What is a referral link?
A referral link is a URL on your company website that links back to Debitura.com. You place this link in a visible location such as your footer, about page, or partners page to create a permanent connection between your site and Debitura's.
Examples of acceptable link placements:
Footer link: "Debt Collection Platform: Debitura"
Partners page: "We work with Debitura to provide international collection services"
About page: "Powered by Debitura's debt collection network"
The link must be:
Active - Not archived or removed
Public - Visible on your public website
Direct - Links directly to debitura.com (not through redirects)
đ Exclusive Partners
This requirement does not apply to Exclusive partners. Exclusive partners have automatic case assignment and pay a revenue share to Debitura (typically 40% pre-legal, 20% legal, negotiated per partner), so no referral link is required. Their accounts are automatically configured with a bypass flag. For more details on the differences, see Understanding partner types - Exclusive vs Legal Network.
Why this requirement exists
The referral link is a condition of participation in the Legal Network. Since Legal Network partners do not pay commission to Debitura (0% revenue share), the link requirement serves as an alternative form of contribution that supports Debitura's online presence.
The requirement also serves as a quality gate:
Partnership validation - The link submission and approval process ensures partners have legitimate business websites
Engagement filter - Partners who take the time to add a link demonstrate commitment to the partnership
Professional standards - The requirement filters out opportunistic or inactive partner accounts
How the system controls lead access
Your referral link status shows where your latest link submission stands. Lead access depends on whether you have an approved link on file, which is not always the same thing: an earlier approved link can stay active while a newer submission is pending or has been declined. Some leads do not require a verified link, and Debitura can waive the requirement for a specific partner or lead. You can see and manage this status on the Debitura Profile settings page in the partner portal.
The four statuses are:
Not submitted - no link request has ever been created. Leads that require a verified link stay blocked until a link is approved.
Pending review - a URL passed the check when it was saved and is waiting for the second automated check. It is not approved yet: the second check approves or declines it about two days after it was saved (between 48 and 54 hours). If you already have an approved link, it stays active while the new submission is pending, and leads that require a verified link still count it.
Approved - the automated check found a qualifying dofollow link to debitura.com. You can open leads and submit quotes that require a verified link.
Link not active - your latest submission was declined because the second check did not find a qualifying link (for example, the link was removed from the page after it was saved), and a warning appears on the Debitura Profile page. If you have never had a link approved, leads that require a verified link stay blocked until a corrected submission is approved. If the declined submission was a replacement for a link that was already approved, your earlier approved link stays active and the page shows it separately.
Only one link can be pending at a time. From Settings > Debitura Profile you can change the URL while a link is Pending review: the new URL replaces the pending one (it never adds a second) and the waiting time restarts, so the new link is approved or declined about two days (48 to 54 hours) after the change, not after your first submission. From the window that opens when you try to open a lead without an approved link, you cannot submit while a link is pending: it shows "Your website link is already awaiting review." An earlier approved link still counts while a new one is pending. If a replacement URL fails the check when you save it (the page does not load, or has no dofollow link to debitura.com), the old pending link has already been removed: nothing is pending, and you need to submit again.
What the URL validator actually checks
You can submit a link request from Settings > Debitura Profile (the primary path) or from the window that opens when you try to open a lead without an approved link. Both work the same way: your page is checked the moment you save it, and only a link that passes is saved.
When you save: the portal crawls your page straight away. Addresses on the blocked list are refused: debitura.com addresses (such as your Debitura profile page), social media, review sites and cloud storage. A page that does not load, or has no dofollow link to debitura.com, also fails. A link that fails is never saved: the portal shows a message on the spot. For a refused address, the message asks you to use a page on your own website, and the address stays in the field so you can correct it. A link that passes is saved and your status shows Pending review.
About two days after you save: a saved link stays in Pending review until a second automated check repeats the same checks. That check runs every 6 hours and picks up every pending link that is at least 48 hours old, so the result comes between 48 and 54 hours after you save, by email: approved, or declined if the link is no longer on the page. Keep the link publicly accessible while you wait.
Each check looks for two things:
The page loads. A headless browser fetches the URL and confirms the page returns successfully.
The page contains a dofollow link to debitura.com. A live, reachable URL without a Debitura backlink will fail. A link marked rel="nofollow" will also fail.
Possible validation results:
Approved - the page loaded and a dofollow link to debitura.com was found.
PageFailedToLoad - the crawler could not load the URL.
InvalidUrl - the value entered is not a valid URL.
BlockedDomain - the domain is on the blocked list and cannot be used (social media, third-party review sites, cloud storage, and debitura.com subdomains).
NoDebituralinkFound - the page loaded but no link to debitura.com was found on it.
LinkIsNofollow - a link to debitura.com was found but is marked nofollow. The link must be dofollow to count.
When a link fails the check on save, the portal tells you straight away. The decline email, sent when a saved link fails the second check, does not say which check failed.
If the second check fails, the request is declined and your status moves to Link not active. A declined request is not checked again automatically. Correct the issue on your website (or fix the URL) and submit a new URL from the same Debitura Profile page. While a link is pending, you can still submit a replacement URL from this page: it replaces the pending one and the wait restarts. You cannot submit from the window that opens on a lead while a link is pending.
What happens if your link is missing or removed
If you do not have an approved referral link, wherever the link requirement applies:
You cannot view full lead details
You cannot submit quotes on cases
You cannot participate in the lead marketplace
Keeping the link in place is an ongoing condition of your lead access, not a one-time step: the link must stay active and public on your website for as long as you take part in the Legal Network. If you move the link to a different page, submit the new URL from the Debitura Profile page so the link on file stays current.
What to expect
To start receiving leads as a Legal Network partner:
Add a link to Debitura on your company website
Open Settings > Debitura Profile in the partner portal
In the Referral Link block, enter the full address of the exact page where your link appears, not just your homepage, and save. The check only looks at the page you submit, and it runs when you save: a link that fails is not saved, and you see a message so you can correct it. Only users with the CollectionPartnerAdmin role can submit.
Wait for the second automated check. Your saved link stays in Pending review for about two days: it is approved or declined between 48 and 54 hours after you save it, and you receive the result by email
Once your status reads Approved, you can open leads and submit quotes that require a verified link
For step-by-step instructions on adding the backlink, see How to add a backlink to your public Debitura profile.