A “DEP PRENOTE” on your bank statement is a zero-dollar test entry your bank received through the ACH network to confirm that your account and routing numbers work before any real money moves. Nothing has been deposited or withdrawn, and you don’t need to do anything if you recently set up a new direct deposit or authorized a new electronic payment. The entry is the sender’s way of catching a bad account number before a live paycheck or benefit lands in the wrong place.
What Set It Off
A prenote (short for prenotification) is a non-monetary ACH entry that goes ahead of the first real transaction. Apart from the zero-dollar amount and a special transaction code, it looks identical to the deposit or withdrawal that will follow. The receiving bank uses it to check that the account exists, is open, and can accept the type of entry being sent.1Nacha. How ACH Works
You’ll usually see one after a change on your end. The most common triggers:
- Starting a new job and enrolling in direct deposit. The employer’s payroll system verifies your account before cutting the first electronic paycheck.
- Signing up for or updating direct deposit with a government agency, like the Social Security Administration.
- Authorizing a company to pull recurring bill payments from your checking account.
- Switching banks or giving an existing payer a new account number.
If any of that happened recently, the prenote is the expected first step. A new hire often receives a paper check for the first pay period while the prenote clears.
How Long Before Real Money Follows
After sending a prenote, the originating company must wait at least three banking days before sending a live transaction with real dollars. Some institutions stretch that window to six business days as an extra precaution, but three is the minimum under Nacha rules. The waiting period gives your bank time to validate the details and, if something is off, send a response back before any money is at risk.
Sending a prenote is optional for the payer, but many employers, government agencies, and billers use them as a safeguard.1Nacha. How ACH Works A misrouted payroll deposit creates headaches for everyone, and a zero-dollar test avoids most of them upfront.
Why the Label Looks Different Depending on the Bank
Banks don’t use a single standard wording. You might see “DEP PRENOTE,” “ACH PREAUTH,” “PRENOTE,” “PRENOTIFICATION,” or just a company name with a $0.00 amount. The company sending the entry has flexibility over the description field under Nacha rules, so the exact text depends on what the sender chose.2Nacha. Micro-Entries Phase 1
Because the amount is zero, many banks filter these out of the main transaction list. Check your “Pending Transactions” or “All Activity” view if you’re hunting for one. Some mobile apps suppress zero-dollar entries entirely, so you may need a desktop browser or a call to your bank to confirm it arrived.
One boundary worth noting: a prenote is not the same thing as the small “micro-deposits” some fintech services use to verify an account. Micro-deposits are real credits under $1.00 that post to your account and ask you to confirm the exact amounts. If you see two tiny credits rather than a zero-dollar entry, that’s a different verification method.
When a Prenote Fails
If your bank finds a problem with the account information, it responds in one of two ways.
A Notification of Change (NOC) means the account exists but a detail is off, such as a transposed digit or an outdated routing number from a bank merger. The corrected data goes back to the originator, and the originator must update its records within six banking days of receiving the correction.3Treasury. A Guide to Federal Government ACH Payments – Notification of Change This usually happens without any action from you.
A return is more serious. Common reasons include a closed account, an account number that doesn’t match any active account, or an invalid format. When a prenote is returned, the originator can’t send money until you give them corrected banking details. If you’re waiting on a first paycheck or benefit payment and it’s late, a returned prenote is often the reason. Call your employer’s payroll department or the paying agency and verify your account and routing numbers with them.
What to Do If You Don’t Recognize It
An unexpected prenote is worth investigating even though it moves zero dollars. Someone testing your account information with a prenote could be setting up a fraudulent withdrawal. The prenote itself won’t take money from your account, but if it succeeds and nobody catches it, the next entry could be a live debit that does.
If you can’t connect the prenote to any recent account change, call your bank. Ask them to identify the originator and confirm whether you have any authorization on file. If the entry is unauthorized, the bank should be able to block future ACH entries from that originator and may recommend opening a new account if your number has been compromised.
Federal law limits your liability for unauthorized electronic transfers, and the deadlines matter. Report the problem within two business days of learning about it and your maximum loss is $50. Report within 60 days of when the statement was sent and your exposure rises to $500. After 60 days, you could be liable for the full amount of any unauthorized transfers the bank can show it would have stopped had you reported sooner.4eCFR. 12 CFR 1005.6 – Liability of Consumer for Unauthorized Transfers Those windows are why it’s worth reviewing your statement regularly, including the zero-dollar entries that are easy to skip past.
Once you file a dispute, your bank must investigate and resolve it within 10 business days. It can extend the investigation to 45 days, but only if it provisionally credits your account for the disputed amount within those first 10 days.5eCFR. 12 CFR Part 205 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) If the situation looks like identity theft or an account takeover, filing a police report and an FTC complaint can help as well.