Why Do Banks Hold Checks for 7 Days?

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While Chime doesn’t issue personal checkbooks to write checks, Chime Checkbook gives you the freedom to send checks to anyone, anytime, from anywhere. See your issuing bank’s Deposit Account Agreement for full Chime Checkbook details.

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* Mobile Check Deposit eligibility is determined by Chime in its sole discretion and may be granted based on various factors including, but not limited to, a member’s direct deposit enrollment status. † Early access to direct deposit funds depends on the timing of the submission of the payment file from the payer. We generally make these funds available on the day the payment file is received, which may be up to 2 days earlier than the scheduled payment date.

¹ Information from The United States Code’s “Chapter 41—Expedited Funds Avaialability” as of December 25, 2023: https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?path=/prelim@title12/chapter41&edition=prelim

² Information from Bank of America’s “Deposit Holds FAQs” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.bankofamerica.com/deposits/deposit-holds-faqs/

³ Information from the National Credit Union Administration’s “Expedited Funds Avaiability Act (Regulation CC) Overview” as of December 25, 2023: https://ncua.gov/regulation-supervision/manuals-guides/federal-consumer-financial-protection-guide/compliance-management/deposit-regulations/expedited-funds-availability-act-regulation-cc

⁴ Information from HelpWithMyBank.gov’s “I deposited a check. When will my funds be available / released from the hold?” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.helpwithmybank.gov/help-topics/bank-accounts/funds-availability/funds-availability-check.html

⁵ Information from HelpWothMyBank.gov’s “I deposited $10,000 to my account. When will the funds be available for withdrawal?” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.helpwithmybank.gov/help-topics/bank-accounts/funds-availability/funds-availability-large-deposit.html

⁶ Information from U.S. News & World Report’s “Check Holds: What You Need to Know” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.usnews.com/banking/articles/check-holds-what-you-need-to-know

⁷ Information from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s “FinCEN Alert on Nationwide Surge in Mail Theft-Related Check Fraud Schemes Targeting the U.S. Mail” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.fincen.gov/news/news-releases/fincen-alert-nationwide-surge-mail-theft-related-check-fraud-schemes-targeting

⁸ Information from HelpWithMyBank.gov’s “Are there exceptions to the funds availability (hold) schedule?” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.helpwithmybank.gov/help-topics/bank-accounts/funds-availability/funds-availability-exceptions.html

⁹ Information from HelpWithMyBank.gov’s “I deposited a check, and it bounced. I re-deposited the check. Now, the bank says that it has placed an exception hold on my funds. What does that mean?” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.helpwithmybank.gov/help-topics/bank-accounts/funds-availability/funds-availability-bounced.html

¹⁰ Information from the Consumer Financial Protection Burea’s “How quickly can I get money after I deposit a check into my checking account? What is a deposit hold?” as of December 25, 2023: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/how-quickly-can-i-get-money-after-i-deposit-a-check-into-my-checking-account-what-is-a-deposit-hold-en-1023/

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