To cash in savings bonds, take paper bonds to a bank that redeems them or mail them to the Treasury with FS Form 1522, and redeem electronic bonds by logging into your TreasuryDirect account and selecting the bond under ManageDirect. You’ll need to have held the bond for at least 12 months, you’ll lose the last three months of interest if you cash before five years, and the interest is taxable on your federal return.
When You’re Allowed to Cash a Bond
Series EE and Series I savings bonds cannot be cashed until 12 months after the issue date.1eCFR. 31 CFR 353.35 – Payment (Redemption)2eCFR. 31 CFR 359.6 – When May I Redeem My Series I Bond Any earlier redemption attempt will be rejected.
Between 12 months and 5 years, you can cash the bond but you forfeit the last three months of interest. A bond cashed at 18 months pays 15 months of interest. The penalty applies to both EE and I bonds, and the redemption value will never drop below the purchase price.3eCFR. 31 CFR 351.35 – Interest Rates, Penalties, and Redemption Values for Series EE Bonds After five years there is no penalty.
Both series stop earning interest 30 years after the issue date.4TreasuryDirect. EE Bonds5TreasuryDirect. I Bonds Holding a bond past that point does nothing but delay a tax bill, so cashing at final maturity makes sense for almost everyone.
Cashing Paper Bonds at a Bank
The easiest route is to walk into your bank or credit union with the bond and a valid photo ID. Most commercial banks handle redemptions for their own account holders, though no bank is required to offer the service and some cap how much they’ll cash in a single visit. The teller verifies the bond and your identity, then deposits the funds or hands you a check. It usually takes a few minutes.
If your bank won’t cash the bond, or you don’t have an account nearby, the alternative is mailing it to the Treasury.
Cashing Paper Bonds by Mail
Download FS Form 1522 from TreasuryDirect. Fill in your name, Social Security number, and the bank account where you want the direct deposit sent. Include a copy of a government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license, passport, or military ID.6TreasuryDirect. FS Form 1522 – Special Form of Request for Payment of United States Savings and Retirement Securities
Whether your signature needs to be certified depends on how much you’re cashing. For total redemption value of $1,000 or less, sign the form yourself and enclose the ID copy. Above $1,000, you must sign in front of a notary public or an authorized certifying officer at a bank or credit union, who will witness your signature and apply an official stamp.6TreasuryDirect. FS Form 1522 – Special Form of Request for Payment of United States Savings and Retirement Securities Notary fees vary by state, usually a few dollars per signature.
Mail the form and the original paper bonds to:
Treasury Retail Securities Services
P.O. Box 214
Minneapolis, MN 55480-02147Bureau of the Fiscal Service. Description of United States Savings Bonds/Notes
Plan on at least six weeks of processing time once the Treasury receives your submission.8TreasuryDirect. Home – TreasuryDirect Wrong routing or account numbers are the most common reason for delays, so check them twice before sealing the envelope.
Redeeming Electronic Bonds in TreasuryDirect
If your bonds sit in a TreasuryDirect account, everything happens online. Log in, open ManageDirect, and click “Redeem securities” under Manage My Securities. You can redeem the bond in full or in part. Any single redemption has to be at least $25, and a partial redemption must leave at least $25 remaining in the bond.9TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds The system confirms the amount and sends the money by direct deposit to your linked bank account. No signature certification is needed for standard online redemptions because your identity was verified when the account was opened.
Updating Your Bank Account First
If the bank account linked to your TreasuryDirect account has been closed or changed, update it before you try to redeem. To add a new account, complete FS Form 5512 (TreasuryDirect Redemption and Bank Change Request), sign it in front of a certifying officer at a bank or credit union, and mail it in. A notary public is not accepted for this particular form. Once the new account is added, log in and delete the old one. Changing your designated primary bank requires a message to TreasuryDirect through the secure message system inside your account.10Bureau of the Fiscal Service. FS Form 5512 – TreasuryDirect Redemption and Bank Change Request
Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed Paper Bonds
A missing paper bond doesn’t mean the money is gone. The Treasury keeps records of bond purchases and can issue a replacement or cash the bond for you. Start with FS Form 1048. Fill it out, sign it in front of a notary or certifying officer, and mail it to the address on the form.11TreasuryDirect. Get Help for Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed EE or I Savings Bond
If you have the serial numbers, use the standard version of the form. If you don’t, the Treasury Hunt tool on TreasuryDirect can search for bonds issued in 1974 or later using your Social Security number; when it finds a match, it generates a special version of the form with a reference number. A separate version handles bonds issued before 1974 when serial numbers are unknown.
Any replacement is issued electronically in TreasuryDirect, so you’ll need an account to receive it.
Cashing Bonds After the Owner Has Died
What happens with a deceased person’s savings bonds depends on how the bond was registered. If the bond names a surviving co-owner or beneficiary, that person becomes the sole owner automatically and can cash the bond the same way they’d cash their own, without going through the estate.12TreasuryDirect. Death of a Savings Bond Owner
When no survivor is named, the bond becomes part of the estate. The path depends on the total redemption value of all Treasury securities in the estate as of the date of death:
- $100,000 or less, with no formal court administration of the estate: a voluntary representative can redeem the bonds by submitting documentation directly to the Treasury, without probate.13eCFR. 31 CFR Part 315 Subpart L – Deceased Owner, Coowner or Beneficiary
- More than $100,000: formal court administration is required, and a court-appointed representative handles the redemption with the appropriate legal documentation.13eCFR. 31 CFR Part 315 Subpart L – Deceased Owner, Coowner or Beneficiary
For electronic bonds held in a deceased person’s TreasuryDirect account, contact TreasuryDirect before doing anything else. They will place a hold on the account and walk you through the specific steps.
Taxes on the Interest
Savings bond interest is subject to federal income tax but exempt from state and local income taxes.14TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds Most people defer reporting the interest until the year they cash the bond or it matures. In that year you’ll receive a 1099-INT showing the total interest earned over the bond’s life. If a bank cashed the bond, the 1099-INT comes from the bank; if you redeemed through TreasuryDirect, it appears in your online account by January 31 of the following year.
You can instead elect to report interest annually as it accrues, before you’ve received any cash. That approach rarely helps unless you’re in a low tax bracket now and expect a higher one later. If you go this route, no 1099-INT arrives each year, so you’ll need to track the accrual yourself. When you eventually cash the bond and get a 1099-INT for the full amount, you have to show the IRS that a portion was already reported, following the instructions in IRS Publication 550.14TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds
Education Exclusion
You may be able to exclude savings bond interest from federal tax entirely if you use the proceeds for qualified higher education expenses for yourself, your spouse, or a dependent. The bonds must be Series EE or I bonds issued after 1989, purchased in your own name when you were at least 24 years old, and you cannot file as married filing separately. For the 2025 tax year, the exclusion begins phasing out at modified adjusted gross income of $99,500 for single filers ($149,250 for joint filers) and disappears entirely at $114,500 ($179,250 for joint filers).15IRS. Publication 970 – Tax Benefits for Education The IRS adjusts these thresholds annually for inflation; 2026 limits had not been published at the time of writing. Claim the exclusion on IRS Form 8815.