# Staking & Locking ![](/files/hnRJLCJp0p4ubOxbiNeM) ## What is staking? VALAS stakers receive 50% of protocol revenue. As a staker, you can withdraw your VALAS without a penalty whenever you wish. {% embed url="" %} ## What is locking? Just like with staking, as a VALAS lockers you receive a share of protocol fees. Because you are committed to VALAS protocol by locking your tokens for three months, you also receive penalty fees from those who exit their vests early. **You cannot exit a lock early.** {% embed url="" %} ## How does it work? **For borrowers and lenders:** * VALAS rewards are vested for three (3) months, but can be claimed early by paying an exit penalty. * The exit penalty is 75%, decaying linearly to 25% during the 3 month vesting period. So depending on how much you have left to vest, the penalty incurred is maximum 75%, minimum 25%. * VALAS lockers earn up to 50% of the penalty, with the remainder of the VALAS tokens being burned and taken out of circulation forever. So for example when exiting at the start of the vesting period, the 75% exit penalty is distributed such that 50% goes to VALAS lockers, and 25% is burned. VALAS lockers earn exit penalties in a continuous stream. **For lockers:** * Lock dates are grouped by the week. Any lock between Thursday 00:00 UTC to Wednesday 23:59 UTC are grouped in the same week group, and will release at the same time three (3) months later. * Locked VALAS is subject to a mandatory three (3) months lock, and cannot be unlocked early. * VALAS rewards from locking VALAS can be claimed anytime with no penalty. You will keep the APR for locking VALAS after the three (3) months lock until you claim the newly unlocked VALAS. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://docs.valasfinance.com/staking-and-locking.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.