Wiktionary
n. (context business English) A one-time payment given by a party entering a contractual relationship to another party entering that same contract, as an incentive to finalize the agreement.
Wikipedia
A signing bonus or sign-on bonus is a sum of money paid to a new employee by a company as an incentive to join that company. They are often given as a way of making a compensation package more attractive to the employee (e.g., if the annual salary is lower than he or she desires). It also lowers the risk to the company as it is a one-time payment; for example, if the employee does not meet expectations, the company has not committed to a higher salary. Signing bonuses are often used in professional sports, and to recruit graduates into their first jobs.
To encourage employees to stay at the organization, there are often clauses in the contract whereby if the employee quits before a specified period, they must return the signing bonus.
Usage examples of "signing bonus".
Thinking about asking the boys upstairs to get me a membership there as my next signing bonus.
But Pete won over his new president and COO with a package that included a generous signing bonus and a stock option of 400,000 ATI shares: four percent of the company.
If they wash out during the screening, they still keep their signing bonus and will be on reserve in case we need them.
The enticement was a $500 signing bonus, Mondays off and a new wardrobe.
He was paid more to fight with the other players than he was to play hockey, and as the coach handed him his thousand-dollar signing bonus, he'd said to Wade, 'A good rink is a red rink.
I can guarantee you challenging work, a generous signing bonus, and a wide range of fringe benefits.
As a signing bonus, I'll pay off the quarter million you owe, get the creditors off your back.