Time-limited access to a private Telegram group
How to make a Telegram funnel let someone into a private group or channel after payment, remove them automatically after 90 days, and still let them back in when they renew.
Access to a private channel or chat is often sold for a set period: three months of a club, a month of coaching. A Telegram funnel handles this on its own: after payment it sends a personal invite link, waits for the period to end and removes the person from the group with the "Remove from group" action. No more crossing people off a spreadsheet by hand.
How it works#
- The "Action" block has a "Remove from group" type. In it you choose a group or channel where your bot is an admin.
- When the funnel reaches the action, the bot removes the person from the group. Their messages in the group stay.
- The person is not added to the group's ban list: if they renew and get a new invite link, it will work.
- If the removal fails (the person already left, the bot isn't an admin), the funnel still moves on, and the reason is saved in the funnel's delivery errors.
Works only with Telegram bots. VK communities don't have this action.
What you need#
- A Telegram bot connected to Craft.
- A private group or channel where the bot is an admin with the "Invite users via link" and "Ban users" permissions.
- A funnel with a payment — see How to accept payments in a Telegram funnel.
Step 1. Make the bot an admin#
Open the group or channel in Telegram → Manage → Administrators → Add Admin → pick your bot. Turn on "Invite users via link" and "Ban users".
The group will then show up in the list in the builder. If it isn't there, click "Refresh list" under the field.
Step 2. After payment — the invite link#
On the "Paid" branch, add "Action" → "Invite link to channel" and choose the same group. In the next block, send a message with the link: Your access: {%invite_link%}. Everyone gets their own single-use link.
Step 3. Access period#
After the message with the link, add a "Delay" for the period you need — for example, 90 days.
Step 4. "Remove from group"#
After the delay, add "Action" → "Remove from group" and choose the same group. The group's name is shown right on the block.
Step 5. A message to the person (optional)#
The action itself doesn't write anything to the person. To let them know, add a message after it: "Your access has ended. Renew with the button below." You can put the same payment on that button: after renewing, the person gets a new link and is back in the group.
How to check that it works#
- Temporarily set the delay to 1 minute.
- Go through the funnel from a second account (the bot can't remove you, the group owner) and join the group with the link.
- A minute later the account should disappear from the group's members, followed by the message from step 5.
- Go through the funnel again: the new link should let you back in.
- Set the delay back to the period you need.
If it doesn't work#
| What you see | Cause and what to do |
|---|---|
| The person is still in the group; delivery errors say "the bot is not an administrator" | Make the bot an admin with the "Ban users" permission (step 1). |
| Errors say "the person is no longer in the group" | They left on their own before the period ended. Nothing to do — the funnel moved on. |
| Errors say "the person is an administrator or the owner" | The bot can't remove admins or the owner. Remove their admin rights or test from a second account. |
| Errors say "Telegram can't find the group" | The bot was removed from the group or the address has a typo. Add the bot again and pick the group from the list. |
| The new link doesn't let the person back in | The errors will say they "stayed on the ban list". Open the group → Manage → Removed users and take them off it. |
| The group isn't in the list | The bot isn't an admin there. Make it an admin and click "Refresh list" — or type the group's @address manually. |
| There's no "Remove from group" in the action list | This is an Instagram or VK funnel. The action exists only for Telegram bots. |
Your AI assistant shows the funnel's delivery errors through the MCP connector — ask it: "why didn't the funnel remove the person from the group?"
FAQ#
Can I remove someone from a group automatically after 30 or 90 days? Yes. After the invite link, add a "Delay" for the period you need, and after it the "Remove from group" action.
Can the person come back if they renew? Yes. The bot doesn't leave them on the group's ban list, so a new invite link will work.
Will their messages in the group be deleted? No, the messages stay.
Does it work with a channel, not just a group? Yes, with channels too — the bot needs to be an admin there with the permission to ban users.
Can I set this up through Claude or ChatGPT? Yes. Through the MCP connector, ask for example: "90 days after payment, remove the person from the @club channel".