Circle has introduced upfront fee payments for CCTP Fast Transfer, allowing developers to quote and collect cross-chain USDC charges on the source blockchain while ensuring recipients receive the full amount specified by the sender.
The new system enables developers to pay for both CCTP’s Fast Transfer and Forwarding Service before a USDC transfer takes place. Fees can be settled either in USDC or in the source chain’s native gas token.
Circle’s Quote API combines the relevant protocol charges into a single signed quote with a limited validity period. The prepaid-fee option currently requires the transfer to begin on an EVM-compatible network, although funds can still be sent to supported non-EVM destinations.
Under Circle’s updated process, an application first requests a signed fee quote and submits it alongside the USDC burn transaction on the source blockchain.
Previously, protocol fees could be taken from the USDC minted for the recipient on the destination network. That meant someone sending a fixed amount could receive less than the amount entered at the start of the transaction.
The prepaid model keeps the transfer value and the fee separate. After the transaction is submitted, a CCTP smart contract validates the signed quote, collects the charge and passes the transaction to TokenMessengerV2, which completes the USDC burn.
Circle then verifies the transfer and mints the full stated amount on the destination chain. For example, a sender can arrange for 100 USDC to arrive as 100 USDC while paying the protocol fee separately on the originating network.
Developers can request a Fast Transfer fee, a Forwarding Service fee or both. Fast Transfer enables USDC to reach another blockchain before the source transaction has achieved full finality. The Forwarding Service can deliver the funds and complete an action on the destination network.
CCTP uses a native burn-and-mint model. USDC is destroyed on the source chain before an equivalent amount is issued on the destination chain, avoiding the wrapped assets generally associated with conventional bridges.
A crypto.news explainer published in August described CCTP as the largest implementation of this issuer-controlled approach. Unlike a general-purpose bridge, the system relies on Circle deploying and operating infrastructure on each connected blockchain.
One signed quote covers both services
Using the CCTP Quote API, an application submits the transfer amount, source and destination domain identifiers, chosen payment token and the fees it wants priced.
An `APRE_FINALITY` request covers the Fast Transfer charge, while a `FORWARD` request covers the Forwarding Service. Both can be included in one API call, removing the need to calculate or display the charges through separate systems.
The API response provides the total fee, a service-by-service breakdown, the payment token and a signed quote that must accompany the on-chain transaction. Circle links the quote to the stated transfer amount and destination. Forwarding Service quotes are also tied to the destination caller and hook data.
Changing any of those values before submission causes the transaction to revert. Quotes also include an expiry time or source-chain block limit, meaning an application must obtain a new price once the original quote is no longer valid.
Circle’s current documentation gives most supported networks an approximate validity period of two minutes. Those networks include Arbitrum, Avalanche, Base, Linea, OP Mainnet, Polygon PoS, Sonic, Unichain and World Chain. Ethereum quotes have an estimated validity window of two minutes and 30 seconds, although Circle says the period can change.
The signed quote allows an application to show the precise protocol cost before the burn is submitted. Developers can therefore display the transfer amount, fee and final amount in advance instead of estimating charges that could later be deducted after the USDC arrives on another blockchain.
Fees can be paid in USDC or native tokens
Developers can choose to pay CCTP charges in USDC or in the native gas asset of the source blockchain. Native-token payment is the default, with the quoted amount attached to the transaction as its native value.
If USDC is chosen, the application must provide the stablecoin’s address on the source chain. The user must then approve the TokenMessengerWithFees contract to spend both the USDC being transferred and the additional USDC required for the fee.
Although both sums come from the sender’s balance, the contract treats them separately. Only the transfer amount enters CCTP’s burn-and-mint process, while the prepaid charge is collected before the burn.
Paying in a native token can leave the sender’s USDC balance unaffected beyond the amount selected for transfer. That may suit wallets and applications already holding gas assets on the originating network, while paying in USDC allows developers to keep costs denominated in dollars.
For Forwarding Service transactions, the updated contract can automatically create the required `cctp-forward` hook when a developer requests a forwarding quote without providing custom hook data. Applications using custom instructions must submit the same hook data used to obtain the signed quote.
Circle’s example implementation sends 10 USDC from Base Sepolia to Arc Testnet and prepays both service fees. The company said the same process can be followed for eligible EVM source networks and any destination supported by the Forwarding Service.
Solana cannot currently be a source network
Upfront fee quotes currently require a transfer to start on an EVM-compatible blockchain. Circle’s API documentation also says the source domain must support prepaid fees and meet any additional conditions associated with the requested service.
Fast Transfer quotes are available only when the source network supports settlement faster than full finality. A forwarding fee can be requested only where the destination is compatible with Circle’s Forwarding Service.
Solana cannot currently act as the source network for an upfront-fee transaction because it is not EVM-compatible. Applications can still send USDC to Solana when the selected route and destination service are supported.
CCTP’s network coverage has continued to expand as Circle adds native USDC support to more blockchains. In August, Circle launched CCTP on X Layer, taking the protocol to 26 blockchains, while native USDC was available across 36 networks.
For institutional customers, Circle connected Gateway with Fireblocks in July. The arrangement allows users to manage a unified USDC balance across supported chains using Fireblocks’ controls, approval systems and transaction records.
US users remain subject to the terms of the platforms and applications through which they access CCTP. Circle’s USDC terms state that its US-issued stablecoin is treated as stored value or prepaid access under applicable state money-transmission laws. They also say that third-party support for USDC does not amount to Circle’s approval of that service.
