After receiving the offer letter, do we need to pay the fees before joining or can we proceed further without paying?

Whether you need to pay depends entirely on whether you are holding a job offer or a university admission offer. If it is a job, you should never pay anything at all. If it is a university offer, you will almost always need to pay a deposit before you can proceed with enrollment.

Job Offer vs University Offer: What You Owe

Watch Out for These Red Flags

• Treat any request for training costs, a device security deposit, paperwork charges, or a background check fee as a hard stop before you agree to start work.
• If a job offer demands any payment, walk away or simply do not respond further, since you can safely sign and accept a genuine offer letter without paying anything.
• For university offers, note your seat acceptance deadline carefully, since missing it can mean the university withdraws your offer and gives your seat to another student.
• If you are an international student, your deposit is usually required before you can receive your official enrollment confirmation for the visa process.

My Advice

If a company asks you to pay before you have even started working, treat it as a closed case and stop engaging immediately. If it is a university deposit instead, pay it well before the deadline and keep the payment receipt safe, since you will often need it later to apply for your student visa.