HomeWhat NOT to Pay After a Crypto Scam – Fees That Never Recover Your Funds

What NOT to Pay After a Crypto Scam – Fees That Never Recover Your Funds

What NOT to Pay After a Crypto Scam – Fees That Never Recover Your Funds

After a crypto scam, victims are often told they are one payment away from getting their money back. These demands are framed as taxes, verification fees, liquidity charges, or compliance requirements. In reality, paying these fees never results in fund recovery.

ForteClaim investigations across hundreds of cases show that post-scam payment demands are part of the scam itself—not a solution.

This page explains exactly what not to pay, why these demands exist, and how victims are repeatedly targeted after losses.

Why Scammers Ask for More Money After You Try to Withdraw

Crypto scam platforms are designed to accept deposits easily and block withdrawals conditionally. Once a victim attempts to withdraw, the platform introduces new requirements that appear official but have no legal or technical basis.

The goal is simple:
👉 extract as much money as possible before the victim stops paying.

Fees You Should NEVER Pay

❌ 1. Withdrawal Tax or “Tax Clearance” Fee

Victims are often told they must pay taxes before withdrawing funds.

Why this is false:

  • Taxes are not paid to trading platforms
  • Taxes are paid to tax authorities, not exchanges
  • Legitimate platforms deduct taxes automatically where applicable

If a platform asks you to send crypto to “pay taxes” — it is fraudulent.

❌ 2. Verification or Account Unlock Fees

This includes:

  • KYC unlock fees
  • identity verification charges
  • security release payments

Why this is false:

  • Identity verification is not a paid service
  • Legitimate platforms do not charge to “verify” accounts
  • Unlock fees are invented barriers

If verification requires money, the platform is controlling access to your funds.

❌ 3. Liquidity or Margin Top-Up Payments

Victims are told:

  • the platform lacks liquidity
  • a margin balance must be restored
  • funds are “temporarily frozen”

Why this is false:

  • Liquidity is the platform’s responsibility
  • Users are never required to fund platform liquidity
  • This demand appears only after profits are shown

This is a fabricated excuse to demand additional deposits.

❌ 4. Loan Repayment Before Withdrawal

Some platforms claim:

  • your profits were generated using a loan
  • you must repay the loan first
  • repayment cannot be deducted from your balance

Why this is false:

  • No legitimate loan exists without a signed agreement
  • Real loans are settled from account equity
  • Loan claims appear only after withdrawal requests

This tactic is used to block withdrawals permanently.

❌ 5. Market Manipulation or Compliance Fines

Victims may receive notices claiming:

  • illegal trading behavior
  • manipulation violations
  • regulatory penalties

Why this is false:

  • Platforms cannot fine users
  • Regulators do not communicate through exchanges
  • Fines are never paid via crypto wallets

This is intimidation, not enforcement.

❌ 6. Recovery Services Contacting You First

After a scam, victims are often contacted by:

  • “blockchain investigators”
  • “fund recovery agents”
  • “ethical hackers”

Why this is dangerous:

  • They already know you were scammed
  • They promise recovery for an upfront fee
  • They are often connected to the original scam

No legitimate recovery service cold-contacts victims.

Why Paying Once Leads to More Demands

ForteClaim case analysis shows a consistent pattern:

  1. Victim pays first fee
  2. Platform confirms receipt
  3. New issue appears
  4. A higher fee is demanded
  5. Cycle repeats until funds are exhausted

There is no final payment that unlocks withdrawals.

What You SHOULD Do Instead

If you are facing post-scam payment demands:

  1. Stop sending money immediately
  2. Do not negotiate with the platform
  3. Preserve all evidence (screenshots, chats, wallet addresses)
  4. Block contact after saving evidence
  5. Report the incident to appropriate authorities

Continuing to pay only increases losses.

Why ForteClaim Publishes This Warning

This page exists to prevent secondary victimization — the stage where victims lose even more money after realizing something is wrong.

Legitimate platforms:

  • do not invent fees
  • do not threaten users
  • do not require external payments to withdraw funds

If a platform does, the risk is structural.

ForteClaim Verdict

Any request to pay money after a crypto scam — in order to recover funds — should be treated as fraudulent by default.

Risk Level: Certain Loss if Paid
ForteClaim Status: Critical Victim Warning