> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.getsly.ai/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# KYA tiers

> Know-Your-Agent verification levels with graduated spending limits.

KYA (Know Your Agent) is Sly's formal identity verification framework for AI agents. It's the direct parallel to KYC/KYB for human accounts — a tier-based system where higher tiers require more verification and unlock higher spending limits.

## The four tiers

| Tier  | Label      | Per-tx  | Daily   | Monthly  | Requirements                                            |
| ----- | ---------- | ------- | ------- | -------- | ------------------------------------------------------- |
| **0** | Registered | \$20    | \$100   | \$500    | Agent created (nothing more)                            |
| **1** | Declared   | \$100   | \$500   | \$2,000  | DSD declaration filed                                   |
| **2** | Verified   | \$1,000 | \$5,000 | \$20,000 | 30-day history OR enterprise override                   |
| **3** | Trusted    | Custom  | Custom  | Custom   | Kill-switch operator + Continuous Agent Integrity (CAI) |

Limits shown are **defaults**. Your tenant can configure per-tier overrides — see [tier limits](/api-reference).

## Tier 0: Registered

The starting tier. An agent is created under a parent account and immediately becomes Tier 0. No declarations, no history, no vouching — just "this agent exists."

* Safe for prototypes, dev, minimal-trust automations
* Spending capped low enough that a runaway loop is financially containable
* No additional docs required

## Tier 1: Declared

The agent's operator files a **Declared Spending Declaration** (DSD) — a self-attestation stating:

* What the agent will be used for (natural-language purpose statement)
* Expected merchant categories
* Expected monthly volume
* Who's accountable (a named individual in your org)

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://api.getsly.ai/v1/agents/$AGENT_ID/declare \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pk_live_..." \
  -d '{
    "purpose": "Automated supplier invoice payments",
    "expected_categories": ["saas", "business_services"],
    "monthly_estimate": "1500.00",
    "accountable_individual": "jsmith@acme.example"
  }'
```

Upgrade is instant on submission. No external review required.

## Tier 2: Verified

Two paths:

**Path A — Historical record.** Agent has operated at Tier 1 for 30 days with no violations, disputes, or manual freezes. Automatic upgrade.

**Path B — Enterprise override.** Your tenant's operations team approves the upgrade based on their own due diligence. Useful for agents where the operator has its own established history (e.g. a treasury bot for a Fortune 500 customer).

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST https://api.getsly.ai/v1/agents/$AGENT_ID/upgrade-tier \
  -d '{ "to_tier": 2, "justification": "Enterprise override — Acme Treasury" }'
```

## Tier 3: Trusted

The highest tier. Requires:

1. **Kill-switch operator** — a named human (not the agent itself) who can instantly revoke credentials. Their contact details are held in the agent record.
2. **Continuous Agent Integrity (CAI)** — an ongoing signal that the agent code and behavior haven't drifted. Usually wired up to your CI/CD + runtime monitoring.

Tier 3 limits are custom — negotiated per agent. Typical ceilings: $10k/tx, $100k/day, \$1M/month. Some trusted partners run at no ceiling at all, with the kill-switch as the sole backstop.

## Effective limits

Agent KYA tier is combined with the parent account's KYC/KYB tier. The **effective cap is the minimum of both**:

```
effective_per_tx = min(agent_kya_limit, account_kyc_limit)
effective_daily   = min(agent_kya_daily,  account_kyc_daily)
effective_monthly = min(agent_kya_month,  account_kyc_month)
```

So an agent can never "escape" via its own KYA tier — the parent account is a ceiling.

## Read the current limits

```bash theme={null}
curl https://api.getsly.ai/v1/agents/$AGENT_ID/limits \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer pk_live_..."
```

Response:

```json theme={null}
{
  "kya_tier": 2,
  "agent_limits": { "per_tx": "1000.00", "daily": "5000.00", "monthly": "20000.00" },
  "account_limits": { "per_tx": "1000.00", "daily": "10000.00", "monthly": "50000.00" },
  "effective_limits": { "per_tx": "1000.00", "daily": "5000.00", "monthly": "20000.00" },
  "used_today": "342.00",
  "used_this_month": "8102.50"
}
```

## Violations

If an agent attempts a spend over its effective limit, the API returns `403 KYA_LIMIT_EXCEEDED`. The attempt is logged. Repeated violations can trigger automatic tier downgrade (configurable per tenant).

## Upgrade path API

| Endpoint                                     | Purpose                           |
| -------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------- |
| `GET /v1/agents/:id/limits`                  | Read current effective limits     |
| `POST /v1/agents/:id/declare`                | File DSD (Tier 0 → 1)             |
| `POST /v1/agents/:id/upgrade-tier`           | Request upgrade to a higher tier  |
| `GET /v1/tier-limits`                        | Tenant's configured per-tier caps |
| `POST /v1/tier-limits`                       | Configure per-tenant overrides    |
| `POST /v1/agents/:id/request-limit-increase` | Ask for a one-time exception      |