Update 10/3/24: Extended until 12/31/24.
Update 7/6/24: Bonus has been increased to $300 again. Still has targeted language but shows in google search result.
Update 6/23/24: Bonus is back, $250 again. Still has targeted language but shows in google search result. Hat tip to kas141
Update 4/8/23: Bonus now up to $300
Update 2/19/22: Available again.
Update 9/24/21: Available again, still has targeted language. Should show up if you do the following search ‘https://www.google.com/search?q=fulton+%24200‘. Hat tip to reader Gadget
Update 7/15/21: New link now available. Does have targeted language ‘To be eligible for this offer, you must have accessed this page via a direct communication (email or digital ad) from Fulton Bank.’
Update 2/1/21: Deal is back for 2021. Hat tip to kas141
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $250
- Availability: DE, MD, NJ, PA, DC & VA only. May need to live in one of the counties
- Direct deposit required: Optional
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft. Make sure to opt out of overdraft protection
- ChexSystems: Yes.
- Credit card funding: Up to
$500$50 - Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: None
- Household limit:
One (is enforced/isn’t enforced (2))None - Expiration date:
None ListedDecember 31, 2021December 31, 2022
Contents
The Offer
- Fulton Bank is offering a bonus of up to $300:
- Earn $300 when you open a Relationship Banking checking account online and within 60 days of account opening:
- Set up a recurring direct deposit totaling at least $500.
Earn $200 when you open a Simply Checking account online and within 60 days of account opening do one of the following:Set up a recurring direct deposit totaling at least $500. ORUse your contactless debit card to make a purchase at least 15 times, spending $300 or more in total purchases. This includes in-store and online purchases.Earn an extra $50 when you open a Simply Checking account and when you also open a Statement Savings5 account online and deposit at least $1,000 in new money within 60 days. Just select Statement Savings within the “Your Offers” page during the online account opening process.
- Earn $300 when you open a Relationship Banking checking account online and within 60 days of account opening:
The Fine Print
- This offer is valid for new consumer checking account customers only that have not had a checking account with any affiliate of Fulton Financial Corporation within the last 24 months.
- Promotion is limited to one cash bonus per person.
- If multiple accounts are opened for the same owner, only the first account will be eligible for the bonus.
- Fulton Financial Corporation employees and immediate family members sharing a household are not eligible.
- May not be combined with any other offer.
- Offer may be withdrawn without notice.
- Customers are responsible for possible tax implications.
- 25 minimum deposit to open a checking account online.
- This offer is valid when you open a new Simply Checking account and complete a minimum of 15 debit card purchases within 60 days after account opening (transactions must be posted to the account within the 60 day timeframe); or, set up recurring direct deposit in the cumulative amount of $250 or more within 60 days after account opening.
- The direct deposit must post to your account within this timeframe and is limited to Social Security, pension, payroll, or unemployment. $200 cash bonus will be credited to your checking account four to six weeks after the conditions above have been met.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
- Simply checking has no monthly fees to worry about
- Relationship Banking has a $20 monthly fee
- $5,000 minimum daily balance and one customer-initiated transaction posted each statement cycle OR
- $25,000 combined deposit and investment balance for the primary or secondary account owner on the last day of the statement cycle and one customer-initiated transaction6 posted each statement cycle
Early Account Termination Fee
I can find no references to an early account termination fee on their website.
Our Verdict
Previous best bonus was $150. This is an extra $50 for the same requirements. Definitely think this is worth doing if you live in a targeted area, I’ll be adding this to our list of the best checking account bonuses.
Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:
- A Beginners Guide To Bank Account Bonuses
- Bank Account Quick Reference Table (Spreadsheet) (very useful for sorting bonuses by different parameters)
- PSA: Don’t Call The Bank
- Introduction To ChexSystems
- Banks & Credit Unions That Are ChexSystems Inquiry Sensitive
- What Banks & Credit Unions Do/Don’t Pull ChexSystems?
- How To Use Our Direct Deposit Page For Bank Bonuses Page
- Common Bank Bonus Misconceptions + Why You Should Give Them A Go
- How Many Bank Accounts Can I Safely Open Within A Year For Bank Bonus Purposes?
- Affiliate Links & Bank Bonuses – We Won’t Be Using Them
- Complete List Of Ways To Close Bank Accounts At Each Bank
- Banks That Allow/Don’t Allow Out Of State Checking Applications
- Bank Bonus Posting Times
Disregard my prior post, bonus posted today with only a direct deposit from the IRS back on February 12th.
IRS Direct Deposit’s do not count for bonus unfortunately, confirmed by rep today. Time to send another $500 in and keep waiting…
The given link ends with,
gclid=Cj0KCQiA4-y8BhC3ARIsAHmjC_EVi0WWdcJBHw3uI-GUJzXLbOMUFB-uX4o7QiSnewecoL93-Gd3JVUaAr9zEALw_wcB
When I searched for fulton bank promo in Google after disable all adblockers, my link ends with this,
gclid=EAIaIQobChMIvtGm_e7GiwMV_UL_AR3VESGJEAAYASAAEgJRQvD_BwE
or something else depending on what browser.
Also Doc’s link has adgroupid=153621843304 and mine has adgroupid=147014599819.
Does anyone know if this matters?
I wasnt targeted and still got the bonus. Was thinking of doing this for P2 but now when searching fulton bank bonus on google I no longer see their ads popping up. hope that doesnt mean they can enforce the targeted language
This bonus back and valid until 4/30/25
I received my $300 in December, no issues to report as everything went smoothly and I received my payout within 3-weeks of opening my account.
However, I did receive my 1099-INT from them in the last week or so, and instead of reporting $300 they only reported $3.00 of interest paid to me.
On the one hand I should not complain for them unintentionally saving me a few bucks, unless their mistake involves eventually issuing me a corrected 1099 after I file my tax return. On the other hand, it’s not a good impression on the bank’s competencies.
I contacted the bank today (Tuesday) about the 1099 issue. First line customer service person I spoke to wasn’t really informed and took the position that the bank bonus was not taxable interest. They acknowledged to me that they have been getting A LOT of calls about this since yesterday. They will be reissuing 1099s of course but have no timeline.
Guidance is to report the correct number if you intend to file early
Same here, got a 1099-INT showing $3 instead of $300. I just got an email from the bank saying they’re sending out a corrected tax form.
We will be sending you a corrected Form 1099-INT for use in filing your 2024 taxes.
We have identified an error on the Form 1099-INT we originally sent to you. Payment(s) you received from promotional offer(s) were incorrectly reported on our previously issued Form 1099-INT.
We will send you a corrected 2024 Form 1099-INT as soon as possible. For any tax-related questions, please consult your tax advisor.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.
P2 applied with an MD zip code on 01/30/2025 and was approved
P2 chex stats at the time of the Fulton Bank approval were: 1/1, 4/3, 9/6, 12/12, 15/24
This is interesting because on 11/30/2024 P2 was denied due to chex and the stats are almost identical. At that time P2s chex stats were: 2/1, 3/3, 8/6, 13/12, 13/24
Does this mean that Fulton Bank doesn’t care what your Chex #s are as long as you are at 0/1 or 1/1?
To further verify this stat: P2 was denied on 12/31/2023 and the chex stats were 2/1, 2/3, 2/6, 2/12, and 2/24
That implies that is true, but would need more people in the same situation for it to be more conclusive.
Or, wait until P2 is at 1/1 (not counting Fulton), try again, and see what happens.
Che
P1 also can back up this data a little bit.
I applied for Fulton Bank on 12/31/2023 and was approved.
My chex stats were: 1/1, 5/3, 7/6, 7/12, 8/24
and P2 was just approved yesterday at 1/1.
So I have 4 different data points of when me or P2 have applied to this account – 2 with higher chex number and 2 with lower chex numbers. Both approvals came when P1 and P2 were at 1/1. Denials came when chex was higher than 1/1.
Sounds pretty convincing & something to be aware of.
Updated link
$300 Checking Offer | Fulton Bank
Did anyone receive the 1099-INT from Fulton? I got it for $3.00 instead of $300.00
Yes! Both me and P2. Online chat was useless told me to call a local branch. Tried the 1800 number on the form, gave up after 15 min on hold. Then I called a local branch and someone took down my info and would have their manager call me back. I’ll report back here.
Someone obviously keyed in 3 0 0 not realizing that cents were included.
Is this their mistake and we are not liable for more??
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.
Called 8003858664, and they started to process a correction for my account, then after a brief period on hold I was told they are aware of the error and will be issuing corrected forms in bulk, but could not give me a timeline for when I would get the corrected form. Fortunately for this bonus it’s a simple straight up $300, so I can report it and not have to wait for the corrected form to file.
I closed my Fulton accounts in 2023. I got a 2024 1099-INT for $2.50. Ugh.
I just recieved one as well, closed my account in 2023
Same thing happened to P1 and P2. Earned bonuses 11/2023, closed accounts 2/2024 and got 1099s for $2.50. Received email last week about sending out a corrected 1099. I sure hope they aren’t for $250 because that occurred in 2023, not 2024. P1 and P2 received 1099s from 2023.
P1 and P2 both got 1099s with $2.50, we applied before it went up.
12/19/24 Account Opened
12/24/24 Transfer $500 from Chase Biz
1/22/25 Transfer $501 from Chase Biz
…..nothing yet