Nov 10, 2013, 11:26 am
Last edit by: mcdullhk88
Dead as of 10/13/14
FAQ's
Is Amazon Payments treated as a cash advance? No CC issuer has been reported as treating an AP transaction as a cash advance unless the sender selected "Payment is for Cash Advance" on the Send Money screen.
What does it mean when your payment is "pending"? Your payment will be reviewed. We are unsure whether this review is done by a human or computer. It should take less than 24 hours but is usually within minutes.
How should you describe your payment? "Goods or services" will allow you to charge with a CC and it will not be treated as a cash advance. Note: If you choose cash advance, it may be treated as such by your CC issuer; always choose Goods/Services. There is no reason to put anything in the optional description field - leave it blank.
What is the monthly limit for sending CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What is the monthly limit for receiving CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What if it is not allowing me to send/receive more than $500 or any at all? You probably have not verified your bank and/or added a CC. In order to get the full $1,000 allowance for sending and receiving you must have a bank verified AND a CC added to your account as a payment method.
Does AP qualify for special spending categories? Specifically it qualifies for Discover's (usually 4th quarter) category of online purchases but so far, not Chase's "5% CB on Amazon.com purchases." Refer to thread for other options.
Can you get shutdown? Yes.
How do you get shutdown? No one knows. Anecdotes are found throughout the thread. Some suspicious behavior that MIGHT get your AP account(s) shut down is listed below.
Which transaction is most advisable? A -> B -> C -> A (see here)
Are any fees charged during this process? No, not by Amazon Payments. If your transaction is treated as a cash advance by your card issuer--fees are possible. Beware and always double check that goods/services is selected!
Can you liquidate Amazon GC via AP? NO!
Can you liquidate other gift cards via AP? Yes. Note that you cannot liquidate the full value of a GC because amazon places a $1 hold while it verifies the validity of the GC. You can sometimes (not always) avoid the hold by entering an incorrect expiration date for the GC when adding it to your AP account, and after you have added it, go to "Edit my account settings," then to "Add edit or delete my credit cards" and edit the expiration date there.
When does the month end? It appears as if Amazon is on pacific time, so midnight PDT/PST is when the month resets.
It bears repeating that no one knows the methodology amazon uses to police AP transactions, determines which transactions violate its T&Cs, or identifies violators. However, various people in this thread and elsewhere have confirmed that their AP account(s) were shut down for the following reasons:
Additionally, we have updated the terms and conditions of our User Agreement (https://payments.amazon.com/help/Personal-Accounts/User-Agreement-Policies/User-Agreement) that apply to your use of the products and services provided by Amazon Payments. Our updated User Agreement revises certain terms (including, among other things, the elimination of person-to-person payments). Our new User Agreement will become effective on October 13, 2014, which is more than 30 days from when we first posted our updated User Agreement. By continuing to use our services after October 13, 2014, you are agreeing to be bound by the terms and conditions of our new User Agreement.
Is Amazon Payments treated as a cash advance? No CC issuer has been reported as treating an AP transaction as a cash advance unless the sender selected "Payment is for Cash Advance" on the Send Money screen.
What does it mean when your payment is "pending"? Your payment will be reviewed. We are unsure whether this review is done by a human or computer. It should take less than 24 hours but is usually within minutes.
How should you describe your payment? "Goods or services" will allow you to charge with a CC and it will not be treated as a cash advance. Note: If you choose cash advance, it may be treated as such by your CC issuer; always choose Goods/Services. There is no reason to put anything in the optional description field - leave it blank.
What is the monthly limit for sending CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What is the monthly limit for receiving CC payments? $1,000 per calendar month per AP account
What if it is not allowing me to send/receive more than $500 or any at all? You probably have not verified your bank and/or added a CC. In order to get the full $1,000 allowance for sending and receiving you must have a bank verified AND a CC added to your account as a payment method.
Does AP qualify for special spending categories? Specifically it qualifies for Discover's (usually 4th quarter) category of online purchases but so far, not Chase's "5% CB on Amazon.com purchases." Refer to thread for other options.
Can you get shutdown? Yes.
How do you get shutdown? No one knows. Anecdotes are found throughout the thread. Some suspicious behavior that MIGHT get your AP account(s) shut down is listed below.
Which transaction is most advisable? A -> B -> C -> A (see here)
Are any fees charged during this process? No, not by Amazon Payments. If your transaction is treated as a cash advance by your card issuer--fees are possible. Beware and always double check that goods/services is selected!
Can you liquidate Amazon GC via AP? NO!
Can you liquidate other gift cards via AP? Yes. Note that you cannot liquidate the full value of a GC because amazon places a $1 hold while it verifies the validity of the GC. You can sometimes (not always) avoid the hold by entering an incorrect expiration date for the GC when adding it to your AP account, and after you have added it, go to "Edit my account settings," then to "Add edit or delete my credit cards" and edit the expiration date there.
When does the month end? It appears as if Amazon is on pacific time, so midnight PDT/PST is when the month resets.
It bears repeating that no one knows the methodology amazon uses to police AP transactions, determines which transactions violate its T&Cs, or identifies violators. However, various people in this thread and elsewhere have confirmed that their AP account(s) were shut down for the following reasons:
- Associating one credit card number with more than one AP account (Be Careful if authorized user card has the same number as the primary card holder - in some instances the CC numbers are completely different)
- Associating one bank account with more than one AP account
Amazon Payments
May 30, 2013 | 5:43 pm
#2116
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: San Antonio
Programs: AS MVP
Posts: 2,276
I happened to notice a comment on a blog suggesting that a reader had received 3 points per dollar on AP, and the blogger quietly noted he had seen the same. Last statement, my wife's PRG earned 30XX points on 1000 AP spending and XX other spending. YMMV, but definitely not impossible. 
May 30, 2013 | 6:00 pm
#2117
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 1,396
I happened to notice a comment on a blog suggesting that a reader had received 3 points per dollar on AP, and the blogger quietly noted he had seen the same. Last statement, my wife's PRG earned 30XX points on 1000 AP spending and XX other spending. YMMV, but definitely not impossible.
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/ameri...ints-mall.html
AP is not the only merchant that has been erroneously receiving 3 points per on the PRG.
May 30, 2013 | 6:06 pm
#2118
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: San Antonio
Programs: AS MVP
Posts: 2,276
Also, on my last first class flight, the steak was clearly medium-medium-rare when I asked for rare-medium-rare. My life sucks.
May 30, 2013 | 6:14 pm
#2119
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: SAN
Posts: 1,396
So I guess I'd better call AMEX and report the bug in their system and sue them in small claims court because they didn't deliver exactly what they promised, right?
Also, on my last first class flight, the steak was clearly medium-medium-rare when I asked for rare-medium-rare. My life sucks.
Also, on my last first class flight, the steak was clearly medium-medium-rare when I asked for rare-medium-rare. My life sucks.
Honestly, I canceled my PRG earlier in the year as I had used all my MR points on a recent redemption, and figured I would wait until I can reapply. I was happy to save on the AF since I made the redemption right before the fee came due - but with these odd "glitches" that have been reported there is a part of me that wishes I had kept the account open.
May 31, 2013 | 1:24 am
#2121
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 140
May 31, 2013 | 1:46 am
#2122
Join Date: Jan 2013
Posts: 322
Agreed, it's not worth the risk to manufacture large amounts of spend using AP with the Business Rewards Gold. Just about anything can trigger an FR on that card.
May 31, 2013 | 3:34 am
#2123
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: BTV
Programs: UA Gold, Bonvoy Titanium
Posts: 487
May 31, 2013 | 11:16 am
#2124
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: SFO
Posts: 198
Does this still work and if I initiate a payment today, will it post today?
I'm trying to help my parents earn their bonus 15K points, they were going to give up (not even start) on it because they didn't "have that many bills"! They live in a different town so I can't shift some of my spending to their cards. I've already helped them prepay utilities, etc for the rest of the year. I don't use AP myself so not sure how things work. TIA
Last edited by love2ft; May 31, 2013 at 11:16 am Reason: Added date of last posting
Jun 1, 2013 | 6:38 am
#2125
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 32
[QUOTE=love2ft;20842953]I tried doing a search and this was the last posting (Jan 2013) on whether AP still works for the USAir card, also tried searching Yahoo.
Does this still work and if I initiate a payment today, will it post today?
Ap does still work on the USAir card. I used mine on 5/10 for AP. Don't know how fast it posted. I see you were down to the wire for having it post in May.
Does this still work and if I initiate a payment today, will it post today?
Ap does still work on the USAir card. I used mine on 5/10 for AP. Don't know how fast it posted. I see you were down to the wire for having it post in May.
Jun 1, 2013 | 6:59 am
#2126
Join Date: Aug 2012
Programs: BofA Preferred Rewards
Posts: 625
I tried doing a search and this was the last posting (Jan 2013) on whether AP still works for the USAir card, also tried searching Yahoo.
Does this still work and if I initiate a payment today, will it post today?
I'm trying to help my parents earn their bonus 15K points, they were going to give up (not even start) on it because they didn't "have that many bills"! They live in a different town so I can't shift some of my spending to their cards. I've already helped them prepay utilities, etc for the rest of the year. I don't use AP myself so not sure how things work. TIA
Does this still work and if I initiate a payment today, will it post today?
I'm trying to help my parents earn their bonus 15K points, they were going to give up (not even start) on it because they didn't "have that many bills"! They live in a different town so I can't shift some of my spending to their cards. I've already helped them prepay utilities, etc for the rest of the year. I don't use AP myself so not sure how things work. TIA
Jun 3, 2013 | 10:44 am
#2127
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Boston
Programs: UA, AA, USairways, HH, Marriott
Posts: 57
Data point seeking
Hi, AP is the most convenient way for me to manufacture spending so I would like to maximize it as much as I can. Currently both I and my wife have AP accounts but so far i only do in one way.
Can anyone provide some data points on how safe it is to do A-B-A transfer and how long you have survived. I surely know this type sounds risky and can be easily caught if AMZ decides to. But that's the only way I can figure out to fully use the two AP accounts within two people. No, I don't want to involve more people. I don't want to bother friends to accept my transfer and return it later in other formats. Too hassle for them and not everyone likes or feel comfort with manufacturing spending.
Alternatively, if you were unfortunately shut down by doing A-B-A transfer, let me know so I can persuade myself to drop the idea
. So far I only read the general comments but lack of practical evidences.
Thanks!
Can anyone provide some data points on how safe it is to do A-B-A transfer and how long you have survived. I surely know this type sounds risky and can be easily caught if AMZ decides to. But that's the only way I can figure out to fully use the two AP accounts within two people. No, I don't want to involve more people. I don't want to bother friends to accept my transfer and return it later in other formats. Too hassle for them and not everyone likes or feel comfort with manufacturing spending.
Alternatively, if you were unfortunately shut down by doing A-B-A transfer, let me know so I can persuade myself to drop the idea
. So far I only read the general comments but lack of practical evidences.Thanks!
Jun 3, 2013 | 10:49 am
#2128
Join Date: May 2000
Location: I see palm trees....
Posts: 414
Hi, AP is the most convenient way for me to manufacture spending so I would like to maximize it as much as I can. Currently both I and my wife have AP accounts but so far i only do in one way.
Can anyone provide some data points on how safe it is to do A-B-A transfer and how long you have survived. I surely know this type sounds risky and can be easily caught if AMZ decides to. But that's the only way I can figure out to fully use the two AP accounts within two people. No, I don't want to involve more people. I don't want to bother friends to accept my transfer and return it later in other formats. Too hassle for them and not everyone likes or feel comfort with manufacturing spending.
Alternatively, if you were unfortunately shut down by doing A-B-A transfer, let me know so I can persuade myself to drop the idea. So far I only read the general comments but lack of practical evidences.
Thanks!
Can anyone provide some data points on how safe it is to do A-B-A transfer and how long you have survived. I surely know this type sounds risky and can be easily caught if AMZ decides to. But that's the only way I can figure out to fully use the two AP accounts within two people. No, I don't want to involve more people. I don't want to bother friends to accept my transfer and return it later in other formats. Too hassle for them and not everyone likes or feel comfort with manufacturing spending.
Alternatively, if you were unfortunately shut down by doing A-B-A transfer, let me know so I can persuade myself to drop the idea
. So far I only read the general comments but lack of practical evidences.Thanks!
I've been doing even $1K transactions back and forth with the wife each month since April, 2011. Never had an issue. Each AP account is linked to a different bank account.
I've never even made an attempt to hide it...send payment to wife, withdrawl to bank account, resend same payment to myself, withdrawl to bank account. Rinse and repeat.
Jun 3, 2013 | 12:49 pm
#2130
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Boston
Programs: UA, AA, USairways, HH, Marriott
Posts: 57
As I posted earlier in this thread:
I've been doing even $1K transactions back and forth with the wife each month since April, 2011. Never had an issue. Each AP account is linked to a different bank account.
I've never even made an attempt to hide it...send payment to wife, withdrawl to bank account, resend same payment to myself, withdrawl to bank account. Rinse and repeat.
I've been doing even $1K transactions back and forth with the wife each month since April, 2011. Never had an issue. Each AP account is linked to a different bank account.
I've never even made an attempt to hide it...send payment to wife, withdrawl to bank account, resend same payment to myself, withdrawl to bank account. Rinse and repeat.
I think the reason is Amazon never cares so trivia. It surely can detect the two transactions made at the same place, some IP, or same computer. But after all, they put 1k limit to prevent abuse. This is better than citi who let you do whatever you want and suddenly kick you out.
Reader, be cautious: I think it is always possible that Amazon changes its mind and shut you down for A-B-A transfer. My suggestion is to make those transactions separate as much as you can within a month and also be mentally prepared to find out your amazon account is closed tomorrow morning. I think I am ready for both so I am in. I will report if I get shut down.