Paypal Key Will Stop Allowing American Express Cards As Funding Option (Beginning January 4)

A lot of us enjoy Paypal Key as a means of using their preferred credit card at any vendor, you can read our full review on Paypal Key in this post. Unfortunately, Paypal just sent out an email with an upcoming change that will no longer allow the use of American Express cards as a funding method for Paypal Key. The change will take effect on January 4, 2021.

Thank you for being a PayPal Key customer. We’ve been piloting this feature with select customers in the U.S. After January 4, 2021, American Express cards can no longer be used with PayPal Key. The good news is you can change your PayPal Key payment method to your bank account, debit card, or a different credit card.

You can still use Visa or Mastercard credit cards, but this obviously is a major limiting factor in the usefulness of Paypal Key.

View Comments (59)

  • Does anyone know any alternative to PayPal Key for this purpose? I need a way to turn my AmEx card into a Visa or Mastercard and I'm stuck @chucksithe

  • Can anyone still link Amex cards to PPK?
    I tried wanting to use before Jan 4th. But I couldn't link a new Amex card to PPK today.

    It already does not allow to link Amex cards anymore???

  • Can you still add Amex gift cards to PPK until the cutoff date? Was hoping to pay the electric bill.

  • It's a little ambiguous from their letter, but do you know if this a ban on Amex issued cards, or Amex network cards? That would give a ton of insight as to who got mad.

    If it's only a ban on Amex issued cards (i.e BCP, BBP, Gold, etc) then it suggest Amex was unhappy about rewards abuse and plastiq.

    If it's a ban on Amex network cards (i.e also third party like WF Propel, Schwab etc) then it suggest paypal was unhappy with the fees from debit to credit conversion on Amex network cards.

  • Is paying a single $$$$ tax bill with AmEx / Paypal key before January safe? Don’t want to annoy AmEx – just interested in the lower debit card transaction fee for a single q4 estimated tax payment.

  • Any DP's on recent success using PPK with Amex to pay taxes? Pay1040 will not see it as debit, the other 2 processors do see as debit. $5k, $2999, $2500 all declined for me.

    • Tied to a non-Amex card, I just had Pay1040 come up as credit on two different Paypal Keys, and Official Payments got declined at two different dollar amounts :-/

      Bitter irony if this is dead -- been procrastinating doing this for 6 weeks, and I try within 24 hours of it dying?

    • I just tried today. Pay1040 still sees mine as debit but 3000 won’t pass (I passes a 3000 a month ago). Tried payusatax and it didn’t pass either.

  • I tried adding my PayPal Key MasterCard to the new Google pay app and it says it wouldn't work or supported by my bank. Any thoughts or input since I've read that some people have been successful in adding PayPal key to Google pay. I guess using American Express is out of the question from now on.

    • PPK has never worked with Google Pay in store/NFC. You can add it to your Google Pay options for online transactions, but that's it.

      • Yeah. It is a legit way to pay rent and get a bonus also. Finished my Amex gold bonus with just a 20$ fee from my renter.