[NY only] Summit Federal Credit Union Up To $150 Checking Bonus – Direct Deposit Not Required

Update 9/11/22: Deal is back. Hat tip to alopez14

Update 3/26/22: Deal is back, this time you can only order one debit card so maximum is $150 instead of $300.

Offer at a glance

  • Maximum bonus amount: $150
  • Availability: NY only (branch locator). Must live, work, worship, volunteer, or attend school in the geographic boundaries of the City of Rochester, City of Bualo, City of Syracuse, City of Geneva, City of Tonawanda, Town of Henrietta, Town of Amherst, Town of Tonawanda, or Cortland County
  • Direct deposit required: None
  • Additional requirements: 20 debit card transactions
  • Hard/soft pull: Soft pull
  • ChexSystems: Unknown
  • Credit card funding: Unknown
  • Monthly fees: $5, avoidable
  • Early account termination fee: Account must remain open through 9/30/19
  • Household limit: None
  • Expiration date: None listed, but must complete debit card transactions by May 31st, 2019

The Offer

Direct link to offer

  • Summit Federal Credit Union is offering a bonus of $150 when you open a new checking account and complete the following requirements:
    • Request debit card by September 30th
    • Make 20 debit card purchases

The Fine Print

  • Offer limited to members that have not had a debit card in the past 12 months. Limited to 2 cardholders per account (up to $300 maximum with Premium Checking or $150 maximum with Enhanced Checking).
  • To receive the $150 bonus with Premium Checking or $75 with Enhanced Checking, you must order a new debit card between 2/4/19 and 3/31/19, have 20 point-of-sale transactions post to your account by 5/31/19 and the card and account must remain open through 9/30/19.
  • Please allow 4-6 weeks after meeting qualifications to receive your gift.
  • Cash bonus will be reported and you will receive IRS Form 1099-INT.
  • Any applicable taxes are the responsibility of the member.
  • Offer subject to change at any time at our sole discretion without notice.
  • The Account Maintenance Fee is waived if you meet certain conditions. See branch for details.
  • All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

Monthly Fees

Premium checking account (required for the $150 bonus) has a $5 monthly fee. This is waived if you have a daily balance of $1,000 or more.

Early Account Termination Fee

Account must remain open through 9/30/19, otherwise it looks like the bonus will be forfeit.

Our Verdict

Seems like an amazing offer, especially if you can do it twice per account for a total bonus of $300. It’s not clear if you’ll be able to open via phone/online or if you eventually need to go in branch. Definitely worth doing if it’s a soft pull, if anybody goes for this bonus then please share your experiences in the comments below.

Big thanks to reader, Curmudgeon who let us know. Learn how to find bonuses and contribute to the site here.

Useful posts regarding bank bonuses:

View Comments (35)

  • Chex Systems sensitive. I got declined 'notice of adverse action: we are unable to accomodate your request to open a deposit account with our institution at this time. Consumer reporting agency: Chex Systems Inc.'

  • @Will: Direct link to offer

    Page not Found
    It looks like nothing was found at this location. Please use the searchbox below or contact us for further assistance.

  • Did a real bad job of paying attention to my account, so didn't notice when bonuses hit.
    Bonus one hit after P1+P2 transactions=20 (in our case 13+7). Bonus two hit after P1+P2 transactions=40. Not 20 on P1, and then 20 on P2.

    Additionally, a couple of our first twenty transactions did not code as debit (no PIN, shows up as "withdrawal" instead of "withdrawal XXXXXX"). So those do count. Makes me wonder if I could have just hit Amazon for 20x$1 instead of self checkout with one lime multiple times.

    All in all, was more work than it could have been. Hopefully others will profit from my mistakes.

  • Very cool. It's not often there's a region-specific bonus that applies to me. And the timing is perfect, I have an M&T account that just turned 180 days. So I can transfer the money parked there to keep this fee-free.

    Thanks Doc!! I'll let you know how it goes.

  • I don't know if this has been asked before but, will a P.O. box work for this? I have boxed in NY... but I live in another state. Will it not work?