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Buying Money Orders at Walmart (2019 - 2022)

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Old Jan 2, 2019, 9:51 am
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: danpeake
As of Nov 11, 2020, Meta gebits are getting declined when used for MO/BP purchases at MC/SD. New limit appears to be $99 per swipe with some metas at some stores. READ the posts below and add a data point with details. USB and GD gift cards do not seem to be affected.

This is the thread for 2019. The previous discussion can be found here: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manu...rt-2018-a.html

New to MO: Read this entire Wiki (Click to open) and all posts for some tips before asking common questions. It is best to know what you are doing before you try.

Note: The policy for allowing gift cards as payment for money orders can be more restrictive with certain stores or certain clerks. Just because an employee says there's a new restrictive policy "for all Walmarts" means nothing. There are plenty of cases where the employee is incorrect and the new policy is only regional or store specific.

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Tested Gebit (gift debit) cards:
1. DO NOT WORK - Any Vanilla product affiliated with InComm or ITC Financial Services will not work for swipes over $49.99.
2. See above on Visas issued by MetaBank. New limit appears to be $99 per swipe with some metas at some stores. Follow the posts below for the latest information.
3. MC issued by US bank OR Metabank MC (Giftcards.com) can work, but you need to change payment type to debit before they enter the amount in the register. See below for details.
4. Gdot/sun work but take about an hour to activate.(VGC issued by Sunrise also limited to $99/swipe, same as Metabank issued cards, and Sunrise was available immediately).
5. USB work
__________________________________________________ __________________________________________
NEW Limits as of 11/18 - 8K with ID every 24 hours. ID required for MO over 1K.

Some tips for starting out:

All WM registers allow 4 debit swipes per transaction, but YMMV per store and cashier. Refer to cards as Debit cards.

Start slow and buy one MO with one Gebit to see how it works. Refer to cards as Debit, only this community calls them Gebits. Your store or cashier may have rules that other stores do not have, only allowing one swipe per trans or up to 4 swipes per trans. Read all the tips below and all the posts below before trying more advanced transactions. NO variety or design of VISA or MC Gebit's will ever auto-drain at Walmart so always tell them the amount you want to pay per card. Fee: 1K MO or less is usually 88 cents each, but ask or check the wall. Subtract the fee from the total or pay in cash. If a store says "no", thank them and try again another day with a different clerk.


Helpful details and tips for advanced transactions:

1. Cost:
1K MO fee is usually $1 each(Some states limit MO total to 750 or 950 and may have a different fee). Subtract fee from your total or pay in cash. Can buy two 1K MO in one transaction with 4 swipes for $1 x 2 in most states. NO variety or design of VISA or MC Gebit's will ever auto-drain at Walmart so always tell them the amount you want to pay per card.

2. Split payment transactions: You cannot successfully swipe more than 4 cards in a single transaction. If the cashier screws up and enters $50.00 instead of $500.00 (thus making it impossible for 4 swipes to complete the transaction), the transaction will need to be canceled. The funds should return to your cards right away but may take 24 hours, so note the time and person helping you. When a transaction is canceled during the trans, the money returns to the cards. If canceled after, the cash reg drawer opens and they pay you back in cash.

3. Split payment: The amount of each swipe needs to be entered by the cashier. Ask to "split the payment by $$$". The Gebit must have current balance of that amount or more otherwise slip with Error 51 will print out. Warning: (YMMV) It appears (my experience on 3 occasions during prepaid card load and buying MO in 2 different WMs) that after the debit card was charged no cash could be credited back to the card. Cashier should issue cash back. Keep the slip and contact manager if in doubt. Remember date, time and register if no slip.

4. Bad Printer: IF, by chance, you've swiped your GCs successfully, a receipt prints but the MO doesn't, make sure to ask to see the receipt and check near the bottom IF it says CHANGE/REFUND with a negative sign before the amount of GCs you swiped, that means the cashier must give you cash refund. Cashier may have to call for the cash dept manager to verify the refund. Some stores may outright give your cash refund immediately while there are others that will ask you to come back. Think twice before you buy MOs while on vacation or when you're in unknown to you territories for issues like this.

5. Kiosk: Very few Kate's can sell money orders anymore.>>>>Sometime 2016, a lot of WM supercenters have done away with Kate (kiosks that allows loading of prepaids/sell $500 MOs). As of today, MOST, if not ALL WMs, have replaced this with the regular slim ATM to check balance/withdraw money. Kates are a distant and pleasant memory now.

6. MCGC liquidation- The cashier should
not enter the amount first. Technically they just can't hit enter after entering the amount. Let the CSR know you need to swipe first and switch the payment type to debit, then swipe and hit "Cancel" or "Change Payment" to select "Debit" on the screen, enter the pin and have them enter the amount.

7. SSN/ID entry - Any MO purchases in one transaction at or over $3K requires you to input your SSN. Any MO at or over $1K requires ID input (and ID requirement can also be forced by cashier at any amount).



Debit codes PDF
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/attac...0&d=1461170080

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Buying Money Orders at Walmart (2019 - 2022)

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Old Sep 17, 2021, 10:54 am
  #3736  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Posts: 2,945
I went back to WM on the way to work this morning and one card worked, but the next three did not. All were purchased at the same store.
TTT103 is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 11:14 am
  #3737  
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 375
I bought two MOs with two Green Dot Visas and two US Bank Visas at my first WMT location. The second location, I bought one MO with two Green Dot Visas. The third WMT, I tried to buy one MO with two Green Dots and the second card did not go through (Debit not available). The cashier said the money would go back on the first card since the transaction did not go through. Is that true? Anyone have any idea why the second card did not process?
Chasepoints is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 11:19 am
  #3738  
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Programs: Continental Onepass, Hilton, Marriott, USAir and now UA
Posts: 6,430
Originally Posted by Chasepoints
I bought two MOs with two Green Dot Visas and two US Bank Visas at my first WMT location. The second location, I bought one MO with two Green Dot Visas. The third WMT, I tried to buy one MO with two Green Dots and the second card did not go through (Debit not available). The cashier said the money would go back on the first card since the transaction did not go through. Is that true? Anyone have any idea why the second card did not process?
Yes
If you don't complete a transaction and get a receipt indicating that the cards funded the MO, the money will go back on the GCs used in the transaction.
radonc1 is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 11:34 am
  #3739  
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 375
Originally Posted by radonc1
Yes
If you don't complete a transaction and get a receipt indicating that the cards funded the MO, the money will go back on the GCs used in the transaction.
Thanks for the info and your quick reply! Now my only concern is the "debit not available" issue.
Chasepoints is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 12:08 pm
  #3740  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,061
Originally Posted by Chasepoints
Thanks for the info and your quick reply! Now my only concern is the "debit not available" issue.
not surprising with recent failed trxn @ WM... try again later in the day or next day
danhouston is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 12:37 pm
  #3741  
 
Join Date: Jan 2014
Posts: 375
Originally Posted by danhouston
not surprising with recent failed trxn @ WM... try again later in the day or next day
I'll give it a try tomorrow and see what happens. Thanks!
Chasepoints is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 12:55 pm
  #3742  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Originally Posted by danhouston
not surprising with recent failed trxn @ WM... try again later in the day or next day
I suspect the errors some of you are getting are glitches in the POS register software. I got hit with this today, on 2nd BP transaction, after first SS swipe, the next 5 GC swipes all showed the yellow "Change Payment" button, followed by a decline before even asking for PIN. I recognized this from before, where a register once stopped taking all debit cards. I just came back 10min later when another cashier opened a different register, and same cards worked fine.
littlewinglet is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 1:20 pm
  #3743  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,061
Originally Posted by littlewinglet
I suspect the errors some of you are getting are glitches in the POS register software. I got hit with this today, on 2nd BP transaction, after first SS swipe, the next 5 GC swipes all showed the yellow "Change Payment" button, followed by a decline before even asking for PIN. I recognized this from before, where a register once stopped taking all debit cards. I just came back 10min later when another cashier opened a different register, and same cards worked fine.
wish mine were the case; yday had a regular cashier in MC at WMNM who helped try 3 different registers, but all 3 spit out 'DNA'; got MOs at a grocer instead as didn't want to further mess with that set
danhouston is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 1:22 pm
  #3744  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Originally Posted by danhouston
wish mine were the case; yday had a regular cashier in MC at WMNM who helped try 3 different registers, but all 3 spit out 'DNA'
Do you recall seeing the spinning star logo and then Change Paymet button? My situation is like what we had with MC GCs, except even doing Change Payment didn't fix it. Otherwise I have no issues besides maybe 1 of 20 of these GC randomly failing for a day and then working a day later.
littlewinglet is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 1:27 pm
  #3745  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,061
Originally Posted by littlewinglet
Do you recall seeing the spinning star logo and then Change Paymet button? My situation is like what we had with MC GCs, except even doing Change Payment didn't fix it. Otherwise I have no issues besides maybe 1 of 20 of these GC randomly failing for a day and then working a day later.
nope, the holder simply spit out a little receipt; u been blessed, my man 😄
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Old Sep 17, 2021, 1:38 pm
  #3746  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Originally Posted by danhouston
nope, the holder simply spit out a little receipt; u been blessed, my man 😄
So weird, I've used these GCs at multiple WMs nearby so it's not a single-store exception. Perhaps you should try some other WMs in your area.
littlewinglet is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 2:00 pm
  #3747  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,061
Originally Posted by littlewinglet
So weird, I've used these GCs at multiple WMs nearby so it's not a single-store exception. Perhaps you should try some other WMs in your area.
same register @ the same store worked 1 day but not another day with another similar set of cards; so don't know if WM system/software set a limit per day or hr?
danhouston is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 2:04 pm
  #3748  
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Originally Posted by danhouston
same register @ the same store worked 1 day but not another day with another similar set of cards; so don't know if WM system/software set a limit per day or hr?
Likely just a programming glitch at that store. Besides the error I had today (Which only happened once before), I never noticed any velocity limits.
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Old Sep 17, 2021, 2:11 pm
  #3749  
 
Join Date: Aug 2015
Posts: 2,061
Originally Posted by littlewinglet
Likely just a programming glitch at that store. Besides the error I had today (Which only happened once before), I never noticed any velocity limits.
will keep trying til no longer 🙃

Last edited by danhouston; Sep 17, 2021 at 3:17 pm
danhouston is offline  
Old Sep 17, 2021, 2:27 pm
  #3750  
 
Join Date: Feb 2016
Location: Northeastern United States
Posts: 597
Just a DP:

I was successful at using SS cards at multiple WMs today for MOs, Bill Pay, and the loading of GoBank and GO2BANK cards.
Prometheus77 is offline  


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