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Hill Street Studios/Getty Images July 25, 2022 Nicole Dieker has been a full-time freelance writer since 2012—and a personal finance enthusiast since 2004, when she graduated from college and, looking for financial guidance, found a battered copy of Your Money or Your Life at the public library. In addition to writing for Bankrate, her work has appeared on CreditCards.com, Vox, Lifehacker, Popular Science, The Penny Hoarder, The Simple Dollar and NBC News. Dieker spent five years as writer and editor for The Billfold, a personal finance blog where people had honest conversations about money. Dieker also teaches writing, freelancing and publishing classes and works one-on-one with authors as a developmental editor and copyeditor. Bankrate logo The Bankrate promise
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A balance transfer check is a paper check provided by a credit card issuer. As the name implies, a balance transfer check allows you to from one credit card to another. Instead of making a direct online transfer, you’ll write a check against one credit card so you can pay off another card’s balance. How do balance transfer checks work
Balance transfer checks work a lot like . Both allow you to transfer a balance from one credit account to another. Also in both cases, the amount you transfer cannot exceed your . This means the balance you transfer to your credit card cannot take you over your total credit limit on that card. Let’s consider this example: Credit Card A comes with free balance transfer checks. You decide to use one of your balance transfer checks to pay off a $1,000 credit card balance you’re currently carrying on Credit Card B. You make your balance transfer check out for $1,000 and use it to make a payment against Card B. At that point, Card B’s balance is cleared out — but Card A has $1,000 added to its balance (plus any associated balance transfer fees) since you just used a balance transfer check to borrow $1,000 from Card A to pay off Card B. That’s how a balance transfer check can help you and manage your credit card balances. If Credit Card A offers than Credit Card B, transferring a balance to Credit Card A could save you a lot of money in interest charges. Take the time to do the math with to determine the amount of time you’ll need to pay off your debt. Things to consider before using a balance transfer check
Both balance transfer checks and balance transfer credit cards often come with . This means you’ll pay a fee for every balance you transfer, often in the form of a percentage of the transferred balance. Most balance transfer credit cards charge fees that range between 3 percent and 5 percent, which means you’ll pay between $30 and $50 in fees for every $1,000 you transfer. Balance transfer checks can have significantly higher balance transfer fees than balance transfer cards, so it’s important to consult the fees section of your credit card agreement before using them. Another reason to read the fine print before using a balance transfer check is to find out your and whether you’ll get to take advantage of any introductory APR promotions. While the best balance transfer credit cards offer a 0 percent intro APR on balance transfers for a year or more, not all balance transfer checks offer the same benefit. If your balance transfer checks don’t include a 0 percent intro APR period, you’ll start paying interest on your balance as soon as it’s transferred. You should also make sure you’re dealing with a balance transfer check and not a , which allows you to take out a against your credit card. While you can use a cash advance to pay off credit card debt, convenience checks typically come with high APRs and significant cash advance fees. Knowing the difference between a balance transfer check and a convenience check can help you avoid making an expensive mistake. How to request a balance transfer check by issuer
Each credit card issuer has its own method of issuing balance transfer checks. Some credit card issuers, such as Citi, preemptively mail balance transfer checks to eligible cardholders. Other issuers allow you to request balance transfer checks — if you want Chase balance transfer checks, for example, you can request your checks online or over the phone. If you are considering one of these issuers, here are our picks for the best and . In some cases, issuers may not offer balance transfer checks at all. Neither Capital One nor American Express currently offer balance transfer checks, although both issuers still allow cardholders to complete a balance transfer online. If you are leaning more towards one of these issuers, here are our picks for the best and . Here s how three major credit card issuers handle balance transfer checks
ISSUER CHASE BANK OF AMERICA CITIBANK Balance transfer check policy Request a balance transfer check online or with a customer service specialist Request up to three balance transfers at once Receive a balance transfer check from Citi in the mail Transfer amount No more than $15,000 within a 30-day period Total amount requested can’t exceed your credit limit Total amount requested can’t exceed your credit limit Additional notes — Balance transfer checks are treated the same as a direct deposit cash advance You cannot request a check online or over the phone Is using a balance transfer check right for you
If your balance transfer check offers benefits on par with today’s best balance transfer credit cards, then using it to consolidate debt and can be a good idea. On the other hand, balance transfer checks that come with high fees and high balance transfer APRs are rarely your best choice — especially because there are likely many balance transfer credit cards offering lower fees and better terms. Alternatives to balance transfers
Balance transfer checks aren’t your only option for . If you’re not interested in using a transfer check or balance transfer card to pay off debt, you might want to consider other popular debt repayment methods, such as the or . You could also use a to pay off your credit card or work with a to learn how to create a budget, consolidate your debts and more. Want more debt guidance? Use Bankrate’s to discover tools that can help you manage your debt, including , advice on whether to pursue debt settlement and tips on how to repair your credit. The bottom line
Balance transfer checks can help you consolidate your credit card debt and pay off old balances — but not all offer the same terms as today’s . In some cases, using a balance transfer check to pay off debt will be less cost-effective than applying for a balance transfer credit card. SHARE: Nicole Dieker has been a full-time freelance writer since 2012—and a personal finance enthusiast since 2004, when she graduated from college and, looking for financial guidance, found a battered copy of Your Money or Your Life at the public library. In addition to writing for Bankrate, her work has appeared on CreditCards.com, Vox, Lifehacker, Popular Science, The Penny Hoarder, The Simple Dollar and NBC News. Dieker spent five years as writer and editor for The Billfold, a personal finance blog where people had honest conversations about money. Dieker also teaches writing, freelancing and publishing classes and works one-on-one with authors as a developmental editor and copyeditor. Related Articles