AvaTrade Inactivity Fee: One of the Steepest Dormancy Charges in 2026
AvaTrade charges a $50 inactivity fee every quarter once your account sits idle for three months, then adds a $100 annual administration fee after twelve months of inactivity, as of June 2026. This is one of the steepest dormancy structures among CFD brokers, and a forgotten account can lose well over $200 in a single year.
Reviewed by Yaniv Barshaf · Fees verified June 2026 · Our methodology
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Risk warning: CFDs are complex instruments and come with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage. The majority of retail investor accounts lose money when trading CFDs. You should consider whether you understand how CFDs work and whether you can afford to take the high risk of losing your money.
How AvaTrade's inactivity fee works
AvaTrade operates a two-tier dormancy charge that is more aggressive than most rivals, so it pays to understand the timeline exactly. As of June 2026, the first charge kicks in after three months of no trading activity: AvaTrade levies a $50 inactivity fee, and it recurs every quarter that the account remains idle. Then, once the account has been inactive for a full twelve months, a second charge is added: a $100 annual administration fee on top of the quarterly inactivity fees. Crucially, these stack rather than replace one another. The clock is reset by trading activity, not merely by logging in or holding a balance, so an account you funded and forgot will start accumulating charges even though you never placed a losing trade. This structure catches out casual traders who open an account, deposit, trade briefly and then drift away, which is precisely the profile most likely to be stung. Capital at risk.
A worked example: the cost of forgetting
Imagine you open an AvaTrade account, deposit some funds, trade for a few weeks and then stop, perhaps you got busy, or lost interest. Here is what an idle year costs, as of June 2026. Three months after your last trade, the first $50 quarterly inactivity fee lands. Three months later, another $50. And again at the nine-month mark, a third $50. By the time the account hits twelve months of inactivity, you have paid $150 in quarterly fees, and now the $100 annual administration fee is charged on top. That is $250 gone in a single year from an account you simply forgot about, none of it from trading. If your residual balance was small, these charges could erode it entirely or push it toward zero. The lesson is stark: an idle AvaTrade account is not a free parking spot, it is a meter that keeps running. Capital at risk.
How it compares to other brokers
To see just how steep AvaTrade's structure is, set it against peers as of June 2026. Plus500 charges an inactivity fee of up to $10 per month after three months idle, which at $30 a quarter is well below AvaTrade's $50, and it has no separate annual admin fee. Fortrade applies around $10 per month, but only after six months of inactivity, giving you longer breathing room. And Capital.com charges no inactivity fee at all, making it the most forgiving of the group for dormant accounts. Against these, AvaTrade's combination of $50 per quarter after just three months plus a $100 yearly admin fee after twelve is at the harsh end of the spectrum. This does not make AvaTrade a bad broker overall, but it does mean that if there is any chance you will trade sporadically or take long breaks, its dormancy policy is a genuine and quantifiable cost to factor in. Capital at risk.
How to avoid the fee
The good news is that AvaTrade's inactivity charges are entirely avoidable, and doing so is simple. The fee is triggered by a lack of trading activity, so the cleanest way to reset the clock is to place a trade before the three-month threshold, which restarts the inactivity counter. If you genuinely intend to keep the account but trade rarely, set yourself a recurring calendar reminder to log in and place at least one trade each quarter. But the more honest advice for many people is this: if you have stopped trading and do not expect to return, withdraw your funds and close the account outright. AvaTrade charges no withdrawal fee as of June 2026, so getting your money out is free, and a closed account cannot accrue dormancy charges. Do not leave a small residual balance sitting there in the hope of coming back someday, because the quarterly and annual fees will quietly eat it. Decide: use it or close it. Capital at risk.
The bottom line
AvaTrade's dormancy policy is one of the steepest in the CFD market. As of June 2026, $50 per quarter after three months idle plus a $100 annual admin fee after twelve months means a forgotten account can lose over $250 in a year, none of it through trading. Rivals like Capital.com (no fee), Plus500 (up to $10 a month) and Fortrade ($10 a month after six months) are gentler. The fix is easy, trade before the three-month mark or close the account, since withdrawals are free. Note AvaTrade is not FCA-regulated, so no FSCS cover. CFDs are complex instruments with a high risk of losing money rapidly due to leverage; the majority of retail investor accounts lose money. Capital at risk.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How much is AvaTrade's inactivity fee?
AvaTrade charges $50 per quarter once an account is idle for three months, plus a $100 annual administration fee after twelve months of inactivity, as of June 2026. The two charges stack, making a forgotten account cost over $200 a year.
When does the AvaTrade inactivity fee start?
The first $50 quarterly fee applies after three months without trading activity, and recurs each idle quarter. The additional $100 annual admin fee is charged once the account reaches twelve months of inactivity, as of June 2026. Logging in alone does not reset it.
How do I avoid AvaTrade's inactivity fee?
Place a trade before the three-month mark to reset the counter, or if you have stopped trading, withdraw your funds and close the account. Withdrawals are free as of June 2026, and a closed account cannot accrue dormancy charges.
Is AvaTrade's inactivity fee high compared to rivals?
Yes, it is among the steepest. As of June 2026, Plus500 charges up to $10 a month after three months, Fortrade around $10 a month after six months, and Capital.com nothing. AvaTrade's $50 a quarter plus $100 a year is harsher.