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Raising money and managing expenses is an critical part of the election process. Opening a campaign bank account is a first step in establishing a viable political campaign.

A bank checking account serves several purposes. It allows you to accept political donations and contributions from supporters, and to make campaign purchases. To do all this, you will want to know how to open a bank account for a political campaign.

• Open your political campaign checking account as early as possible. Campaign finance laws in many states require that a campaign bank account be established in order to legally deposit political donations. The earlier you have an account, the sooner you can start raising seed money.
• Prior to opening a campaign bank account, you may need to establish a political campaign committee with your local county Board of Elections. The name you use for your campaign committee is the name you will use to open the bank account. The bank will require committee paperwork along with personal identification.
• Open an interest-free checking account rather than an interest-bearing savings account. Any interest earned on a campaign bank account must be reported in your finance reports. Considering how little banks pay in interest, the small amount of money to be gained is hardly worth the additional effort required by your committee treasurer to report.
• A candidate’s personal funds can be used for campaign purchases before a campaign bank account is established. Those purchases are generally treated as an in-kind donation or as a personal loan. Once the campaign is underway, the treasurer should handle the political funds and keep track of income and expenditures. For larger campaigns, it may be a good idea to hire an accountant.
• You should keep detailed records of every account transaction for financial filing requirements. Keep statements, records and receipts in a safe place. They should be held indefinitely in case questions later arise as to your campaign finances. Whatever you do, do not co-mingle funds between accounts.

So many rules… Local, state and federal…

These guidelines also apply for a political party bank account and political action committee bank accounts. If you accept donations or hold fundraisers, you will need a place to deposit your money. Most traditional banks, savings and loan association or credit unions can handle accounts for political campaigns and fundraising needs. You’ll want to check with them for eligibility first, of course.

• Large banks like Chase and Bank of America can certainly handle government banking needs.
• If you prefer a more personal touch, check with your local regional bank.
• Credit unions may also be able to handle election accounts, if that type of account is permitted by charter and policies.

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EIN numbers for political campaigns

Federal campaigns and committees are required obtain an Employer Identification Number (EIN). This nine-digit number is issued by the IRS for identification purposes. It is similar to EIN numbers assigned to businesses and corporations. This number is required to open a campaign bank account.

• A political organization must have an EIN, even if it does not have any actual employees.
• Don’t apply for an EIN until your organization is legally formed.
• Never open a political bank account in the name of an individual or with an individual’s Social Security Number. Use the organization’s EIN.

If you are starting a political action committee (PAC) and opening a checking account, the PAC must be first approved by the Federal Election Commission (FEC). Under these requirements, you will need an address for the PAC and a designated treasurer to handle the funds. There are additional compliance guidelines for any fund transfers that you make.

One question that tends to come up is whether a candidate needs to establish separate bank accounts for both the primary and general election. This can depend on whether your contribution limits apply per election. For example, if the contribution limits are different then fundraising for the primary election and fundraising for the general election are separate. If this is the case, a candidate may need to establish separate bank accounts for each election.

Campaign banking information and requirements do vary. As always, be sure to follow your local election laws to the letter. Campaign accounts for state and local office are governed by state law.

An electronic funds transfer (EFT) is a digital transfer of money from one account to another. An EFT can occur between accounts at the same financial institution or across institutions.

What is a bank wire?

A bank wire is an electronic message system that allows banks to communicate securely with each other. Banks may send account information, notifications, and transaction requests over bank wire. This is the fastest way to send money, as funds are typically available on the same day.

Unlike EFTs, bank wires are reviewed and verified by employees at both the sending and receiving firms before they’re processed to ensure the sender has the money to complete the transfer, and that the receiving account is available to accept the money.

Choosing a bank wire vs an EFT

There are a few factors you’ll want to consider when you’re deciding whether to send money via EFT or bank wire. Primarily, you should look at when you need to send or receive the money by, how much money you need to send, and whether you’ll have to pay any fees.

Timing

EFTs in and out of Fidelity accounts are generally received within 1-3 business days, though the funds may immediately be available for trading.

Electronic funds transfers (EFTs) are not processed on Saturdays, Sundays, or New York Stock Exchange and bank holidays. EFT requests entered after 4 p.m. ET will not process until the next business day.

Bank wires you submit before 4 p.m. ET are typically available the same day. If you submit your wire request after 4 p.m. ET, the money is typically available the following business day. If you're selling shares from a mutual fund to wire money, your funds are available the following business day for shares sold by 4 p.m. ET.

Fees

Fidelity doesn’t charge a fee for sending or receiving EFTs, but the receiving bank may charge a fee. Fidelity also doesn’t charge fees to process wire transfers to a bank or other recipient. If you’re transferring money to an account at another bank, however, the receiving bank may charge an incoming wire transfer fee.

Transfer limits

There are limits for the amount of money you can send via EFT or bank wire in a given day, and some transactions have minimum dollar amounts.

There is no limit to the number of EFTs you can submit per business day. The minimum deposit amount for each EFT is $1 for non-retirement accounts, and $10 for retirement accounts and the maximum amount per day on Fidelity.com is $100,000 for withdrawals, and $250,000 for deposits.

If you need to deposit more than $250,000 per day, or withdraw more than $100,000 per day, you can call Customer Service at 800 544-6666 to hear your options for the daily limit for electronic funds transfer (EFT).

The transfer limit for bank wires is $100,000 per day, per client. The minimum amount for each bank wire is $100. Like EFTs, if you need to wire more than $100,000 in one business day, you can call our customer service line for assistance.

Eligibility

All Fidelity brokerage and mutual fund accounts are eligible for electronic funds transfer (EFT), with the exception of self-employed 401(k) plans, self-directed brokerage accounts, SIMPLE IRAs, Fidelity Retirement plans (Keogh), and non-prototype accounts. Trust, business accounts, inherited IRAs, stand-alone SMAs, and Fidelity personalized portfolio accounts must establish the EFT service by completing the Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Authorization (PDF). Inherited IRAs cannot accept contributions via EFT.

Enabling your account for bank wire and EFT

Once you've decided how you want to transfer your money, you'll need to make sure your account is set up correctly for the transaction. Most financial institutions call this providing "instructions." When you link a bank accountLog In Requiredto your Fidelity account, you'll need to select whether you want to enable your account for bank wire or EFT. You can enable your account for both transfer types. Once you've saved your instructions, you can start a transferLog In Required. Keep in mind, you’ll need different information depending on whether you choose EFT or bank wire to transfer money to your Fidelity account.

Are there other options for transferring money?

There are several other ways you can transfer money into or out of a Fidelity account, including through paper checks and third-party payment apps like PayPal and Venmo. Fidelity accounts are currently compatible2 with PayPal, Venmo, Square, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. For more information, see our mobile payments page.

To deposit a paper check into a Fidelity account, you can upload a photo of the check to the Fidelity Mobile App, or deposit it directly at a local Fidelity investor center. You can also withdraw money from your Fidelity account and have it sent via a paper check that’s mailed to you or another recipient. If you request to have a check sent to you or someone else, the check takes about 5 to 6 business days to process before it's mailed.

For more information on depositing money into a Fidelity account, see our deposits page. For information on taking money out of a Fidelity account, see withdrawals.