Good afternoon Rostyslav, unfortunately this has happened to most users of Freelancer including people who have been awarded projects.

Ensure that you do not start any work or event accept a project until the following criteria have been met:

1. Project awarded
2. Initial milestone/deposit created
3. Client agrees to release the first payment immediately after you accepting the project.

If they are unable to do this, tell then politely that you are unwilling to start on the project and keep looking for honest, legitimate clients.

Be careful at all time on this website, even if you do vey thing by the book and the client still doesn't pay, the Freelancer support team will not help you. It is left to you to contact the client and chase the payment even of they delete their account.

Hi! I must say yes there is going to be help or support from Freelancer themselves in helping you get your money! But create an invoice and keep it open - DO NOT CLOSE THE INVOICE EVER! Never work on a project that you were not awarded; but since you have here is how you can help protect other Freelancers from these scammers! First, you see that "follow" button under the employers name - click on it - you will then be alerted to every project you post. This is where you leave messages on each project they have open explaining how they did not pay you for work completed and do this on all their projects that they have open. I am actually going to start a blog where we can name and shame these scammers with all their details; who work through these Freelance websites. I AM SO SICK OF SEEING THIS BEING DONE TO HONEST HARD WORKING INDIVIDUALS! Unfortunately there are many employers on this site who are genuine and follow the rules and do pay but it is these select thieves who always seem to tarnish the good!

Even a milestone can't guarantee your work if the employer decides to dispute it. Freelancer has a no questions asked policy towards employers. A simple dispute with "insufficient quality" is enough for them to get their milestone back. What Mohammad is saying is completely untrue.

This site has given me many lessons.
What you did wrong was, agreed to work on his terms.
This happens when you are desperate to get work. People take Advantage of it.
Do not work until there is a milestone created. ( though even that's not reliable). But recommended.
I suggest you to work on other sites like elance, etc.
I can't help it. All you can do is ask support to drop him a mail on your behalf, that's it.

I'm sorry to say there's not much you can do with freelancer as they'll say you haven't a leg to stand on as you did it outside of the terms and conditions. You shouldn't have sent the final files without a watermark our contractual agreement in place, a hard lesson we all learn once. The 'employer' has probably done this to everyone who bid on the project. Other than external legal advice (at your expense) there's nothing you can do. He might turn out to have a conscience and pay you but I wouldn't hold my breath...

Same me, but they bustards withdraw money from my Paypal like service fee. I explain - I finish work, but employment is quite. Answer - your problem. If you start working you verifying billing source, in this moment freelancer have acces to your PayPal, the stolen money like fee from fake deal which make self. PayPal can't refund because this not real goods. This peoples are scammers. Forget about your money.

Unfortunately, you are not allowed to send a message to this thread.

Hi, all of there, I have been awarded to a project, and I have finished the project, and I took my money, and they took their commission, and the money was funded to my account, and after this, they refund back the money to the client! And after I asked why?
Their answer was, the project was against our rules,! So I asked... why u let a project to be published against ur rules,...? They answer v cold... sorry u cheek it late

And they took their commission from me! Can u imagine! Illegal project, but they still take their commission...
Believe in bro... don't waste ur time on this site... they don't protect u against any scam, and your money is not in safe with them

Even if the project was awared to you, you cant start a dispute as a freelancer, unless the employer activates the milestone (and he wont do that!) I bid, project awarded, send archives, all through freelancers chat... i didn't got paid!

1- Forget bout your money (sorry :/ )
2- Freelancer.com are NOT scammers, It's your fault that you started working AND sent the work to the client without Milestone created.
3- A milestone can guarantee you your rights as the client can't cancel them without your permission, and if the client disappeared or refused to release the milestone then you can make a dispute and freelancer.com will release the money for you after taking 12.5 dollars as a fee.