Visa Approval Fee Advance Message Scam Examples
Messages claiming to be from embassies or visa agencies say your application has been approved but requires an advance administrative or courier fee before the visa can be issued.
Last reviewed: 1 June 2026
Sanitized example messages
Illustrative, sanitized examples. Personal details are replaced with placeholders such as [phone number] and [fake link].
Congratulations! Your visa application to [country] has been approved. To release your visa, an embassy processing fee of [amount] must be paid within 48 hours via [payment link]. Failure to pay will result in cancellation.
Dear Applicant, your [country] e-visa is ready for dispatch. A courier and authentication fee of [amount] is required. Please transfer funds to the following account: [bank details].
Your visa has been granted. However, additional biometric compliance charges of [amount] must be cleared before the visa stamp can be added to your passport. Pay here: [fake link]
What the scammer wants
To charge a fake advance fee for a visa that does not exist, often after gaining the victim's trust by asking for genuine-looking application forms and passport copies first.
Red flags in the message
- Request for payment outside of an official government portal
- No reference number matching a real application
- Contact from a free webmail address (Gmail, Yahoo) instead of an official .gov domain
- Urgency and risk of 'cancellation' if fee is not paid immediately
- Request for bank transfer, wire, or cryptocurrency
A safe response
All legitimate visa fee payments go through official government portals or accredited visa application centres. Verify directly with the official embassy website before paying anything.
What not to send
- Payment to unofficial accounts
- Passport scans to unverified parties
- Personal financial details
What to do if you already replied
- Report to the official embassy and ask them to confirm whether the communication is genuine
- Contact your bank to dispute any payment made
- Report to your national anti-fraud authority
Evidence to preserve
- Screenshot the full message or call details
- Note the sender number, email, or profile
- Save any links (without clicking) and payment details
- Record dates and times