Almost every forex bonus — deposit or no deposit — comes with a trading volume requirement. It is written in lots, and it decides whether the bonus is a useful extra or something you will never be able to withdraw. Here is how to read these requirements and translate them into real numbers.
What is a lot?
A standard lot is 100,000 units of the base currency. Brokers also offer mini lots (0.1 = 10,000 units), micro lots (0.01 = 1,000 units) and sometimes nano lots (0.001). Volume requirements are almost always measured in standard lots, so 0.01 lots counts as one hundredth of a lot. Read our full explanation of lot sizes and pip values if this is new to you.
The three common ways requirements are written
1. A fixed number of lots
"Trade 5 standard lots to withdraw." Simple to calculate: add up the volume of all your closed trades until the total reaches 5.00.
2. Lots per dollar of bonus
"Trade 1 standard lot for every $2 of bonus." For a $100 bonus that is 50 standard lots. Requirements written this way grow with the size of the bonus, which is why large deposit bonuses can take months to clear.
3. Lots per dollar withdrawn (partial release)
Some deposit bonuses release a part of the bonus as cash as you trade — for example $2 released per standard lot. Nothing is lost if you stop early, but you only receive what you have unlocked.
Worked example: a 100% deposit bonus
You deposit $500 and receive a $500 bonus. The rule is 1 standard lot per $2 of bonus before the bonus becomes withdrawable.
- Required volume: $500 ÷ $2 = 250 standard lots.
- Typical cost of trading EUR/USD at a 1.2 pip spread: 1.2 × $10 = $12 per standard lot.
- Spread cost of 250 lots: 250 × $12 = $3,000.
In other words, to unlock $500 you would pay roughly six times that amount in trading costs, before any wins or losses. This is the reason experienced traders often decline large deposit bonuses — and why it pays to work the numbers out first. Our pip value calculator gives the cost per pip for any pair and lot size.
Worked example: a $30 no deposit bonus
The rule is 2 standard lots before withdrawal; profit is capped at $50.
- With $30 in the account you should risk no more than about $0.30–$0.60 per trade.
- That allows positions of around 0.01–0.02 lots with a 20–30 pip stop loss.
- At 0.02 lots per trade you need 100 trades to reach 2 lots.
It is achievable, but it requires patience and very small position sizes. Most bonus accounts fail because the trader increases size to "speed up" the volume and hits a margin call. Use the position size calculator before each trade.
Does every trade count?
Check for these exclusions, which are common:
- Minimum holding time – trades closed within a few minutes may not count.
- Instrument restrictions – crypto CFDs, indices or exotic pairs are sometimes excluded or count at a reduced rate.
- Hedged positions – opposite trades on the same symbol often count only once or not at all.
- Round turn vs one side – most brokers count a lot when the trade is opened and closed (a round turn). A few count each side separately.
What happens if you withdraw early?
Withdrawing before the requirement is met usually cancels the remaining bonus, and in some cases the profits generated with it. With a credit bonus, a withdrawal can also reduce your free margin suddenly, which can trigger a stop out on open trades. Close positions first and read the withdrawal clause.
Quick checklist before you accept a bonus
- Convert the requirement into standard lots for the bonus amount you will receive.
- Multiply by the spread cost per lot on the pair you trade most.
- Compare that cost with the bonus. If the cost is several times larger, the bonus is a marketing tool, not a gift.
- Check the time limit and the profit cap.
Done this way, a bonus becomes a simple maths question rather than a gamble. See the deposit bonuses and no deposit bonuses we list, and use these steps on each one.