Deal has expired, view the best current checking bonuses by clicking here.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $250
- Availability: TN, GA, AL. Must live near a branch otherwise opening a checking account won’t be possible
- Direct deposit required: Yes, $300+
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Soft pull
- ChexSystems: Unknown, sensitive
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: None
- Household limit: None
- Expiration date:
April 29th, 2019June 28th, 2019
Contents
The Offer
- FirstBank is offering a bonus of $250 when you open a new checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Use promo code 250BONUS (this is not auto filled. Need to add it on the fourth page of signing up).
- Keep the account in good standing for 60 days
- Have a single monthly direct deposit of at least $300 after 60 days of account opening (looks like the account just needs to be in good standing for 60 days, the direct deposit can be before the 60 day period)
The Fine Print
- Offer extended February 15, 2019 thru April 29, 2019.
- This offer may be modified or cancelled at any time.
- To receive the $250 opening bonus: Open a new eligible FirstBank consumer checking account (eligible accounts are highlighted at FirstBankOnline.com/250Bonus).
- Keep the account in good standing for 60 days.
- Have a single monthly ACH direct deposit of at least $300 after 60 days of account opening date.
- Complete all requirements on or before October 31, 2019.
- Customers with an existing FirstBank checking account are not eligible for this bonus offer.
- You must not have closed a FirstBank checking account within 180 days of the offer start date (February 15, 2019).
- Limit one (1) bonus per customer.
- Enrollment and participation in this promotion does not automatically guarantee eligibility.
- Bonus Processing: After meeting the bonus qualification requirements, the $250 account opening bonus will be credited to the new FirstBank checking account up to eight (8) weeks after all qualifications are met.
- The $250 bonus will appear on the monthly checking account statement when the bonus is credited to the account holder’s checking account.
- The bonus is limited to one (1) per customer.
- If a bonus is earned it will be reported to the IRS as interest, in the year received, as required by applicable law and will be reported on IRS form 1099-MISC for the year received. Customer is responsible for any applicable taxes and consulting a tax advisor.
- For additional fees, see our FirstBank Consumer Schedule of Fees. This offer is non-transferable and may not be combined with any other offers.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
Essential checking account has no monthly fees to worry about as long as you opt for paperless statements.
Early Account Termination Fee
I wasn’t able to find any mention of an early account termination fee in the fee schedule.
Our Verdict
Seems like a good deal considering it’s a soft pull and there are no monthly fees to worry about. It’s annoying that you need to live near a branch to have the option to open a checking account but this deal is still worth doing if you’re eligible. I’ll add this to our best checking bonus page. If anybody has any specific experience with this bank then please share your experiences in the comments.
Hat tip to reader Andrew D
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
Data point in case this comes back. Transfer from USAA savings account seemed to trigger the bonus for me. I tried an Ally savings account for my wife’s account and that didn’t trigger. I’ve followed up with an actual employer DD on her account.
I opened this account on 3/29 and made an employer DD of $305 on 4/15. Still no bonus. :/
I think their system was set up to give the bonus after recurring deposits even though the terms say “single monthly direct deposit” not “recurring deposits.” I have sent them an email but gotten no reply. I’m going to CFPB this one
Just spoke with a bank rep who told me that there had been a lot of “internal confusion” about how this offer was supposed to work! Contrary to what I was told by a rep when I asked about the offer wording when I applied for the account, she said only DDs that post AFTER the 60 day mark will trigger the bonus. Those who did recurring DDs covered all bases. For those of us who did a single deposit… we are all still eligible, just do it again and the bonus will post within 8 weeks (the rep said usually much faster than that).
William Charles sorry for relaying the first rep’s misinformation to me… you may want to update the post?
DP x 2 (me + P2)
3/18 Account opened
4/5 employer DD $301 (did not trigger bonus)
5/17 60 days open
7/12 employer DD $301
7/18 $250 “Big Rewards Cash” posted
Thank you Katie for following up with that info. I had all but given up on this but will setup new DDs and see what happens!
Denied due to Chex. Around 20 opened accounts in last 12 months
My $250 bonus posted on June 18th.
Just checked my account, got the bonus too. About 2 months for me and almost 3 months for my mom’s account. Used local credit union and discover savings for DDs. Both worked just as i expected.
I opened account on 4/18. Been doing $325 auto ach from my local credit union biweekly ever since. Got bonus on 6/18. My mom’s account opened on 3/18, and $300 auto ach from discover every month ever since. She received bonus on 6/12. Hope this helps.
Thanks,
Lily, that is helpful. Now I’m worried. My husband and I opened March 18 and had an employer DD of 301 on 4/5. Neither of us have gotten the bonus yet. I was expecting it to post with statement close on 6/18. I did not make these DDs recurring since the language says “have a single direct deposit.”
If any of the more experienced readers here have any advice on how to proceed, I’d be grateful for tips. I think I may try another real DD now (posting 2 weeks) because of the weird wording they used.
I live in Alabama, but my zip code was not eligible for a checking account here.
Has anyone received the bonus yet, or do we think that it will post after the 60 days is up?
FYI, offer extended February 15, 2019 thru June 28, 2019.
Did anyone receive confirmation/clarification re: exactly what satisfies the ACH/Direct Deposit requirement? Specifically, does anelectronic funds transfer from another financial institution count? PLEASE ADVISE!
Just go ahead an use an employer DD .
Account opened and showing as “Approved Pending” 4/11/19.
Account approved 4/15/19 after uploading a second form of ID (a message had been added to the application requesting this).
I applied online a few weeks ago and was approved. My wife applied in branch today and was also approved. Doesn’t appear to have household limits.