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
Jul 9, 2014 | 3:02 pm
#4456
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 3,688
Jul 9, 2014 | 3:09 pm
#4457
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: WAS
Programs: SPG Plat. Marriott Plat. Hilton Diamond. Hyatt Diamond. IHG Plat.
Posts: 2,580
Jul 9, 2014 | 5:27 pm
#4460
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 3,688
but if you're brave enough to re-register, please let us know either way whether you succeed or fail and under what time frame you re-registered. TIA
Jul 9, 2014 | 5:48 pm
#4461
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 260
How were your accts set up that led to closures? Maybe you could provide some data.
Because trying to set up another acct will just get you shut down again if you set up something similar
Jul 9, 2014 | 5:54 pm
#4462
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Iowa
Posts: 122
Jul 10, 2014 | 9:06 am
#4463
Join Date: Oct 2007
Programs: Marriott, Radisson, AA, UA
Posts: 365
I think most of the shutdowns were because people have more than 1 account for the same person.
If you have just one account for yourself, and one for your wife, 1 for your mom, 1 for your dad, etc. You should be OK.
Last edited by echip; Jul 10, 2014 at 9:27 am
Jul 10, 2014 | 11:42 am
#4464
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Okinawa
Posts: 2,615
You've obviously not read through the thread. That is not the case.
Jul 10, 2014 | 11:50 am
#4465
Join Date: Oct 2007
Programs: Marriott, Radisson, AA, UA
Posts: 365
You obviously not read what I said.
People said my "secondary" account got shutdown. So I said "I think".
I also just added a new cc this month, then immediately sent $1000 to my wife. No problem at all.
My wife, brother, his wife, etc. do the same, have been adding new cc every few months to meet spending requirement. I have no fear of doing so because each of us have only 1 account.
Last edited by echip; Jul 10, 2014 at 12:01 pm
Jul 10, 2014 | 12:00 pm
#4466
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Okinawa
Posts: 2,615
You obviously not read what I said.
People said my "secondary" account got shutdown. So I said "I think".
I also just added a new cc this month. Sent $1000 to my wife. No problem.
I have been adding new cc every few months. No fear of shutting down b/c I have only 1 account.
People said my "secondary" account got shutdown. So I said "I think".
I also just added a new cc this month. Sent $1000 to my wife. No problem.
I have been adding new cc every few months. No fear of shutting down b/c I have only 1 account.
The surprising part is that it has not been an issue for more than 3 years. I am just demonstrating the shift in action and policy. Also in the past if the accounts were shut for 'duplicate accounts' it was possible to have Amazon reopen them once examined. That is no longer the case. They will not even respond to emails.
Jul 10, 2014 | 12:21 pm
#4467
Join Date: Oct 2007
Programs: Marriott, Radisson, AA, UA
Posts: 365
