If you don't cash a check within 90 days, it often becomes a "stale check," meaning banks aren't required to honor it, though some might accept it at their discretion, potentially leading to issues like bounced funds or stop payments; you'll usually need to contact the issuer for a replacement check to get your money. Personal and business checks generally become stale after 6 months, while government checks last a year, but some checks have a "void after 90 days" notice to encourage faster cashing.
In summary. As noted above, banks are legally obligated to honor a personal check for up to six months. If you find an expired check, you may want to contact whoever issued it before attempting to cash it. If you can, it's usually best practice to cash checks when you receive them.
How long are personal checks good for? Personal, business, and payroll checks are good for 6 months (180 days).
When you try to cash an expired check, or wait too long to cash a valid check, the following are possibilities:
After the 6-month window has closed, a bank may choose to refuse a check. If this happens, you may need to have the check reissued. Some banks may cash the stale check for a fee or under certain conditions. The bank that issued the check may also have its own policies for dealing with stale checks.
Depositing a stale-dated check could lead to the check being returned and incurring a fee. Contacting the issuer for a replacement or checking bank policies can help avoid issues with stale checks. Stale checks may be subject to escheatment laws, where unclaimed funds are turned over to the state.
Key takeaways. Checks are typically only valid for six months after being signed. Banks may still accept a stale check, but they are not required to if they have reason to doubt the funds. Different types of checks have different expiration dates.
The "$10,000 bank rule" refers to federal laws requiring financial institutions and businesses to report large cash transactions (deposits, withdrawals, payments) of over $10,000 in currency to the government to combat money laundering and financial crimes. Banks file Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) for cash activity over $10,000, while businesses file Form 8300 for similar payments, both sending info to FinCEN and the IRS to track illicit funds.
Risks of cashing an expired check
Bottom line. In most cases, a check should clear within one or two business days. There are a few cases in which a check might be held for longer, such as if it's a large deposit amount or an international check. Make sure to review your bank's policies for what to expect in terms of check hold times.
Personal and business checks: Valid for six months (180 days). These include private-party checks, paychecks or business checks. Some banks may be willing to cash or deposit a check after the expiration date.
For individual cashier's checks, money orders or traveler's checks that exceed $10,000, the institution that issues the check is required to report the transaction to the government.
Checks which are at least 180 days old (6 months) are considered stale. Tellers in banks will sometimes reject a check if the date is over that limit.
Checks that are more than six months old are called “stale checks.” A bank or credit union may choose to honor such a check and different states have different requirements, but federal law does not require it to do so.
In basic terms, a check becomes stale if it has been in one's possession for 180 days or more and has not been cashed or deposited. After six months from the day a check is issued, checks may not be deposited into one's checking account. This is because they have become stale. A bank might refuse to accept this check.
A $2000 check usually clears within 1 to 2 business days, with federal law requiring the first $275 (as of July 2025) to be available by the next business day, and the rest typically following on the second business day, though government/certified checks clear faster and new accounts or repeated overdrafts can cause delays.
We reserve the right not to pay a cheque that is older than 6 months (from the date written on the front of the cheque). If you have a cheque dated 6 months or more ago it may not clear and you should contact the issuer of that cheque and ask for a replacement.
Typically, personal checks are good for six months (or 180 days) from when they're dated. After that, they're considered "stale." Legally, banks and credit unions are not obligated to accept stale checks. However, some banks do accept checks older than six months.
Call the issuer and request a replacement check. You may need to complete some forms. Ask when you will receive the replacement check, and be on the lookout for it. If the issuer says they cannot re-issue the check because the funds were escheated to the State, check for Unclaimed Funds on the State's website.
In general, employers are required to hand over the amount of an unclaimed paycheck to their state. This process, called "escheatment," requires abandoned or unclaimed personal property to be submitted to the state after a certain period.