Stale Dated Checks

Before trying to cash or deposit an outdated check, consider reaching out to the check writer and ask for a replacement check. If you’ve issued a check that has yet to be cashed, you can contact the recipient to see if they still have the check and intend to cash it. If they still want to cash the check, offer to write them a new one — just make sure you get the old check back first, or put a stop payment order on it. This could help you avoid any surprise fees because of negative balances. Banks can provide information about their stale check policy on request. Customers should find out what will happen if they write checks and people try to cash them more than six months after they are written. Some banks will helpfully print the policy on their checks, alerting anyone who handles the check to the length of time in which it will be valid.

When somebody pays you by check, they expect you to deposit the check soon. Presumably, they have funds available when they write the check, but that might change. Most people don’t expect checks to hit their account six months later, so they might not have money set aside for your payment anymore. Cashier’s checks can be complicated, and state law affects how long those payments are good for. Banks might not accept a cashier’s check for deposit after 90 days because the issuing bank could return the check unpaid after that time. The Uniform Commercial Code is a collection of laws and regulations meant to harmonize the laws of sales and regulations across the U.S.

Stale Checks

Once these sections on the check are all in order, you can feel confident in sending it off to be cashed. Few situations are more awkward than someone reaching out to you because the check you wrote wasn’t right. The first line of the check is where you will fill in the recipient’s name or company name. The recipient can always fill this part in themselves so as to avoid any misspelling. It is important to make sure if you are paying a bill to write the exact ‘pay to’ mentioned on the bill itself.

If you need assistance navigating this topic, reach out to your BKD Trusted Advisor™, fill out the Contact Us form below, or check https://www.bookstime.com/ out our Outsourced Accounting Services page. We also offer a suite of services related to state and local tax challenges.

What Happens If You Cash A Stale

This code is a set of laws adopted at the state level that governs financial contracts. The bank receiving a stale check can return the check to the paying bank marked unpaid, request a new check be issued or consult with the person who wrote the check. For example, XYZ Company submitted a series of checks to Raw Material Services, Inc. to pay for supplies necessary for manufacturing and production. Raw Material Services, Inc, neglected to deposit these checks at the bank. These checks are dated between August 1 and August 31, 2009 and the current date is May 15, 2010. If Raw Material Services, Inc. elects to deposit the checks at their bank, they will be classified as stale checks or stale dated checks. Pursuant to the Uniform Commercial Code Act, the bank that Raw Material Service, Inc. elects to deposit the checks to can refuse to cash these checks and may return them to the issuing bank.

• Still, if the check was a gift from a relative who’s living on a fixed income, you might be better off honoring her request.
• A stale dated check is a check that hasn’t been cashed within six months of the date it was issued.
• Without this information, it becomes much more challenging for your bank to process a stop payment.
• If a check you wrote is approaching the six-month mark but still hasn’t been cashed, you’ll be able to spot it so that you can get in touch with the recipient.
• After that time, you’re still entitled to money the government owes you, but you’ll need to contact the issuer of the check and request a new check.
• This could cause your account to be overdrawn, and you might also have to pay a fee unless you issue a stop-payment order.

The UCC tells banks that they are under no obligation to accept personal or business checks that are older than 180 days . So, generally speaking, personal and business checks are good for 6 months; however, some banks will accept older checks. If you’ve been given a personal or business check, it’s important to understand the check validity period. Most personal checks have a maximum time-frame that they can be presented to a bank before they become stale, which is usually 180 days from the date on the check. You can be assured that RCH makes every effort to locate the participant to unite them with their retirement savings.

Next Steps: Ways To Avoid A Check Going Stale

It is particularly important to know the instances that can deter a bank from accepting a personal check. One situation that makes banks hesitate to cash a check is an old check. The standard time allotted for cashing a check is ​60 to 90 days​, but in some cases, banks will allow you to deposit or cash a check up to ​six months​ old. A “stale” check — one that hasn’t been cashed within six months of the original issue date — can cause you problems and cost you in bank fees. It’s important to know that when you get a check it may not be valid forever.

Agencies will issue stop payment notices as required for those bank accounts not in the centralized State Treasury System. Statement Cycle means the period of time for which our credit union provides a summary of the financial activities and transactions that post and settle to the accountholder’s account. See our website at or contact one of our branch service representatives for specific Statement Cycle dates. Checks from the federal government, such as federal income tax refunds, vary when it comes to the timeline. State and local governments may set their own expiration dates, so if you lose the check or more than six months have gone by, it’s best to contact the agency that sent it to you. Unless you have a government-issued check or certified check, it’s wise to deposit checks within six months. Justin Pritchard, CFP, is a fee-only advisor and an expert on personal finance.

• If you found an old check made out to you, you should check with your bank and verify their policy.
• Eight months later, you realize that the vendor has still not cashed the check.
• If you discover an old cashier’s check, contact the issuing bank and ask them what they need from you to handle the transaction.
• The Uniform Commercial Code , which most states use as a model for the law, says that banks do not need to honor old checks.
• SCOwill process the claims regardless of the balances in the escheat revenue accounts.
• This publication is provided for general information purposes only and is not intended to cover every aspect of the topics with which it deals.
• It may be tempting to merely reverse the expense and add the cash back into your general fund.

When you receive a check from a governmental agency, read the check and look for anything that tells you when it expires. The best bet is to deposit or cash the check before the expiration date.

How Does Legalmatch Work?

Remember that escheatment laws require companies to turn over unclaimed funds. As the rightful owner of these funds, the state should hold them in case you come to claim them. If the owner says that the check is lost, or you notice that it has become a stale check, you’re going to need to issue a new check. In addition to creating a new check, you should also issue a stop payment on the old check. The very first part of the check that you want to fill in is the date.

Community Relations Providing timely, accurate and reliable information to ensure residents stay informed about City programs, services, priorities, and events. Based in San Diego, Calif., Madison Garcia is a writer specializing in business topics. Garcia received her Master of Science in accountancy from San Diego State University. Traveler’s checks and domestic United States Postal Service money orders do not expire. Bankrate is compensated in exchange for featured placement of sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website.

When Is A Check Considered Stale

Decide on intervals for contact, such as six months and one year. To ensure you can implement this policy, require accounting to collect contact information — such as phone number, email address and physical address — before disbursing any checks. If somebody worries that a check got lost, they may decide to stop payment—an order not to pay a check that has been issued, but not cashed—on that check. The bank will then reject your deposit, and it’ll bounce back to your bank unpaid. That said, stop payments are one situation when it may actually work in your favor to deposit a stale-dated check—because stop payment orders eventually expire. A bank may not be liable for a stop payment if you fail to provide enough information to identify the check or if you do implement the stop payment order early enough.

The only exception to stale-dating may be a certified check, which must be honored, even after 180 days. The six-month time frame generally applies to personal and business checks — including payroll checks. Buster29 September 22, 2014 My landlady could be bad about holding onto a rent payment until it became a stale check. It would really mess up our bookkeeping, since we always had to assume that money was still out there somewhere.

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If you are on a personal connection, like at home, you can run an anti-virus scan on your device to make sure it is not infected with malware. But you shouldn’t count on the bank to pay attention to the dates. After your visit, would you be willing to provide some quick feedback? The Huntington National Bank is an Equal Housing Lender and Member FDIC. ®, Huntington®,Huntington.Welcome.® and Huntington Heads Up® are federally registered service marks of Huntington Bancshares Incorporated. Lending products are subject to credit application and approval.

Utilities And Other Services

Certified checks are personal checks from a bank account owner who has drawn on the account and had the bank guarantee the check. Part of taking care of finances requires you to understand how personal checks work. In order to pay bills, square things up with friends and gift money to family, a checking account with personal checks is a must-have. A personal or business check that’s older than six months stale dated checks is technically considered stale, but that doesn’t mean it’s void, a bad check or that your bank won’t honor it. It simply means the financial institution has the option to refuse the check. The length of time for a cashier’s check to go stale can also vary — from 60 days to never — depending on multiple factors. In some cases, the issuing bank may specify an expiration date on the check itself.

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Check with an attorney for specific guidance, and remember that a bank might accept the deposit and try to pull funds from your account at any time. Cashier’s checks are a type of “official check” and the rules surrounding them can be complicated. There’s no set or specified expiration date for cashier’s checks. Some say cashier’s checks don’t expire, while others claim a cashier’s check is stale after 60, 90, or 180 days.

The payee will need to request a new check from the party who originally wrote the draft. In other cases, the bank will go ahead and put the check through, transferring the funds to the payee’s account or providing them in cash, depending on how the payee submits the check for payment. It’s also critical that all employees, especially accounting personnel, know that unclaimed property doesn’t belong to the company. Since you owe that money to either the state or the property owner, uncashed checks should never be voided.