FDIC Funds Availability Rules: Holds, New Accounts, and Mobile Deposits

Bank funds availability rules come from Federal Reserve Regulation CC, which implements the Expedited Funds Availability Act and covers essentially every checking account in the country. The core schedule: cash, electronic deposits, and certain low-risk checks must be available by the next business day, and most other check deposits must clear by the second business day. Regardless of check type, the first $275 of any day’s check deposit has to be available the next business day. That $275 figure took effect July 1, 2025, and stays in place through June 30, 2030.¹²

What Must Be Available the Next Business Day

Some deposits are considered safe enough that the bank has to release the money by the start of the next business day. Cash handed to a bank employee qualifies, and so do ACH transfers and incoming wires.¹

Several kinds of checks also get next-day treatment, but only when you hand them to a bank employee (some also count when deposited at the bank’s own ATM):

U.S. Treasury checks deposited by the payee named on the check
U.S. Postal Service money orders
Federal Reserve Bank and Federal Home Loan Bank checks deposited in person by the payee
State and local government checks deposited in person by the payee
Cashier’s checks, certified checks, and teller’s checks deposited in person by the payee
Checks drawn on the same bank where you’re depositing, in person or at that bank’s ATM

If you deposit one of these checks in a way other than handing it to an employee (mailing it, for instance), the bank gets an extra day and can hold the funds until the second business day.¹

Even for ordinary checks that don’t qualify for next-day treatment, the first $275 of a day’s check deposits must be available by the next business day.¹

The Standard Two-Day Rule for Other Checks

For personal and commercial checks that don’t fit a next-day category, the rule is simple. Funds must be available by the second business day after deposit. A check deposited Monday is available Wednesday. One deposited Friday is available Tuesday, since weekends aren’t business days.¹

Deposits made at an ATM that your bank does not own get a much longer hold. The bank has until the fifth business day after the deposit to release those funds. If quick access matters, using your own bank’s ATM or a branch makes a real difference.¹

Cut-Off Times and Which Day Counts

The hold clock starts on the banking day you deposit, but only if you beat the bank’s cut-off. Cut-offs can be set as early as 2:00 p.m. for in-branch deposits and as early as noon at ATMs and off-site locations. Anything deposited after cut-off counts as deposited the next banking day.¹

A business day under Regulation CC means Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays. A banking day is a business day when the bank is open for substantially all of its normal operations. So a check dropped at the ATM Friday at 3:00 p.m. is likely treated as a Monday deposit, with availability running from there.

Longer Holds on New Accounts

Accounts opened within the last 30 calendar days play by different rules. Cash and electronic deposits still get next-day availability. For checks, the standard next-day and second-day schedules apply only to the first $6,725 you deposit on any single banking day. Anything above $6,725 can be held until the ninth business day.¹

Two other protections drop away during the new-account window. The $275 next-day minimum for ordinary checks doesn’t apply, and neither does the next-day rule for checks drawn on the same bank. If you already had an account at that bank for at least 30 days before opening the new one, the new account is not treated as new.¹

When the Bank Can Extend a Hold

Even on an established account, the bank can push availability out to five or seven business days beyond the standard schedule in specific situations. Whenever it does, it must give you a written notice stating the reason and the exact date the funds will be released.

Large deposits. Deposit more than $6,725 in checks on one day and the bank can extend the hold on the amount above $6,725. The first $6,725 still follows the standard schedule.¹
Redeposited checks. A check that was returned unpaid and deposited again can be held, and the $275 next-day minimum does not apply.¹
Repeatedly overdrawn accounts. If your account was negative on six or more banking days in the last six months, or negative by $6,725 or more on two or more banking days, the bank can extend the hold and skip the $275 minimum entirely.¹
Reasonable cause to doubt collectibility. The bank must point to specific, articulable facts that would lead a reasonable person to believe the check won’t be paid. General suspicion isn’t enough, and the bank cannot base the hold on the type of check or the type of customer. Recognized examples include a return notice from the paying bank, a stop payment, a stale or postdated check, or a credible indication of check kiting.¹
Emergency conditions. Power outages, communication failures, or natural disasters that disrupt normal bank operations.

Under the reasonable-cause and repeated-overdraft exceptions, the $275 next-day minimum drops out and the bank can hold the entire deposit.¹

Mobile Deposits Sit Outside the Schedule

Regulation CC addresses mobile check deposits (remote deposit capture) mainly through liability rules between banks, not through a specific consumer timing schedule. If you deposit a check image through your phone and later deposit the original paper check somewhere else, the first bank has to indemnify the second for any resulting losses.¹

In practice, most banks either treat mobile deposits like non-proprietary ATM deposits or apply the hold schedule spelled out in the mobile deposit agreement you accepted when you enrolled. Those terms often impose longer holds than a branch deposit of the same check would face. Check your bank’s specific mobile deposit policy if timing matters, or deposit in person.

Available Does Not Mean Final

Making funds available is not the same as verifying the check is good. If you withdraw against a deposit and the check later bounces, the bank can reverse the credit and charge a returned-item fee, and you’re on the hook for the shortfall. Recovering it means going after the person who wrote you the bad check.³

This is how check scams do the most damage. A fraudster sends a check that looks real, you deposit it, the bank releases funds on schedule, and you send some of the money along to the scammer. When the check is eventually identified as counterfeit, the bank reverses the credit and you lose the amount you moved. Regulation CC governs timing, not authenticity.

What Your Bank Has to Tell You

When you open an account, the bank must give you a written funds availability policy explaining when different deposit types will be available. If it later changes the policy, it must notify you before the change takes effect.¹

Any time the bank places an exception hold beyond the normal schedule, you’re entitled to a separate written notice for that specific deposit stating the reason and the exact date funds will be available. “Processing delay” and other vague explanations don’t meet the requirement.¹

What to Do If Your Bank Breaks the Rules

If your bank holds funds longer than Regulation CC allows or fails to provide the required notices, you can sue for actual damages plus statutory damages between $100 and $1,000 per violation, and the court can award reasonable attorney’s fees. In a class action, total statutory damages are capped at the lesser of $500,000 or one percent of the bank’s net worth. You have one year from the date of the violation to file, in federal district court or any other court with jurisdiction.⁴

Before litigation, a complaint to the right regulator is usually faster. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau accepts complaints about deposit account issues, including holds, through its online portal or by phone at (855) 411-2372.⁵ For national banks and federal savings associations, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency handles complaints. For state-chartered banks that are not Federal Reserve members, the FDIC is the relevant regulator.¹

1
eCFR. 12 CFR Part 229 – Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks (Regulation CC)
2
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks (Regulation CC) Threshold Adjustments
3
HelpWithMyBank.gov. A Check I Deposited Bounced – Am I Liable?
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 12 USC Ch 41 – Expedited Funds Availability
5
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Submit a Complaint