Is it a scam if you must pay a fee to withdraw your profits?
Yes. It is the last stage of investment scams and online job scams: the balance does not exist. The FBI says never pay fees or taxes to withdraw, because the money does not come back anyway.
Arrives by Websites, apps, WhatsApp, Telegram. Pretends to be: A trading platform, a crypto exchange, an online job.
How to spot it
1Your withdrawal of 18,450 USDT is pending. 2To complete AML verification, you must first 3pay a 20% tax. Funds will be released after payment.
Example: rebuilt from FBI and US regulator warnings, which describe the demand but do not print it. We blacked out the dark parts.
- A big profit on a platform someone recommended to you
- An "anti-money-laundering check" or a "frozen" account before you can withdraw
- A fee to send separately, in crypto, instead of being taken from the balance
- Other signs to watch for
- After the first fee, another one
How it works
You put money into a trading website, or into an online job with "tasks" to unlock. The balance grows every day, and at first you are allowed to take out small amounts so you trust it. When you ask to take everything out, the withdrawal is blocked: you must pay a tax, an anti-money-laundering check, a penalty or a deposit to "reactivate" the account. You pay, and another demand comes. The platform belongs to the criminals: they write the numbers on the screen.
What to do
Do not pay anything more. A real exchange takes its fees from your balance, it does not ask for them separately.
Save screenshots and the addresses you sent money to.
If you have lost money, tell your bank now and report it to Report Fraud (reportfraud.police.uk or 0300 123 2040) with your screenshots; in Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101. If someone is coming to your home to collect money or cards, call 999.
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