Yes, checks do expire, but the deadline depends on what kind of check you are holding. Personal and business checks generally go stale after six months. U.S. Treasury checks are void after one year. Cashier’s, certified, and teller’s checks can be enforced for three years. Money orders usually do not expire at all. In every case, an expired check does not erase the money you are owed; it just means you have to ask for a replacement.
Personal and Business Checks Go Stale at Six Months
Under the Uniform Commercial Code, a bank is not required to pay a personal or business check presented more than six months after the date written on it.1Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 4-404 – Bank Not Obliged to Pay Check More Than Six Months Old Banks call these “stale-dated” checks. The rule exists to protect the account holder from old or forgotten withdrawals.
Six months is a cutoff for the bank’s obligation, not an absolute ban. A bank may still choose to process a stale check if it believes the payment is legitimate and acts in good faith.1Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 4-404 – Bank Not Obliged to Pay Check More Than Six Months Old Some banks cash a seven- or eight-month-old check without hesitation. Others reject it on day 181. If you are holding an older personal check, call the issuing bank before trying to deposit it.
Even when the paper goes stale, the debt behind it does not disappear. The person or company that wrote the check still owes the money, and you can request a new one.
What Happens If You Deposit a Stale Check
Depositing a stale check usually plays out one of three ways. The bank may catch the date at intake and refuse the deposit. Your bank may accept it but the issuing bank may decline to pay, bouncing the check and reversing the money out of your account, sometimes with a returned-item fee. Or both banks may process it without noticing. Counting on the third outcome is risky, especially if you have already spent the funds.
The safer move is to contact the check writer and ask for a fresh check before you try to deposit an old one.
Cashier’s and Certified Checks Last Longer
Cashier’s and certified checks are backed directly by the issuing bank’s own funds, which gives them more weight than a personal check. The six-month staleness rule does not apply to them.1Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 4-404 – Bank Not Obliged to Pay Check More Than Six Months Old Instead, the legal deadline for enforcing a certified check, cashier’s check, or teller’s check is three years after you demand payment from the issuing bank.2Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 3-118 – Statute of Limitations
In practice, many banks set their own internal deadlines that are shorter than three years. A bank may decline to cash a cashier’s check at the counter after 12 or 18 months even though your legal right to enforce it lasts longer. If the counter says no, you can file a formal claim for a lost or outstanding cashier’s check under the UCC, which involves a 90-day waiting period before the bank must pay.3Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 3-312 – Lost, Destroyed, or Stolen Cashiers Check, Tellers Check, or Certified Check
If a cashier’s check is lost, stolen, or destroyed, the issuing bank will generally require you to buy an indemnity bond before it releases a replacement, followed by a waiting period of 30 to 90 days.4HelpWithMyBank.gov. Why Do I Need an Indemnity Bond to Replace a Lost Cashiers Check You generally cannot place a standard stop-payment order on a cashier’s check, because the bank itself is the payer.5HelpWithMyBank.gov. Can I Put a Stop Payment Order on a Cashiers Check
U.S. Treasury Checks Are Void After One Year
Federal government checks follow a stricter timeline. A Treasury check must be deposited within 12 months of its issue date; after that, it is void and a bank will not process it.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 3328 – Paying Checks and Drafts This one-year deadline applies to federal tax refunds, Social Security payments, veterans’ benefits, and any other payment the Treasury issues by check.
If your Treasury check expires, you file a claim with the specific federal agency that authorized the payment, not with the Treasury directly.7USAGov. Government Checks and Payments Claims on Treasury checks are subject to a one-year deadline running from the check’s issue date.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 3702 – Authority to Settle Claims The government’s underlying obligation to pay you survives even after the check and the claim period both expire.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 3328 – Paying Checks and Drafts If you find an old Treasury check well past the one-year mark, contact the issuing agency or call the Bureau of the Fiscal Service at 1-855-868-0151 to see whether a new payment can be authorized.
Money Orders Usually Do Not Expire
U.S. Postal Service money orders never expire and do not lose value over time, no matter how long you hold them. You can cash a USPS money order at any Post Office for free. If one is lost or stolen, a replacement costs a $21 processing fee.9USPS. Money Orders
Money orders from private issuers like Western Union and MoneyGram also do not expire, but they may start deducting a service charge from the face value if the money order goes unused for one to three years after purchase, depending on the state where it was bought.10Western Union. Money Orders – Purchase and Cash at a Western Union Near You Check the fine print on the back of an older private money order for any fee schedule before you cash it.
Post-Dated Checks and the Date That Counts
A post-dated check, one written with a future date, does not stop a bank from processing it early. Under the UCC, a bank may charge the writer’s account for a post-dated check before the written date arrives, unless the writer has given the bank advance notice describing the check.11Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 4-401 – When Bank May Charge Customers Account
For staleness, the six-month clock runs from the date written on the check, not the date you received it. A check dated January 1 becomes stale on July 1, regardless of when the writer handed it over.
Payroll Checks Follow the Same Rule
Payroll checks are personal or business checks and follow the same six-month staleness rule under the UCC. An employer’s obligation to pay wages does not vanish when a paycheck goes stale. Federal law requires that wages be paid in cash or a negotiable instrument, and an employer cannot satisfy that obligation with an expired check that a bank refuses to process.12eCFR. Part 531 – Wage Payments Under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 Most states also have wage payment laws that set deadlines for paying final wages. If your employer refuses to reissue a stale paycheck, contact your state’s labor department. The money is still owed.
Holding a Check Does Not Delay Your Taxes
Not cashing a check does not defer your tax liability. The IRS treats a valid check you received, or that was made available to you, before the end of the tax year as income in that year, even if you do not deposit it until the following year.13Internal Revenue Service. Publication 525 (2025), Taxable and Nontaxable Income This is the constructive receipt doctrine.
If your employer mails you a bonus check in late December and you receive it before year-end, you owe taxes on that income for the year you received it, even if you cash it in January. The one exception: if the check was mailed so late that it could not possibly have reached you before January 1, you report it in the following tax year.13Internal Revenue Service. Publication 525 (2025), Taxable and Nontaxable Income
When Uncashed Funds Go to the State
When a check stays uncashed long enough, the funds behind it become “abandoned” under state law. Every state has an unclaimed property program that requires financial institutions to turn over dormant funds to the state through a process called escheatment.14U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Escheatment by Financial Institutions The dormancy period is typically three to five years, depending on the state and the type of check.15HelpWithMyBank.gov. What Can You Tell Me About State Unclaimed-Property Programs
Once the bank sends the money to the state, the bank can no longer pay the original check. The state holds the funds indefinitely, and you or your heirs can claim them at any time through the state’s unclaimed property office.14U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Escheatment by Financial Institutions To search for unclaimed funds in your name, use MissingMoney.com, a free national database managed by the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators.16National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators. Unclaimed.org
How to Get a Replacement Check
If you are holding a stale or expired check, start with the person or company that wrote it. Gather the check number, dollar amount, approximate date, and the name of the issuer. Keep the physical check if you still have it.
Before writing a new check, the issuer should place a stop-payment order with their bank to prevent the old one from being cashed. Many issuers use a written request form; the form typically asks for your name, current mailing address, the reason the original check was not cashed, and any reference or account numbers. Processing time varies widely, from about two to six weeks. Government agencies and large corporations tend to take longer than small businesses.
For an expired federal check, report it to the agency that authorized the payment. If you are not sure which agency issued it, call the Bureau of the Fiscal Service at 1-855-868-0151 for help identifying it.7USAGov. Government Checks and Payments The agency will walk you through the claims process and, if the underlying obligation is still valid, authorize a new payment.17Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Payment Integrity and Resolution Services – If You Want To