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
Oct 13, 2013, 2:11 am
#2671
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 250
Yea just saw his respond. I expected that respond seeing how he didn't receive any cashback that statement.
Oct 13, 2013, 3:28 am
#2672
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 37
Can confirm did get the 5% with Discover from AP
Oct 13, 2013, 1:17 pm
#2673
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 13
Oct 14, 2013, 7:50 pm
#2676
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,872
I am primary on my discover card. My wife is authorized user. It is same card number and same address. I sent $1k from my discover. I have to do another $500 to get max cash back. Can my wife also use the discover to send $500 or Amazon will block it since it is already used by me yesterday to send $1k?
Oct 14, 2013, 8:08 pm
#2677
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: NYC
Posts: 1,756
I am primary on my discover card. My wife is authorized user. It is same card number and same address. I sent $1k from my discover. I have to do another $500 to get max cash back. Can my wife also use the discover to send $500 or Amazon will block it since it is already used by me yesterday to send $1k?
Oct 14, 2013, 8:39 pm
#2678
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 25
I am primary on my discover card. My wife is authorized user. It is same card number and same address. I sent $1k from my discover. I have to do another $500 to get max cash back. Can my wife also use the discover to send $500 or Amazon will block it since it is already used by me yesterday to send $1k?
Oct 14, 2013, 9:46 pm
#2679
Join Date: Jul 2013
Posts: 1,872
Ok than wife will use Citi advantage amex card to send $1k because she and I received an offer from Citi and it is 2 miles per dollar on online shopping up to 2500 miles from Oct to Dec. Still don't know if AP will count as online shopping.
Oct 14, 2013, 10:02 pm
#2680
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Richmond, VA
Posts: 124
AP problem
Does anyone else have problems with sending money via AP? I have been trying to send money to my wife and have tried several times yesterday and today. Everytime I put in the email address and the amount and click submit, it goes to the AP homepage.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
Oct 15, 2013, 4:15 am
#2681
Join Date: Feb 2013
Location: New York, NY
Posts: 61
Does anyone else have problems with sending money via AP? I have been trying to send money to my wife and have tried several times yesterday and today. Everytime I put in the email address and the amount and click submit, it goes to the AP homepage.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
Oct 15, 2013, 6:17 am
#2682
Join Date: Jul 2011
Programs: Delta Platinum & MM, Marriott Lifetime Platinum, National Car Executive
Posts: 400
Does anyone else have problems with sending money via AP? I have been trying to send money to my wife and have tried several times yesterday and today. Everytime I put in the email address and the amount and click submit, it goes to the AP homepage.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
I'm not new to AP or anything; I have been using this for over a year and this is the first time it's giving me trouble.
Oct 15, 2013, 6:52 am
#2683
Join Date: Apr 2013
Posts: 77
Hi,
I've been using AP for about 6 months now and know the basics, $500/transaction, 2x a month, $1,000 limit. Recently I received money for the first time and now have a small balance of about $150. Naturally, Amazon will use these funds to fund any money I send before the CC. If I don't liquidate this money to a bank account, will my CC limit this month be $850, or is the $1,000 limit just for CC transactions? Thanks.
I've been using AP for about 6 months now and know the basics, $500/transaction, 2x a month, $1,000 limit. Recently I received money for the first time and now have a small balance of about $150. Naturally, Amazon will use these funds to fund any money I send before the CC. If I don't liquidate this money to a bank account, will my CC limit this month be $850, or is the $1,000 limit just for CC transactions? Thanks.
Oct 15, 2013, 8:06 am
#2684
Join Date: Oct 2013
Posts: 25