Terms of Use

1. Parties & Definitions

These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of DocuValut, an HR and Payroll document management platform accessible at www.docuvalut.com. References to "we", "us" or "our" mean the DocuValut platform and its operators.

1.1 Key Definitions

• "Platform" — the DocuValut web application, APIs and all related services.
• "Entity / Employer" — any company or organisation subscribed to the Platform.
• "Admin" — a user authorised by the Entity to manage employees, upload documents and configure settings.
• "Employee" — an end-user granted access by an Admin to view their own documents and payslips.
• "User" — any person accessing the Platform, including Admins and Employees.
• "Content" — any data, files or information uploaded, submitted or displayed through the Platform.
• "Personal Data" — any information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person, as defined under applicable data protection law.

2. Eligibility & Account Registration

To use DocuValut you must:

• Be at least 18 years of age (or the age of digital consent in your jurisdiction).
• Hold valid authorisation from your employer or the subscribing Entity.
• Provide accurate, current and complete information when your account is created.
• Not impersonate any person or use credentials that are not legitimately yours.

Employee accounts are created by Admins — self-registration is not available at the Employee level. You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account.

3. Acceptable Use Policy

You agree to use DocuValut solely for its intended purpose — accessing and managing HR and payroll documents — in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations.

3.1 Prohibited Actions

You must not:

• Share or transfer your login credentials to any other person.
• Attempt to access accounts, data or systems you are not authorised to use.
• Upload or transmit malicious code, viruses or any harmful content.
• Use automated bots, scrapers or scripts to extract Platform data.
• Circumvent, disable or interfere with any security or authentication feature.
• Use the Platform to harass, defame or unlawfully harm any individual.
• Reverse-engineer, decompile or attempt to derive the source code of the Platform.
• Resell, sublicense or commercially exploit any part of the Platform without prior written consent.
• Upload content that is unlawful, discriminatory or infringes any third-party rights.

3.2 Admin Responsibilities

Admins bear additional responsibilities as controllers of organisational access. Admins must:

• Grant access only to legitimately employed or engaged individuals.
• Promptly deactivate accounts when employees leave the organisation.
• Upload only accurate, legitimate payslip and HR documents.
• Comply with all applicable employment, data protection and privacy laws in their jurisdiction, including GDPR where applicable.
• Not use the Platform to store or process documents outside the HR and payroll scope.

4. Data, Privacy & Confidentiality

Your use of DocuValut is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference.

4.1 Data Roles

• Employees are the data subjects — they own their personal data.
• Employers (Entities) act as the data controllers for employee data they process through the Platform.
• DocuValut acts as the data processor on behalf of the Entity, processing data only per documented instructions.
• We do not sell, share or rent personal data to third parties for commercial purposes.
• All data is encrypted in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest (AES-256).

4.2 Confidentiality

All payslips, employment contracts and HR documents accessed through DocuValut are confidential. Users must not share, distribute or disclose documents beyond what is explicitly permitted by their employer or required by applicable law.

5. Intellectual Property

All software, design, trademarks, logos and platform content are the exclusive property of DocuValut or our licensors. Nothing in these Terms transfers any intellectual property rights to you.

• You may not copy, reproduce, modify or distribute any part of the Platform.
• The "DocuValut" name and logo are registered trademarks.
• Documents you upload remain the property of you or your employer. By uploading, you grant us a limited, non-exclusive licence to store and serve them solely for the purpose of operating the Platform.

6. Service Availability & Modifications

• We target 99.9% uptime but do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free access.
• Planned maintenance windows will be communicated in advance where practicable.
• We may modify, suspend or discontinue any feature with reasonable prior notice.
• We may update these Terms at any time; continued use after an update constitutes acceptance.

7. Disclaimers

We are not responsible for:

• The accuracy or completeness of documents uploaded by Admins.
• Employment disputes arising from the content of payslips or HR documents.
• Data loss due to events beyond our reasonable control (force majeure).
• Third-party services integrated with the Platform (e.g. email providers, authentication services).

8. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, our total aggregate liability to you for any claim arising out of or related to these Terms or the Platform shall not exceed the amount paid by your employer for the Platform in the three (3) months preceding the claim.

We shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages — including loss of profits, data, goodwill or business opportunities — even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages.

9. Termination & Account Suspension

We may suspend or terminate your access with immediate effect if:

• You breach any provision of these Terms.
• Your employer's subscription is cancelled or lapses.
• We are required to do so by law or a competent regulatory authority.
• We reasonably believe your account has been compromised or used fraudulently.

Upon termination, your right to access the Platform ceases immediately. Your employer may request a full data export prior to account closure per our data retention policy.

10. Global Data Protection & Compliance

10.1 EU & UK — General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

For users located in the European Economic Area (EEA) or United Kingdom, we comply fully with the GDPR (Regulation 2016/679) and UK GDPR respectively. Our lawful bases for processing personal data include:

• Contract performance — processing necessary to deliver the Platform services.
• Legitimate interests — security monitoring, fraud prevention and service improvement.
• Legal obligation — compliance with applicable laws and regulatory requirements.
• Consent — where you have provided explicit, freely given consent.

10.2 Your Data Subject Rights (GDPR)

If you are located in the EEA, UK or a jurisdiction with equivalent data rights, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

To exercise any of these rights, contact our Data Protection Officer at info@docuvalut.com. We will respond within 30 days (extendable by 60 days for complex requests).

10.3 International Data Transfers

Your personal data may be processed and stored on servers located outside your country of residence. Where data is transferred internationally, we apply appropriate safeguards in accordance with applicable law, including:

• Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission.
• Adequacy decisions by the European Commission or equivalent authority.
• Binding Corporate Rules where applicable.

10.4 California Residents — CCPA

If you are a California resident, you have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including the right to know what personal information is collected, the right to delete it, and the right to opt out of its sale. DocuValut does not sell personal information. Submit CCPA requests to info@docuvalut.com.

10.5 Data Retention

We retain personal data for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes described in our Privacy Policy, comply with legal obligations and resolve disputes. When data is no longer required, it is securely deleted or anonymised.

10.6 Children's Privacy

DocuValut is not intended for individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a minor's data has been submitted, contact us immediately at info@docuvalut.com.

11. Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

These Terms are intended to operate as a globally applicable agreement. Where mandatory local consumer protection or data protection laws apply in your jurisdiction, those laws are not excluded by these Terms and shall take precedence to the extent required.

11.1 Dispute Resolution

We prefer to resolve disputes amicably. If a dispute arises:

• Step 1 — Negotiation: Contact us at info@docuvalut.com. We will make a good-faith effort to resolve the issue within 30 days.
• Step 2 — Mediation: If unresolved, either party may request non-binding mediation through a mutually agreed mediator.
• Step 3 — Arbitration: Any remaining disputes shall be finally resolved by binding arbitration under internationally recognised arbitration rules, conducted in the English language.

11.2 Consumer Rights

Nothing in these Terms limits any statutory rights you may have under the consumer protection laws of your country, including but not limited to rights under EU consumer law, the UK Consumer Rights Act 2015, or equivalent local legislation.

12. Changes to These Terms

We reserve the right to update these Terms at any time. For material changes we will:

• Update the Effective Date at the top of this page.
• Notify Admins via email or in-platform notification at least 14 days in advance where practicable.
• For significant changes affecting data rights, seek fresh consent where required by law.

Continued use of DocuValut after the effective date of any revision constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

13. Contact & Data Protection Officer

For general enquiries, legal questions, or to exercise your data rights, contact us: