over.

A wide presentation slide reading It's yours now, made on the Mark being handed over to a client

A closing slide for a handover meeting, made on the Mark the client is about to own.

If the client works in a team, remember that a Mark is held by a person, not a workspace. Agree who on their side should hold it, usually the account owner. [Working with a team](https://gradiently.design/guide/teams-and-workspaces) covers how workspaces and roles fit around that, and [what a Mark is](https://gradiently.design/guide/what-is-a-mark) covers the one owner rule itself.

### Transfer

- Free for both sides
- To one named person on Gradiently
- They must accept within a few days
- Confirmed with a code emailed to you

### List on the Market

- At a price you set; Stripe pays you
- Open to anyone until you take it off
- The first person to claim it gets it
- Payouts set up once through Stripe

## FAQ

### Does it cost anything to transfer a Mark?

No. Transferring a Mark is free, and the recipient pays nothing to accept it.

### How long does someone have to accept a transfer?

A few days. The offer shows its end date; if they don't answer by then, the Mark stays yours.

### Can I cancel a transfer?

Yes, you can withdraw it any time before the recipient accepts. Once they accept, it can't be undone.

### What happens to the certificate when a Mark is transferred?

A new certificate is issued in the recipient's name, and your certificate is marked as replaced in the registry.

### Can I transfer a Mark that is listed on the Market?

Not while it is listed. Take it off the Market first, then start the transfer.