What "Connected" Means
A Connected client is a Policy Stack user who accepted your connection invitation. The connection establishes the link between your accounts — but it doesn't automatically give you access to their data. Data-sharing is a separate consent the client controls category by category.
Two Independent Consents
This is the model that drives every visibility decision:
- Connection consent — the client said yes to linking accounts.
- Data-sharing consent — the client opted to share specific categories with you.
A client can be Connected and share nothing. Or be Connected and share policies only. Or share everything. They control both at any time from Settings → Advisor Access.
What You See When Data-Sharing Is On
When a connected client has enabled data-sharing for a category, the default access level is read/write. With full data-sharing enabled, you can view:
- Their policies and policy snapshots
- Their policy loans and repayment schedules
- Their capital deployments and cash flow events
- Their banking ledger activity
- Their goals and goal progress
The client can change access from Settings → Advisor Access:
- Read/write (default) — view and update shared records.
- Read-only — view but not edit.
- No data access — keep the relationship record without advisor access.
- Scopes are toggled per category: policies & loans, deployments, goals, tools, documents.
Connected ≠ Visible. If the client hasn't enabled data-sharing on a category, you'll see them in your client list and dashboard counts, but no data inside that category.
States You'll See in Your Dashboard
- Pending — you sent an invitation; the client hasn't accepted or declined yet
- Connected — they accepted the connection (data-sharing may or may not be on)
- Seated — you're paying for their Builder Pro access (independent from connection)
- Not Invited — they're in your CRM (manually added or imported) but you haven't sent an invitation
What the Client Pays
Nothing changes about the client's billing when they connect. Starter stays Starter; Builder Pro stays Builder Pro. The connection itself doesn't move them between plans.
What You Pay
Nothing. Connections are free. They don't count against your seat allowance.
How the Connection Starts
You send an invitation from your Practice → Clients or Seats page. The client clicks the link, signs in (or creates an account), and explicitly accepts the connection. You can set a custom expiration on the invitation when you send it — useful for time-bounded outreach. See Inviting Clients for the full flow.
How It Ends
Either party can end the connection at any time:
- You can disconnect from the client's profile or Pipeline → Connections page
- The client can disconnect from their Settings → Advisor Access
- Disconnecting has no effect on the client's subscription or their data
Disconnecting and revoking a seat are separate actions. If the client has a seat and you disconnect, the seat remains active — they keep Builder Pro, you just lose visibility. If you revoke a seat, the connection remains.
Deleting the CRM Profile Is Different Again
Deleting a client profile in your CRM (from the client detail page) removes the CRM record. It does not revoke an active connection or seat — both run on independent records. To fully end the relationship, end each one explicitly.
The Difference Between Connected and Seated
Connection is about the link. Seating is about paying for Builder Pro. A client can be connected without being seated, or seated without being connected. Most advisor-client relationships involve both.
See Connected vs Seated: The Complete Guide for the full comparison.