What the terms say Tether can do, and when
Tether's Token Terms of Sale say that if Tether determines or suspects that a user has engaged in a prohibited use, it may respond with a sanction, in its sole and absolute discretion. The sanctions listed include reporting to the authorities, freezing or confiscating funds, blacklisting an address that holds Tether tokens, and suspending access to its services.
The terms also say Tether may freeze tokens as required by applicable law, or where it determines in its sole discretion that doing so is prudent. The standard is determines or suspects. It is not proof, and it is not a court finding.
The categories of prohibited use
The terms list the uses that are prohibited. Read in summary, they include:
- Disguising where illicit proceeds came from, or furthering a breach of the law.
- Using the services where money-laundering, counter-terrorist-financing, anti-corruption or sanctions laws prohibit it.
- Evading taxes.
- Moving funds that were not legally obtained or that do not belong to you.
- Giving misleading or false information.
- Using the services for the benefit of a prohibited person, such as a person on a sanctions list or in a prohibited jurisdiction.
Sanctions lists are one named route
The terms define a sanctioned person as including any person or digital address specifically listed on a sanctions list, or owned 50 per cent or more by such a person. An address on a sanctions list is therefore one of the clearest cases the terms describe. Other cases are broader, and the terms do not describe how an address is picked out.
What the terms do not tell you
- They do not give the reason for any one address. Tether is not required to say, and the contract records the address and not a reason.
- They do not describe how an address is selected for review, or what evidence is used.
- The terms we read do not promise notice before a freeze.
- They do not say that every frozen address belongs to someone who broke a rule. They say Tether may act when it determines or suspects one.
What this means if your address is frozen
Nobody outside Tether can tell you why. Be wary of anyone who claims to know the reason, to have inside access, or to be able to change the decision. The guides on what a frozen address means and on recovery cover what can be done and who decides.
If you are unsure whether something you did was a prohibited use, the terms say to contact Tether through its support site, and you may want to ask a lawyer.
Questions
- Why would Tether freeze USDT?
- Its terms say it may act where it determines or suspects a prohibited use, where the law requires it, or where it decides in its sole discretion that it is prudent. The terms list categories such as sanctions breaches and moving funds that were not legally obtained.
- Can I find out why my address was frozen?
- Not from the contract or from this site. The blacklist records the address and not a reason, and Tether's terms do not promise an explanation. Tether's support site is the channel its terms point to for questions about prohibited uses.
- Does receiving USDT from a flagged address freeze mine?
- The terms we read do not say. They speak of the address that holds tokens and what its user did. We cannot tell you how addresses are chosen.
- Is an address on a sanctions list always frozen?
- Not necessarily at the moment you look. The terms say Tether may blacklist such an address. Whether it has done so is what the freeze flag on the contract shows.
Sources
- Tether: Token Terms of Sale (prohibited uses, sanctions, definitions) Page last updated 26 February 2026. Support site named in the terms: cs.tether.to. Retrieved