In order to send payments directly from your bank account, you’ll need to verify it. This article can tell you how.
We also recommend taking the time to verify your bank account before you transfer funds to avoid any complications.
If you've entered the wrong account information, a couple of things could happen:
- Your bank will not be able to find your account and your bank transfer will fail. The money may be returned to us after a few days and put back into your Venmo account, but we cannot guarantee that will happen.
- If the bank does not return the transfer, the funds may be lost. Venmo is not responsible for lost transfers as a result of incorrect bank credentials. Your bank will be the best point of contact in this scenario.
There are two ways you can verify your bank account in Venmo:
I. Instant Verification
One way to verify your bank account is by providing the username and password that you use for online banking. Venmo uses Plaid to verify your bank account information and, periodically, your bank account balance to check if you have enough funds to cover certain transactions. If your bank is eligible for instant verification, you will be prompted to add your online banking username and password (or other identifying information) after you have selected your bank.
If you’re having any trouble with this, the best thing to do will be to reach out to your bank. In the meantime, you can always add your bank account manually using your routing and account number combination. Simply select “Manual Verification” instead of “Instant Verification” and you’ll be all set.
II. Microtransfers
When you add your bank account to Venmo manually (with your routing and account number), we'll send microtransfers to your bank account to verify ownership (these will be less than $1 each). When we issue these microtransfers to your account, we issue two small withdrawals and to offset those withdrawals we issue two small deposits simultaneously. To avoid any overdraft or other bank fees make sure you have at least $2 in your bank account.
You'll see these deposits/debits in your bank account within 1-3 business days as separate items on your bank statement. Once you do, you can visit www.venmo.com/verifybank to verify your bank account.
If you’re not seeing the amounts after 3 business days, it’s possible the bank account information may have been entered incorrectly. Please see this article for more information about the next steps.