The Joining Fee is a fixed amount in USD charged once for starting a subscription to a master. It is set in the Fee Plan with no period option, and it does not depend on trading activity or results.
- Who pays — the investor, out of the investment account.
- Who receives it — the master.
- When — when the subscription starts. On a PAMM subscription, which begins with a zero balance, the charge waits until the first deposit.
- How much — the plan amount in full. There is no proration and no recurring charge, so a
25 USDJoining Fee is a single25.00 USDcharge.
It Is Charged Once per Subscription
Once the fee has been paid for a subscription, that subscription never generates it again. If the investor uses Unsubscribe and the subscription is later restored, no new Joining Fee appears — even if the master raised the rate in the meantime.
| Situation | Is a Joining Fee charged? |
|---|---|
| The subscription starts for the first time | Yes, if the plan includes a Joining Fee. |
| The same subscription is restored after Unsubscribe | No — it was already paid. |
| Subscribing to the master again as a new subscription | Yes — a new subscription is a new start. |
| The master adds a Joining Fee to the plan after the subscription started | Yes, it can still be charged once, because this subscription never paid it. |
Joining Fee vs Subscription Fee
Both are fixed USD amounts, which makes them easy to confuse. The difference is what they pay for — see Subscription fee for the recurring one.
| Question | Joining Fee | Subscription Fee |
|---|---|---|
| What does it pay for? | Starting the subscription. | Time subscribed to the master. |
| How often? | One-time. | Daily, Weekly, or Monthly. |
| Can the amount be prorated? | No — it is a single fixed charge. | Yes — when only part of a calendar period needs to be covered. |
| Charged again after a restore? | No, if it was already paid. | Yes — the schedule continues while subscribed. |
When No Joining Fee Is Charged
- The fee plan has no Joining Fee, or its amount is zero.
- This subscription already paid it.
- A PAMM subscription has no deposited funds yet — the charge waits for the first deposit.
Currency Conversion
The plan amount is set in USD, while the charge is shown in the investment account currency. When that currency is not USD, the amount is converted at the applicable exchange rate and rounded to the precision shown for the account.
If it cannot be collected
If the account lacks enough funds to collect the full fee, the shortfall becomes accrued fee debt and is recovered later.
