William LipovskyAmscot offers a range of financial services — including payday loans and check cashing — often 24 hours a day. Payday loans are a specific type of cash advance where, if you have regular employment, you can get a short term cash loan which must be paid back with interest on your next scheduled payday. It’s worth noting that while these loans don’t require a credit check or collateral, they have very high interest rates and can lead to a cycle of debt. For more details, see our research on types of loans you can get.
See below for the details of how Amscot’s payday loan process works. To find this information, we viewed Amscot’s website and confirmed the details by calling its customer service department.
Table of Contents
Amscot’s Loan Policy
Costs
Cash advances are known to have high costs. At Amscot, the APR varies based on the loan amount, but it can be anywhere from about 270% to 365%. There is also a fee of 10% of the amount borrowed plus a $2 service fee.
Requirements
You must apply in person at an Amscot location, and you must be a Florida resident to apply. Requirements include:
- Proof of income (pay stubs, direct deposit confirmations, or bank statements)
- Government-issued photo ID
- Phone number
- Checkbook or bank statement with account information
For subsequent advances, you will not need to provide proof of income unless your income has changed or Amscot is unable to verify the information it has on file for you.
After providing ID and proof of income, you’ll need to fill out a short application. Once it is approved, you’ll sign a loan agreement and provide a post-dated check that coincides with your next scheduled payday. Amscot will hold the post-dated check until that date (up to 31 days). The post-dated check must equal the entire loan amount plus the required fees — for example, $112 for a $100 cash advance.
Limits
You may borrow money in $50 increments up to $500 per pay period. The amount you can borrow is determined based on income, pay schedule, and other information you provide to Amscot.
By law, you may only receive one payday loan per pay period — so you won’t be able to get a cash advance at Amscot if you currently have a cash advance at another money center. If you are a returning customer, you must wait at least 24 hours after paying off an Amscot cash advance to apply for another one. If you change your mind after taking out a payday loan, you have until the end of the next business day to return the advance with no additional cost to you.
Repayment
To repay your loan, you’ll need to return to Amscot on the day your cash advance is due. Once you pay off the full amount of your loan, Amscot will return the post-dated check to you. If you don’t return to Amscot to repay the loan in person, the post-dated check will be cashed and serve as your loan repayment.
If you’re unable to repay your cash advance by your next payday, you may be eligible for Amscot’s Grace Period and/or Extended Payment Plan. Contact your nearest Amscot as soon as you know you’ll be unable to repay the loan; an associate will discuss your options with you.
Maria R. Riegger, Esq.
Katharine Paljug
Lindsey Desmet
Caitlin Troutt
Kait Scirri
Erika Crawford
Cathy Desmet
Loren Eaton
Joseph Cho
I have an old loan from amscot from a couple of years ago. I owe $100. After that is paid off and I wait my 24 hours will I be able to get another loan or is there a chance I will get declined because I wasn’t able to pay off my old loan for such a long period of time.
Hi Jessica,
While we can’t say for certain, leaving a balance on an Amscot loan for this length of time will likely prevent you from securing another loan through them. However, according to Amscot, “There is a required 24 hour waiting period after you pay off or terminate a cash advance before you are able to obtain a new cash advance.” The website does not specifically address unpaid cash advances. We contacted Amscot but haven’t receive a response from them yet. We will let you know when we hear back from them.
What happens if the payroll check I cashed bounces? My coworkers say their checks did not clear their banks!
Hi Casher,
If you cash your check through a check cashing company and it bounces, the check cashing company will come to you for the money. Request another check from your employer (or a cashier’s check if you think it may bounce again) to pay the check cashing company.
I want to get a 1500 dollar loan but , how much do you have to make to be able to that loan for billa i need paid ?
Hi, Ashley, Amscot doesn’t give loans of $1500, their max is $500. They can only tell you whether you are eligible in-store after you fill out appropriate forms (there’s two, and they are short). You’ll need to show a verified source of recurring income and an active checking account. You also need to be over 18 years old and provide an ID that proves this. This type of loan — cash advance or payday loan — probably isn’t the best option for you, because they are usually limited to small quantities, almost always under $1000, by state law. So, they won’t cover your $1,500 bill.
Can you get a pay advance if you’ve only had your checking account for a couple of days?
Hi Sfender,
Provided you have already received checks with your checking account and you can provide proof of employment, you should be able to get a cash advance at most cash advance stores, including Amscot.
Hello I’ve already went to Amscot and applied for a small amount of cash advance and got it. If I want to borrow the same amount do I have to go over to Amscot with all my documents again such as paystubs, bank account, etc.?
Great question, Lover! We contacted Amscot about this and were told that Amscot does keep your information on file. You will need to show your photo ID, but you will not need to provide additional documents unless your income has changed or Amscot is unable to verify the information on it has on file for you. Keep in mind that your previous cash advance must be paid off, and you must wait at least 24 hours after paying off an advance to apply for another one. We have updated our article to include this information. Best of luck!
Can I pay back a loan before the due date. And how long would I have to wait until I could do another cash advance.
Hi Alicia,
When you take an Amscot payday loan, you will be required to write a check that is postdated according to your next payday. The loan is repaid once this date is reached and Amscot cashes the check you wrote to them. Once this loan is repaid, you can apply for another payday loan. You cannot take more than one payday loan at one time.
Can I use my prepaid account if I get my paycheck direct deposited to it? It has its own account and routing numbers and receive a monthly statement but the checking account number is not on the statement its on a separate page.
Hi Cindy,
We checked on this for you through Amscot. According to their website, you can reload your card through direct deposit! You can read more about it here:
https://secure-amscot.pd.gpsrv.com/home/faq#q9
Thanks! But part of my questions got cut off before I sent it. It should say Can I use my prepaid account for a payday cash advance if my paycheck is direct deposited to it?
Hi Cindy,
Unfortunately, most paycheck cash advance companies will require you to have a valid checking account that provides you with paper checks.
Can I repay my AMSCOT loan using my VISA credit card? Thank you
Hi Irene,
While I did find that Amscot accepts Visa credit cards for certain types of transactions, I wasn’t able to verify that these cards are accepted specifically to repay a loan. It will be best to contact your local Amscot store to find out about the repayment policies at that branch. You can find the contact information for any Amscot location using the Amscot store finder. I hope this helps!
Can you have your employment check direct deposited in mascot and then cash it in afterwards?
Hi Ron,
Just to be sure I understand, do you mean having the direct deposit made to the Amscot MasterCard? If you have your paycheck direct deposited to the Amscot MasterCard, you can use an ATM to get cash off of the card. The fee for a cash withdrawal is $2.50 at a non-Amscot ATM, plus any fee charged by the ATM owner. I hope this helps!
If I pay an advance off, can I take out another advance the same day?
Hi Tony,
The Amscot FAQs page states the following: “There is a required 24 hour waiting period after you pay off or terminate a cash advance before you are able to obtain a new cash advance.” Based on this, it sounds as though you’ll need to wait one full day after you pay off the first advance before you can receive a new one. I hope this helps!
I use Amscot often for money orders, and never had an issue. Tonight I went in to purchase some and the guy tried to have me fill out a personal info form and asked to see my drivers license. When I asked why he needed all of that, he said it was because I went over the amount that didn’t need and id. I said, ok, what is that amount? He said he couldn’t tell me, it was against policy. I then asked for 2 smaller money orders and he told me that I couldn’t have them without filling out the form. So, my question is, at what dollar amount do they start hassling their customers for id? I don’t understand why he couldn’t tell me that, and, I also don’t understand why I couldn’t purchase 2 small ones, totaling less than $100.00 without filling out the form and letting him have my drivers license info…..thanks
Hi,
Amscot’s official policy is to ask for a photo ID with any transaction. This requirement is to comply with federal standards for financial services. Amscot also says that store associates “may ask” for a wide variety of other identifying information, including street address, social security number, occupation details, and more. There’s no published policy for exactly when these extra details will be needed or at what dollar amount they become necessary — so it sounds like it may be somewhat up to an individual store or associate’s discretion. You can read more about Amscot’s I.D. verification policy here. Sorry I couldn’t give you a more concrete answer!