Terms state ‘Offer only available to intended recipient and non-transferable’ so probably targeted.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300-$800
- Availability:
- OK, IL, KS & MO only, If you don’t live within 50 miles of a branch you won’t be eligible for the offer (it’ll let you sign up and then they will later close your account) [Branch locator]
- Direct deposit required: Yes, two direct deposits or more totaling $800-$10,000
- Additional requirements: See below
- Hard/soft pull: Soft
- ChexSystems: Unknown
- Credit card funding: Can fund up to $1,000 with a credit card. Mastercard & Visa are accepted
- Monthly fees: $5, avoidable
- Early account termination fee: Unknown
- Household limit: One
- Expiration date: December 31, 2025
Contents
The Offer
- Central Bank is offering a bonus of $300-$800 when you open a new checking account (except free checking) with promo code STEP
- A $50 minimum balance and two or more direct deposits 90 days after account opening totaling:
- $800 to $9,999.99 to earn the $300
- or $10,000 or more to earn the $800 bonus.
- A $50 minimum balance and two or more direct deposits 90 days after account opening totaling:
The Fine Print
- To receive a bonus, you must: (1) open and maintain any personal checking account except Free Checking. (2) Deposit $50 or more at account opening, and (3) have at least two or more direct deposits within 90 days of account opening that total; $800 to $9,999.99 to earn the $300 bonus or $10,000 or more to earn the $800 bonus.
- Minimum balance of $50 required 90 days after account opening to receive bonus.
- Qualifying types of Direct Deposits include any direct deposit from Payroll, Pension or Government Benefit. Bonuses are reported to the IRS as interest.
- Bonuses will be deposited into the checking account within 15 business days after account(s) 1) meets all requirements AND 2) has been open for 90 days
- . Available to new checking account customers only.
- Offer is not available to those whose accounts have been closed with a negative balance within the last 2 years.
- You will receive only one new checking account opening related bonus every two years from the last date incentive was paid.
- Only one bonus per household.
- Customer must bring in mailer or use offer code to receive incentive.
- Offer may only be redeemed by the intended recipient and is nontransferable.
- Eligibility for this offer will be verified prior to providing the bonus.
- The new checking account must be open and in good standing on the date any earned bonus is paid.
- We reserve the right not to open accounts for customers outside our market area. Please contact us for further details. Promotion ends 12/31/2025.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
MyChoice checking has a $5 monthly fee. To avoid the monthly fee – you must receive electronic statements and one of the following:
- Maintain a minimum daily balance of $2500.00 per statement cycle; or
- Maintain a recurring cumulative direct deposit of $500.00 per statement cycle; or
- Use your debit card at least 20 times for a point of sale (POS) transaction (transaction only counts if it has posted to the account during the monthly cycle; or
- The primary account holder is under the age of 25.
- Requirements to avoid the monthly maintenance fee will be effective the statement cycle following the primary account holder’s 25th birthday.
You can also waive your monthly maintenance fee by maintaining $25,000.00 average daily balance in all deposit accounts with the same primary account holder (Checking, Savings, Money Market, or Certificate of Deposit) for the statement cycle.
Early Account Termination Fee
I wasn’t able to find a fee schedule so I’m unsure if there is an early account termination fee.
Our Verdict
If you’re doing the $300 offer, you’re better off with the old offer as the free checking account is eligible. Obviously the $800 offer is much much better if you can meet the direct deposit requirement and we will add this to our best checking bonus page.
Hat tip to reader JD
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
