Venmo Offers Free Service For Cashing US Stimulus Checks Via App

Venmo, a mobile payments service, announced Monday (Jan. 4) it has launched a new Cash a Check feature — and that it will waive the fees for cashing stimulus paper checks for a limited time for “select customers” using its app.

“We’re always looking for new ways to make it easier for our community to access and manage their money, especially as people continue to experience financial hardships amidst the global pandemic,” said Darrell Esch, SVP and general manager for Venmo, which is owned by PayPal. “Having a safe way to access stimulus payments is essential for many of our customers, especially those who are receiving paper checks and traditionally would have to visit a physical check-cashing location,” he added.

In general, Venmo said, its Cash a Check feature allows select customers to cash checks and have them sent to a Venmo account. The way it works is that “eligible customers” in the U.S. can take a picture of the check they want to cash and send it for review using the Venmo app. The company added that, typically, the check approval process takes place in “a few seconds” and is soon put into the customer’s Venmo account.

In addition, last month, PayPal announced that it would allow customers to cash their next stimulus checks free of charge, according to a press release. PayPal said the checks would go through instantly on its app’s cash-a-check feature — and that it would waive the usual check-cashing fees for the stimulus checks.

At the time, John Kunze, PayPal’s senior vice president of branded experiences, said that when the first U.S. stimulus payments were sent out in the spring, “an incredible number of customers” were looking to PayPal as a way to receive their stimulus payments.

PayPal’s third-quarter results saw record transactions and new customer enrollments. The company said total payment volume rose 36 percent to $247 billion. Venmo also reported its best quarter ever in terms of payments volume, with a 61 percent increase from the same period the previous year.