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 13, 2012, 2:02 pm
#1066
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Manchester,UK and NYC
Programs: One Pass, BAEC, AA
Posts: 708
NYBanker - qudos for your post - incredible how someone who joined this community only a few months ago, with the grand total of 14 posts, feels compelled to have to be obnoxious, instead of just giving a simple one word answer.
DaveInLA - you are correct, the other person you want to send funds to has to register their email address and other details on Amazon Payments.
You can have more than 1 AP account in your name - just slightly modify your first name.
So, for example, David Smith, Dave M. Smith and Davey Smith should all be OK. I use this method, and have had no issues for coming on 3 years.
Then your spouse can have 3 accounts, for example Susan Smith, Sue L. Smoth and Susie Smith.
DaveInLA - you are correct, the other person you want to send funds to has to register their email address and other details on Amazon Payments.
You can have more than 1 AP account in your name - just slightly modify your first name.
So, for example, David Smith, Dave M. Smith and Davey Smith should all be OK. I use this method, and have had no issues for coming on 3 years.
Then your spouse can have 3 accounts, for example Susan Smith, Sue L. Smoth and Susie Smith.
Dec 13, 2012, 6:11 pm
#1067
Join Date: Dec 2012
Programs: Delta, SPG, Marriott, United
Posts: 3
forextrader - I wasn't aware you could have multiple accounts with slightly different names. I can't remember but do you need different bank accounts for each of these or do you need to use your social security or physical address to set each one up? Sounds a little more risky at first glance or am I missing something?
Dec 13, 2012, 7:03 pm
#1069
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Miami, FL
Posts: 140
New message
Just logged into my account and saw a notice that says in order to comply with federal law, AP requires certain info. When I clicked, it only asked for my DOB, which I entered. I've been using the service for a while with the same account and have never been asked for it.
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Dec 13, 2012, 7:13 pm
#1070
Join Date: Jul 2007
Programs: Marriott Platinum
Posts: 274
Just logged into my account and saw a notice that says in order to comply with federal law, AP requires certain info. When I clicked, it only asked for my DOB, which I entered. I've been using the service for a while with the same account and have never been asked for it.
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Dec 13, 2012, 7:26 pm
#1071
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Miami, FL
Posts: 140
Really not that concerned at all with it, but just for argument's sake I wonder if the regulations are new. That would be the only thing that made sense, because if they need to "comply with regulations" wouldn't they have to collect the information when you open the account? Why let you use the service for months and then say, oops, we need more info?
Dec 13, 2012, 7:34 pm
#1072
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,689
[QUOTE=freetravelguys;19853071]Really not that concerned at all with it, but just for argument's sake I wonder if the regulations are new. That would be the only thing that made sense, because if they need to "comply with regulations" wouldn't they have to collect the information when you open the account? Why let you use the service for months and then say, oops, we need more info?[/QUOTE]
Because rules are forever changing and being updated.
Because rules are forever changing and being updated.
Dec 13, 2012, 8:06 pm
#1073
Join Date: Sep 2012
Posts: 4,431
You can have more than 1 AP account in your name - just slightly modify your first name.
So, for example, David Smith, Dave M. Smith and Davey Smith should all be OK. I use this method, and have had no issues for coming on 3 years.
Then your spouse can have 3 accounts, for example Susan Smith, Sue L. Smoth and Susie Smith.
So, for example, David Smith, Dave M. Smith and Davey Smith should all be OK. I use this method, and have had no issues for coming on 3 years.
Then your spouse can have 3 accounts, for example Susan Smith, Sue L. Smoth and Susie Smith.
Dec 14, 2012, 12:04 am
#1074
Join Date: Dec 2009
Programs: Curr Noob, Ex Road Warrior
Posts: 492
Just logged into my account and saw a notice that says in order to comply with federal law, AP requires certain info. When I clicked, it only asked for my DOB, which I entered. I've been using the service for a while with the same account and have never been asked for it.
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Anyone have any guesses as to where they're going with this?
Dec 14, 2012, 8:40 am
#1077
Join Date: Oct 2007
Programs: Marriott, Radisson, AA, UA
Posts: 360
There are over 300 million people out there in the US. SSN only have 9 digits, not too much digits or patterns for the government to play with. So you cannot tell age by looking at SSN.
However, if you know someone SSN, there are database out there you can search for a fee, you can enter the SSN to verify date of birth.
However, if you know someone SSN, there are database out there you can search for a fee, you can enter the SSN to verify date of birth.
Dec 14, 2012, 10:05 pm
#1080
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: Miami, FL
Posts: 140
Yes. Not an issue. I believe back when I read their T&C the cut off was somewhere around $36,000.