How to share source files with clients after final approval
A handover routine for motion designers, editors and small studios: settle source files in the contract, pack one folder, send one link with an expiry date and a password, and switch it off when plans change.
The best way to share source files with clients is to treat it as its own step after final approval. Agree in the contract what is included, pack one clean folder, send it as a single link with an expiry date and a password, and switch the link off when the job is closed. This article gives you that routine, so the next time a client asks for the open project file, you already know what to answer.
The question comes up in real work. In a r/MotionDesign thread, a motion designer says a branding studio approved the final edit and then asked for the open project file, and asks what others do. The routine below is one clear answer.
Why source files need their own handover
A final render and a source package are different things. The render is what the client paid to publish. The source package holds your layers, expressions, presets, plugin settings, fonts and working files, so it lets someone else edit and rebuild the work. Sending both in one pile blurs what was sold.
Separating them also separates the risks. A final video can be shown, posted and passed around without harm. A source package that reaches the wrong person is much harder to take back. So the two deserve different links, different passwords and their own expiry dates.
Decide in the contract what is included
Settle this before the work starts, not after approval. A short clause is enough: say whether source files are part of the price, an add-on, or not offered. If they are an add-on, name the fee and when they are released, for example after the final payment.
Also say what "source files" means for the job. For a motion designer that may be the After Effects project and its assets. For an editor it may be the project file, the media and the exports. Fonts and stock footage often carry their own licences, so write down who is responsible for them. Rights to reuse or edit the work belong in the contract, and nothing in this article is legal advice.
Add one line to your quote: "Source files: included / available for a fee / not included." Clients read it once and the argument after approval never starts.
Package the folder with fonts and assets
Build the package so that a stranger could open it on a clean machine. Collect the project file, every linked asset, the fonts you are allowed to share, the audio, the plugin list and a short readme. Use a plain folder structure such as Project, Assets, Fonts, Audio and Exports, and name the top folder with the client, the project and the date.
Check the package before you send it. Open the project from the copy, not from your working drive, and look for missing media warnings. Many tools have a collect or consolidate command for this. If a font cannot be shared under its licence, leave it out and put its name and source in the readme.
If you keep your projects in folders in your Files, build the handover folder there, so the package lives in one place and is easy to find again.
Share source files with clients as one folder link
Loose attachments and several links make clients lose half the package. Send one link to one folder. In Tarkle you pick the files or folders, choose Create transfer and get one link, as described on the page about how to share files by one link. The client does not need an account to download. They can open the folder tree, preview files, and download everything or only the rows they tick. A multi-file download arrives as one ZIP that keeps your subfolder structure.
Size matters here, because source packages are heavy. The limit depends on the organization's plan. Free allows up to 1 GB per transfer, and Pro, Agency and lifetime plans allow up to 200 GB. You can read more on how to send large files. If your package is bigger than your limit, split it, for example into project and media, and say so in the readme.
For a longer comparison with shared drives, see how to share files with clients without Google Drive.
Set an expiry date and a password
A link that works forever is a link you forget about. Set the date when you create the transfer. With link expiration the link stops working after the day you choose. Pick a date that gives the client time to download and check the project, one or two weeks for most jobs, and tell them the date in your message.
Add a password with password protection. Send the password in a different message from the link, for example the link by email and the password by text. That way one forwarded or misdirected email does not give away the package. A password only helps while it stays private, so do not paste it into a group chat.
Put the expiry date in the subject line, like "Source files for Spring campaign, link works until 14 June". The client sees the deadline before they open anything.
Keep final deliverables and source files in separate links
Make two transfers, not one. The first holds the approved renders. Give it a longer expiry, since those files are meant to be used. The second holds the source package, with a shorter expiry and a password.
Keep the two sets in separate folders. A transfer of a folder shows what is in that folder, so if you add a file later, the recipient sees it. Two folders mean a work-in-progress file never ends up in the deliverables link by accident. If you would rather mix folders, choose specific files in each transfer instead of a whole folder.
This also gives you a clean record. Tarkle's Transfers list shows whether a transfer was viewed or downloaded and how many times, so you know when the client has actually picked up the source files.
Revoke access if plans change
Plans change. A client may delay the final payment, a project may be put on hold, or you may realize the wrong package went out. You do not have to wait for the expiry date. In Tarkle, the Transfers list lets you pause the transfer, and the link stops working. You can enable it again later, or delete the transfer if the job is closed for good. This is what revoking access means in practice.
Be clear about the limit: switching off a link stops new downloads. It does not remove a copy that someone has already saved. That is why the contract, and the order in which you release files, matter as much as the tool.
Create the source transfer only after the final payment clears. Until then the package sits in its own folder, ready to send the day the invoice is settled.
Set this up today
Add a "Source files" line to your quote or contract template.
Build one handover folder with
Project,Assets,Fonts,AudioandExports, plus a readme.Open the project from the copy to catch missing media.
Create one transfer for final deliverables and a second for the source package, each with its own expiry date, and a password on the source one.
Send the password separately, then pause or delete the source transfer when the client confirms they have everything.
If you want to try the routine, Start for free and send your first source package as one link.