[AL, FL, NJ, & NY Only] Valley National Bank $400 Checking Bonus

Update 8/20/24: Had this listed as AL, CT, D.C., MD, VA, WV, FL, NJ, NY, and PA Only but this is actually AL, FL, NJ, & NY. Online opening actually works nationwide by the looks of things but chexsystems sensitive online so most will need to head to a branch to get approved.

Offer at a glance

The Offer

Direct link to offer

  • Valley National Bank is offering a sign up bonus of $400 when you open a new Valley All Access Checking+ and completing the following requirements:
    • Receive two or more qualifying direct deposits with a cumulative total of $7,500 or more within 90 days of account opening

The Fine Print

  • Minimum to open is $100.
  • No monthly maintenance charge for 12 months from account opening.
  • After that, monthly maintenance charge of $15 will be incurred if daily balance of $99 is not maintained.
  • To receive the $400 reward, the account must receive two or more qualifying direct deposits with a cumulative total of $7,500 or more within the first 90 days from the date of account opening.
  • Qualifying direct deposits are defined as recurring payroll direct deposits or electronic deposits of pension or government benefits such as Social Security that are made by an employer or other payer using the account and routing numbers that you provide to them.
  • Transfers from one account to another, online or mobile banking deposits, or deposits made at a branch or ATM do not qualify as direct deposits.
  • This reward is being provided for the use of the product and services established.
  • The one-time $400 reward will be credited into your account within 30 days after: (1) the qualifying direct deposit requirement has been satisfied and (2) the account has been opened for a minimum of 90 days. Reward may be reportable as taxable income.
  • To be eligible for the cash reward, all account holders must have no other Valley personal checking accounts within the one-year period preceding the date of account opening.
  • The reward is limited to one per Valley All Access Checking+ account.
  • All subsequent checking accounts opened by the account holder(s) after the initial checking account will not be eligible for the promotional reward.
  • Offer may be withdrawn or modified without prior notice.
  • All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

Monthly Fees

$15 monthly fee:

  • Waived for first 12 months
  • After that, monthly maintenance charge of $15 will be incurred if daily balance of $99 is not maintained

Early Account Termination Fee

There is no early account termination fee.

Our Verdict

Unfortunately they are ChexSystems sensitive. This is a better offer than the $20 per month offered in the past. Worth doing if you have a low Chex count and maybe worth trying to do in branch with a higher count but I suspect most readers will be denied. We will add this to our best bonus page though.

Hat tip to Bank Account Bryan

Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
    William Charles
  • On August 20, 2024, 23:10
Tags: al bank bonusesdirect deposit requiredfl bank bonusesnj bank bonusesno credit card fundingny bank bonusessoft pull

View Comments (527)

  • Are you guys closing the account after getting the bonus?
    This is the closest bank to where I live so I am tempted to keep it. I also opened savings to do the SB offer. I keep some emergency money in savings so that I can transfer to checking and withdraw from the atm if needed.

    I dont like that after 12 months they force you to maintain $99 daily balance in checking but I guess better than what big banks force you to maintain

  • Data Point from OHIO:
    Opened 10/18/24
    3 Chase Biz ACH DDs totaling $7600 - last one 12/26/24
    $400 bonus appeared 1/21/25

    I keep my Chex frozen normally and thawed it a couple of times after I opened this to open other accounts but it was otherwise frozen. When I applied I thawed it and I had a lot of new accounts so YMMV.

    Leaving $100in there to avoid monthly fee until I close it.

    • Why leave $100 there?

      $15 monthly fee:

      • Waived for first 12 months
      • After that, monthly maintenance charge of $15 will be incurred if daily balance of $99 is not maintained

  • 8/27/2024 - Opened checking account
    9/11/2024 - $4k push from Chase Checking
    9/18/2024- $3,650 push from Chase Checking
    9/20/2024 - $4,000 push from Cap1 Savings
    10/1/2024 - $3,600 push from Cap1 Savings
    10/10/2024 - $4,000 push from Cap1 Checking
    10/16/2024 - $3,600 push from Cap1 Checking

    Bonus still hasn't posted after 147 days so I have zeroed out the account and requested they close the account via secure message. You win some, you lose some

  • I used Wise, and it worked for DD. 2 deposits 1-month apart totaling $7500. Worked on mine and p2 accounts.

      • Yes there are two ways to transfer and they have different costs.

        Push directly from your Wise USD account balance to Valley and it’s $1.13.

        Use Wise to pull from your account at another bank AND transfer to Valley it’s approx $2.75? flat fee PLUS .25% of the total

        Some say the second (more expensive) way gives a better chance as coding as PPD and qualifying for DD than the first(cheaper) way. Although barrytuneup says he just pushed from Wise and received the bonus. YMMV

        • I am novice when it comes to Wise, May I ask what is different/special when it comes to Wise compared to other banks? thanks
          @guest_1978833

          • Well first it’s not really a bank… more like a money transfer service. I’m not sure why it’s special it just seems to code as PPD and work as a simulated DD for a lot of banks paying bonuses for qualifying ACH transfers. I’ve only used it twice. Once for BMO (did work), and once for Valley (still waiting for payout date)

        • Do both code as ACH?

          I have a chase business account and can send an ACH. Wondering if that's a better option

          • I sent mine through Wise see my comment below for coding

            I don’t have one but seems likes it’s pretty rare that Chase Biz doesn’t work

  • I am waiting until I'm 2/6 on chex, but is it true that they close accounts for opening others afterwards? Someone on reddit said they heard this

      • definitely yes, and every time there is a new chex inquiry these clowns get notified and you will see soft inquiry from them. this bonus is a pain in the ass. I did this because they sent me a mailer and there is a branch about a block away but I didnt know about all this nonsense before opening mine

        • I'm currently using real DD's to get this promo and I'm not thrilled with this bank. External transfers are SLOW. I put in a request early on Friday and they don't deliver the money till Wednesday. I've got one more payroll and then I'm done.

          I guess I won't start any other bank promo until they pay out the bonus. LOL.

  • was able to close the account via SM. took a while for them to respond but they did it after 5 working days. bonus did not post for this, so closed after waiting for 132 days.

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