To cash a savings bond, take a paper Series EE or Series I bond with a government-issued photo ID to a bank or credit union that redeems savings bonds, or log into TreasuryDirect to redeem an electronic bond online. If no local bank will cash your paper bond, you can mail it to the Treasury with FS Form 1522 and have the proceeds deposited to your bank account.
When You Can Cash It
You have to hold a Series EE or Series I bond for at least 12 months from its issue date before you can redeem it.1eCFR. 31 CFR 353.35 – Payment (Redemption)2eCFR. 31 CFR Part 359 – Offering of United States Savings Bonds, Series I After that, you can cash the bond at any time, but if you redeem it before the five-year mark the Treasury takes back the last three months of interest. Cash an I bond at 18 months and you get 15 months of interest.3TreasuryDirect. I Bonds
After five years the penalty disappears. The bond keeps earning interest for up to 30 years from issue, and once it hits that 30-year final maturity it stops growing.4TreasuryDirect. EE Bonds At that point there is no reason to hold it any longer, and the accumulated interest becomes reportable for federal tax purposes in the year of final maturity whether or not you have actually cashed it.5TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds
Check the Current Value First
Before you walk into a bank or hit redeem online, look up what the bond is worth. For paper bonds, the free Savings Bond Calculator on TreasuryDirect gives you the current value, interest earned, interest rate, and final maturity date once you enter the series, denomination, and issue date.6TreasuryDirect. Calculate the Value of Your Paper Savings Bonds For electronic bonds, your TreasuryDirect dashboard shows the value automatically.
Cashing a Paper Bond at a Bank
Call the bank or credit union first. Many institutions redeem savings bonds, but none are required to, and the ones that do often set their own limits on how much they will cash in a single visit and may only serve established customers.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 31 USC 3105 – Savings Bonds and Savings Certificates The Secret Service recommends a bank hold a 12-month account relationship before cashing bonds for a customer, though each institution sets its own policy.9Federal Reserve Financial Services. Savings Bond Redemptions Frequently Asked Questions
When you go in, bring:
- The physical bond or bonds.
- A valid government-issued photo ID, such as a driver’s license or passport.
- Any additional ID the bank asked for when you called.
The teller verifies the bond, confirms your identity, and calculates the redemption value. One thing to know: you cannot cash part of a paper bond. Each paper bond must be redeemed for its full value.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds The bank pays you in cash or deposits the money into your account, and either hands you a Form 1099-INT at the counter or mails one by January 31 of the following year.
Cashing a Paper Bond by Mail Through the Treasury
If no local bank will cash your bond, send it directly to the Treasury. Complete FS Form 1522 (Special Form of Request for Payment of United States Savings and Retirement Securities). The form asks for your Social Security number, a description of the bonds, and the routing and account numbers for the bank account where you want the proceeds deposited.10TreasuryDirect. FS Form 1522 – Special Form of Request for Payment
Your signature on the form has to be certified. In practice that means signing in front of an authorized officer at a bank or credit union, who stamps the form with the institution’s seal or signature guarantee stamp. A notary public can also certify when the form permits it.11TreasuryDirect. Signature Certification
Mail the certified form with the original paper bonds to:
Treasury Retail Securities Services
P.O. Box 9150
Minneapolis, MN 55480-915010TreasuryDirect. FS Form 1522 – Special Form of Request for Payment
Use registered or certified mail. Lost paper bonds can be replaced, but it’s a separate claim process, and tracking is cheaper than a replacement filing. Processing takes at least six weeks when the bonds are in your name, and at least two months when they involve a deceased owner.12TreasuryDirect. Contact Us The Treasury deposits the proceeds electronically into the account you listed, and there is no cap on how many bonds you can redeem at once this way.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds
Cashing an Electronic Bond on TreasuryDirect
Electronic bonds held in a TreasuryDirect account are redeemed online. Log in, open ManageDirect, and choose “Redeem securities” under Manage My Securities.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds The system shows the current value and lets you redeem the full amount or part of it.
Partial redemptions have two rules: each one has to be at least $25, and you have to leave at least $25 of value in the bond.13eCFR. 31 CFR Part 363 – Regulations Governing Securities Held in TreasuryDirect The money lands in your linked bank account, usually within a few business days. Your 1099-INT shows up in the account by January 31 of the following year.
Who Is Allowed to Cash It
Only someone named on the bond, or someone with legal authority to act for a named owner, can redeem it. A sole owner or any co-owner can request redemption independently once the 12-month lockup has passed. A bond you bought from someone else or picked up at auction cannot be cashed.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds
Bonds in a Child’s Name
A parent can cash a paper bond registered to a child who is too young to understand the transaction, as long as the parent has custody or the child lives with them. The parent writes a certification statement on the back of the bond including the child’s name, age, Social Security number, and a declaration that the child is not old enough to request payment.14TreasuryDirect. Cashing Paper Bonds for a Young Child If you mail the bond to the Treasury rather than taking it to a bank, you also file FS Form 1522.
Bonds of a Deceased Owner
If a bond names a surviving co-owner or beneficiary, that person cashes it directly, and the bond does not pass through the estate.15TreasuryDirect. Non-Administered Estates If no co-owner or beneficiary is named, a court-appointed estate representative handles redemption. For smaller estates where no probate is opened and the deceased owner’s total Treasury securities are worth $100,000 or less, a “voluntary representative” (usually a surviving spouse or close relative, at least 18 and competent) can redeem the bonds without a court appointment.16eCFR. 31 CFR Part 315, Subpart L – Deceased Owner, Coowner or Beneficiary
Taxes on the Interest
Interest on EE and I bonds is subject to federal income tax but exempt from state and local income tax.5TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds Most people defer reporting until they cash the bond or it hits final maturity, whichever comes first. You can elect to report interest each year as it accrues, but few people do.
You’ll get a Form 1099-INT showing the full interest earned over the life of the bond, and you report that amount with your other interest income on your federal return.7TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds
Education Exclusion
You may be able to exclude the interest from federal tax if you use the bond proceeds for qualified higher education expenses for yourself, a spouse, or a dependent. The bonds must be Series EE issued after 1989 or any Series I, the bond owner has to have been at least 24 when the bond was issued, and you cannot file married filing separately.17Internal Revenue Service. Publication 970 – Tax Benefits for Education The exclusion phases out at higher incomes: for 2026, it begins to shrink above $101,800 of modified adjusted gross income ($152,650 for joint filers) and disappears above $116,800 ($182,650 joint), with annual inflation adjustments.
Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed Paper Bonds
If you don’t have the physical bond, you cannot cash it until it’s replaced. File FS Form 1048 with the serial numbers (if you have them) and a description of how the bonds were lost. If you don’t know the serial numbers, search Treasury Hunt at TreasuryHunt.gov, which for bonds issued in 1974 or later can produce a version of the form that works without them.18TreasuryDirect. Get Help for Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed EE or I Savings Bonds Your signature has to be notarized or certified, and the form goes to Treasury Retail Securities Services.
Replacements for EE and I bonds are issued electronically in a TreasuryDirect account; the Treasury no longer prints paper replacements. If the lost bond is less than a year old you get a substitute bond; if it has already reached final maturity you get a cash payment instead.19TreasuryDirect. FS Form 1048 – Claim for Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed United States Savings Bonds Treasury Hunt is also worth a search if you suspect you have matured bonds sitting unclaimed under your Social Security number.