To fill out a check, complete six handwritten fields in order: the date in the upper right, the payee’s name on the “Pay to the Order of” line, the dollar amount in digits inside the small box, the same amount written out in words on the long line below, an optional memo in the lower left, and your signature in the lower right. Here is how to fill out a check so that it clears the first time and can’t be altered after it leaves your hand.
Date
Write today’s date on the line in the upper right corner. Most U.S. banks expect MM/DD/YYYY. A missing date doesn’t automatically invalidate the check — the Uniform Commercial Code treats an undated check as dated on the day it was issued1Cornell Law Institute. Uniform Commercial Code 3-113 – Date of Instrument — but many banks flag undated checks for extra review, and some refuse them outright.
Dates also age out. A bank has no obligation to honor a check presented more than six months after its written date.2Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 4-404 – Bank Not Obliged to Pay Check More Than Six Months Old
Payee Line
On the line labeled “Pay to the Order of,” write the full legal name of the person or business receiving the money. For a company, use the official business name rather than a nickname or abbreviation; the receiving bank will compare the name against the account of whoever tries to deposit it.
When you’re paying two people, the connecting word decides who has to endorse. “John and Jane Doe” requires both signatures on the back. “John or Jane Doe” lets either one deposit it alone.3U.S. Department of the Treasury – Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Must Both My Spouse and I Endorse a Check Made Out to Both of Us?
Don’t write “Cash” on this line. A check made out to Cash functions as a bearer instrument: whoever physically holds it can cash or deposit it, and you have almost no recourse if it’s lost or stolen.
Dollar Amount in Numbers
In the small box with the pre-printed dollar sign, write the amount in digits with a decimal point, such as 1,250.00. Start your writing as far to the left as the box allows and keep the numerals tight against one another. If space remains after the last digit, draw a horizontal line through it. A blank gap is what lets someone turn 50.00 into 950.00.4Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Check Fraud: A Guide to Avoiding Losses
Dollar Amount in Words
On the long line under the payee’s name, write the same amount in words, and express the cents as a fraction over 100. $1,250.47 becomes “One thousand two hundred fifty and 47/100.” Draw a solid line through any leftover space to the printed word “Dollars” so nothing can be inserted.
This written line is the legally controlling amount. If the words and the digits disagree, the words win.5Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 3-114 – Contradictory Terms of Instrument Read both amounts back to yourself before signing.
Memo Line
The memo line in the lower left is optional. A check is fully valid with the memo blank, because the memo isn’t one of the elements a negotiable instrument requires.6Cornell Law Institute. Uniform Commercial Code 3-104 – Negotiable Instrument Most people use it for their own records: an invoice number, an account number, or a short note like “June rent.”
For a check to the IRS, treat the memo as required. The IRS asks you to write your Social Security number or taxpayer ID, the tax year, and the form number (for example, “2025 Form 1040”) directly on the check so the payment can be matched to your account.7Internal Revenue Service. Pay by Check or Money Order
Signature
Sign the line in the lower right corner. Your signature is what authorizes your bank to release the funds; no one is liable on a check until they’ve signed it, and an unsigned check cannot be processed.8Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 3-401 – Signature Use the same signature your bank has on file. A signature that looks nothing like your card can trigger a fraud hold.
If you’re signing on behalf of a business, an estate, or another person, add your capacity next to your name, for example “Jane Smith, Treasurer, ABC Corp.” If the check doesn’t make the representative role clear, you can be held personally liable for the amount.9Cornell Law School. Uniform Commercial Code 3-402 – Signature by Representative
Never sign a check before the other fields are filled in. If a signed blank check is lost or stolen, whoever finds it can write in any payee and any amount, and it will be valid.
What’s Already Printed, and Where Not to Write
Your name and address are printed in the upper left. The check number sits in the upper right and repeats at the bottom. Along the bottom edge, three sets of numbers separated by symbols show the bank’s nine-digit routing number, your account number, and the check number again. Those numbers are read electronically, so leave that bottom strip alone — no notes, no doodles, no stray pen marks.
Anyone who has your routing and account numbers can attempt unauthorized withdrawals, so a blank check deserves the same care you’d give a debit card.
If You Make a Mistake, Void the Check
Don’t cross out an error and keep writing. Instead, write VOID in large letters across the face of the check in permanent ink, big enough to cover the payee and amount lines so it can’t be altered and deposited. Leave the routing and account numbers at the bottom clean, since a voided check is what employers and utilities often use to set up direct deposit or automatic payments. Record the voided check number in your register so you’re not left wondering later why a number is missing from the sequence.
Habits That Prevent Alteration After You Hand It Over
A well-filled check is also a hard-to-alter check. A few practices reinforce the ones already built into the six fields above:
- Use a black gel ink pen. Standard ballpoint ink can be “washed” off with common household chemicals, letting a thief change the payee and the amount. Gel ink bonds to the paper fibers and resists washing far better.
- Fill every blank space. Draw lines through unused portions of the payee line, the written-amount line, and the numeric box. Empty space is where alterations happen.
- Keep your checkbook secured. A single blank check exposes your routing number, account number, name, and address.
- If you’re mailing the check, put it in a security envelope (the kind with an interior pattern that hides the contents) and drop it inside a USPS collection box or hand it to a postal worker rather than leaving it in an unlocked mailbox with the flag raised.
If you write checks often, ask your bank about Positive Pay. The service cross-references every check presented against a list of checks you’ve actually issued and flags mismatches in the check number, account number, or dollar amount before paying. It’s mostly a business-account service, but worth asking about.
Record the Check in Your Register
Your checkbook comes with a register — a small ledger for logging each transaction. As soon as you write a check, note the check number, date, payee, and amount, then subtract it from your running balance. Do this before the check clears, because your bank’s app only shows transactions that have already been processed, not checks still in the mail.
This is where overdrafts start. Three checks written in one week that haven’t cleared yet leave your online balance looking artificially high. When all three hit at once, each one can trigger a fee. Overdraft charges vary widely, from about $10 at institutions that have lowered their fees to $35 or more at those that haven’t.10Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Overdraft/NSF Revenue in 2023 Down More Than 50% Versus Pre-Pandemic Levels, Saving Consumers Over $6 Billion Annually A running register is the cheapest insurance against that.