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
Dec 18, 2011, 7:13 pm
#91
Suspended
Join Date: Apr 2011
Posts: 196
I recently got an email from Amazon also about having to provide them with my SS# or not being able to sent/receive funds next year. I had orginally thought about the whole 1099 thing and maybe not worth the extra reported income leading to more taxes. But if the above limits are true then I guess I will send them the info and keep the account alive as it would be difficult for someone like me to go above the amounts posted in a given year (I assume the above is for a calender year and not a lifetime thing)
Dec 19, 2011, 8:10 am
#92
Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 45
I recently got an email from Amazon also about having to provide them with my SS# or not being able to sent/receive funds next year. I had orginally thought about the whole 1099 thing and maybe not worth the extra reported income leading to more taxes. But if the above limits are true then I guess I will send them the info and keep the account alive as it would be difficult for someone like me to go above the amounts posted in a given year (I assume the above is for a calender year and not a lifetime thing)
I am curious what this SSN thing is all about. I hope we won't get anything from Amazon to report to IRS.
Dec 20, 2011, 11:38 pm
#96
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Fort Myers, FL
Programs: Hilton Gold, SPG & IHG Plat, & every airline program that I can join
Posts: 2,279
More like just under $3K a month * 12 = $35K !!!
JudyJFLA
Still looking for the next bigger thing!
I miss my coins!!!
JudyJFLA
Still looking for the next bigger thing!
I miss my coins!!!
Last edited by JudyJFLA; Dec 20, 2011 at 11:56 pm
Dec 21, 2011, 12:04 am
#97
Join Date: Jun 2010
Programs: AA Plat,PC Plat, HHonors Gold
Posts: 904
Dec 21, 2011, 6:28 am
#98
Join Date: Aug 2011
Programs: many
Posts: 1,437
Dec 21, 2011, 6:57 pm
#99
Join Date: Feb 2002
Location: new york,ny
Posts: 200
I dont use Paypal or any other competitor to Amazon payments.
If anyone here does, it would be interesting to know how they handle this.
Is paypal ( or any others) now asking for SS# ??
or did they already require it??
This may help to understand what is going on at Amazon.
If anyone here does, it would be interesting to know how they handle this.
Is paypal ( or any others) now asking for SS# ??
or did they already require it??
This may help to understand what is going on at Amazon.
Dec 21, 2011, 9:39 pm
#100
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Okinawa
Posts: 2,611
I dont use Paypal or any other competitor to Amazon payments.
If anyone here does, it would be interesting to know how they handle this.
Is paypal ( or any others) now asking for SS# ??
or did they already require it??
This may help to understand what is going on at Amazon.
If anyone here does, it would be interesting to know how they handle this.
Is paypal ( or any others) now asking for SS# ??
or did they already require it??
This may help to understand what is going on at Amazon.
Dec 22, 2011, 8:20 am
#101
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Los Angeles
Programs: Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott // WN, AA, BA, UA, AS // Avis
Posts: 1,314
I dont really see any other valid reason other than for tax reporting purposes on why they would need SS numbers.
Dec 22, 2011, 8:52 am
#102
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 613
I know of no such requirement.
Dec 22, 2011, 11:08 am
#104
Join Date: May 2010
Location: NJ
Posts: 1,389
Can you say that it's a gift though? Paypal has a "Gift" radio button that you can select but Amazon Payments only has "Goods/Services" or "Cash" something. Nothing to denote that it's a gift... technically speaking.
Dec 22, 2011, 11:31 am
#105
Join Date: Feb 2010
Posts: 63
Well, it's not a gift. And it's not taxable. I send you $1000 on Amazon Payments, you give me $1000 cash. Maybe violates Amazon ToS but definitely not taxable. Sending money to your spouse as most people are doing definitely nothing to be concerned about.