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
Jun 29, 2012, 4:04 pm
#466
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Bay Area, CA
Programs: AA Plat, UA Gold, AS MVP Gold, HH Diamond, SPG Gold, Club Carlson Gold, US
Posts: 956
Trying to send money but when i click continue to select the funding source, nothing happens. Blank page and thats it.
Any one else having this problem?
Never encountered anything like that before.
Any one else having this problem?
Never encountered anything like that before.
Jun 30, 2012, 1:51 pm
#467
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 74
I've used amazon payments off and on. I tried yesterday to send a payment and it immediately came back as "Failed", with no other information. Anyone know why? I was making like a 383.92 payment with an amex cc. I have not sent any other money this month so my account says I still have $1000 limit on send.
Jun 30, 2012, 7:47 pm
#468
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Los Angles
Posts: 2,101
I've used amazon payments off and on. I tried yesterday to send a payment and it immediately came back as "Failed", with no other information. Anyone know why? I was making like a 383.92 payment with an amex cc. I have not sent any other money this month so my account says I still have $1000 limit on send.
Jul 1, 2012, 8:24 am
#469
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: DFW/DAL
Programs: AA 1MM Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 1,524
Good news for those of us that got in the "special" timing the beginning of june and had our limits reset mid/late June. It's july 1 and my limits have been reset again! Free extra amount for last month looks like it worked and real reset date is still 1st of the month!
Last edited by glocklt4; Jul 1, 2012 at 8:30 am
Jul 1, 2012, 11:47 am
#470
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 45
Good news for those of us that got in the "special" timing the beginning of june and had our limits reset mid/late June. It's july 1 and my limits have been reset again! Free extra amount for last month looks like it worked and real reset date is still 1st of the month!
Jul 1, 2012, 12:37 pm
#471
Join Date: May 2010
Location: NJ
Posts: 1,389
Jul 2, 2012, 8:03 am
#472
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: DFW/DAL
Programs: AA 1MM Gold, Marriott Gold, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Discoverist
Posts: 1,524
Jul 2, 2012, 3:16 pm
#474
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: Upper Sternistan
Posts: 10,044
Jul 4, 2012, 7:35 pm
#476
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: NYC
Posts: 6,433
I have a Citibank online only Visa debit card worth $150. It's essentially a Visa gift card. Can I use Amazon payments to convert it to cash, for example, send my wife $150?
The terms of the card include: Avoiding "cash equivalent" transactions: Sorry, but you cannot use your card for cash equivalency transactions (e.g. ATMs, Western Union).
If not Amazon payments, is there another mechanism?
The terms of the card include: Avoiding "cash equivalent" transactions: Sorry, but you cannot use your card for cash equivalency transactions (e.g. ATMs, Western Union).
If not Amazon payments, is there another mechanism?
Jul 4, 2012, 7:42 pm
#477
Join Date: May 2010
Location: NJ
Posts: 1,389
I have a Citibank online only Visa debit card worth $150. It's essentially a Visa gift card. Can I use Amazon payments to convert it to cash, for example, send my wife $150?
The terms of the card include: Avoiding "cash equivalent" transactions: Sorry, but you cannot use your card for cash equivalency transactions (e.g. ATMs, Western Union).
If not Amazon payments, is there another mechanism?
The terms of the card include: Avoiding "cash equivalent" transactions: Sorry, but you cannot use your card for cash equivalency transactions (e.g. ATMs, Western Union).
If not Amazon payments, is there another mechanism?
Jul 8, 2012, 12:48 am
#480
Join Date: Jun 2009
Location: ORD, EZE
Programs: AA Platinum, Hilton HHonors Diamond, SPG Gold, Marriott Gold, AMEX Platinum
Posts: 71
Im getting this message when trying to claim the payment:
This transaction could not be claimed. Please try again later or contact Customer Service for further assistance.
Not sure why... Is this happening to anyone?
This transaction could not be claimed. Please try again later or contact Customer Service for further assistance.
Not sure why... Is this happening to anyone?