If your withdrawal is rejected, there are several reasons to look into before jumping to conclude that your broker might be a scam. Learn all of them to act wisely.

As a trader, you must want to cash out your hard-earned money at some point. It's even highly suggested to withdraw regularly in order to ensure that you don't put all of your investment money in your trading account.

Unfortunately, withdrawal issues are not uncommon in online trading. Except for some payment methods like bank transfers, most withdrawals are processed within 24 hours. If it takes more than the estimated time, then your withdrawal might be canceled or rejected by the broker.

This doesn't necessarily mean that your broker is a scam as many people might have told you, but it's still an issue nonetheless. Hence, you need to figure out the reasons why it happened and how to resolve it.

Why is your withdrawal rejected?

Withdrawal issues typically happen to novice traders who are just starting to learn about the platform and might not know about the details yet. Every broker has a different set of withdrawal policies, but here are some of the most possible reasons why your withdrawal is rejected:

  • No withdrawal on holidays. Global brokers accept clients from all around the world. Aside from the weekends, most brokers might also forbid withdrawals on national holidays. The dates may vary for brokers in different countries, so ensure to read the policies before making a withdrawal request.

  • The bank is busy. Every deposit and withdrawal must be reviewed by the bank, so when the bank is too busy, withdrawals can get rejected. Banks tend to be busy when many traders make a deposit/withdrawal at the same time. This usually happens when a big market breaks out or after a huge news release.

  • The broker is upgrading the system. Most brokers update their system once in a while to ensure that users can trade safely and comfortably. Before the upgrade starts, the broker will usually ask you to not make any transaction request for the time being as it might get rejected.

  • Your account is not verified. Any good broker would ask you to verify your account before making any withdrawal for safety reasons.

  • Using a different deposit and withdrawal method. Most brokers only allow traders to withdraw using the same method as the deposit and to the same account from which it was received. So, if you made a deposit using a credit card, then you should send your withdrawal funds to that same credit card account.

  • Not enough balance. If you try to withdraw more than what you have in the account, the system won't be able to complete the transaction.

  • There is a floating position. Most brokers don't allow any withdrawal process from an account that holds a floating position. This is to minimize the risk of balance decrease should the market move against the floating position during the withdrawal process.

  • Conflict with certain promotion terms. For brokers that offer bonus schemes, withdrawal terms can get a little bit complicated. The conditions can vary from the minimum withdrawal to how many lots are opened during the promotion terms. If you apply for a certain bonus or other promotions in your broker, it's better to put your attention specifically to the withdrawal conditions.

  • The payment details are incorrect. This means making withdrawals to a bank account that isn't the account holder's name. All deposits and withdrawals must be done by the real account owner, not a third party.

  • Technical issues. In some cases, the problem comes from your device, unexpected errors from the broker's end, or issues with the payment method.

 

How to Solve Withdrawal Issues

The good news is that most withdrawal issues can be resolved. Here are some solutions that you can try:

 

Investigate the Platform

The first thing that you must do is find out the root cause of why the withdrawal is rejected. In some brokers, you can just simply go to your transaction history and click the failed withdrawal. The system will automatically show a pop-up of the reason for the rejection. Alternatively, you can investigate yourself based on the possible reasons above. If the withdrawal is rejected because you don't meet the requirements, then you need to solve the issue and make a new withdrawal order.

 

Contact the Customer Support

If none of the reasons above seem to be the case, then you should contact customer service and ask for help. The easiest way to do this is by hitting the live chat on the broker's website. Some brokers even support several languages other than English, so you might be able to ask in your native language.

The support team might ask you for some additional details about the transaction in order to understand what went wrong. If it was a typical issue, they would help you and solve it right there in the live chat box, so you don't need to go anywhere. However, if the problem was more complex, then you might be asked to send an email to the support specialists.

 

Contact a Third Party

If customer support keeps saying things like they've been hacked, the processing time will take a long time, there's a problem with the system, etc., then it might be a red flag. If this is the case and you can't seem to reach a deal with the broker, you can file a complaint to a third party to fix the situation.

The top one on the list is the broker's agency or regulator. A trusted regulator will help you solve the issue, so there's a high chance that you'll get at least some of your money back.

However, if the broker's unregulated or is licensed outside of your country, the situation might be tougher to handle. You can gather as much information about the case and report it to the authority as soon as possible. It's also helpful to work together with other victims to improve your chance of winning.

All in all, remember that withdrawal issues are not always a sign of scams. As you can see, there are lots of possible reasons why your withdrawal is rejected, just like how deposit transactions can be delayed or even fail. This is why it's highly important to read all the terms and conditions before making a withdrawal request. If you've met all the requirements and the issue is still there, don't hesitate to call customer service for help.

 

To increase the chance of a successful withdrawal, there's a certain strategy that you may need to learn so you can prevent any issues that can get your withdrawal request rejected.