Bluebird Direct Deposit Time
Of all the many great features that come with the American Express Bluebird card, the Direct Deposit feature is probably one of the main reasons users are drawn to this card. One of the questions we most often get from our readers has to do with the Bluebird direct deposit time. In this post, we will explain how the direct deposit process works with the Bluebird card and what time Bluebird posts direct deposits into cardholder accounts.
This Post Will Cover:
- Features of Bluebird Direct Deposit
- How Bluebird Direct Deposit Works
- Bluebird Direct Deposit Time
- Bluebird Direct Deposit Problems and What to Do
Features of Bluebird Direct Deposit
As the video above shows, Direct Deposit is one of the many great benefits of the Bluebird card. Here are the main features that come with the Bluebird Direct Deposit Service:
- You can have all or part of your paycheck or government benefit directly deposited into your Bluebird account each month.
- The Direct Deposit service is free.
- You can direct deposit up to $100,000 a year on all your Bluebird accounts combined.
- Direct Deposit can be set up for Federal payments, including a tax refund, Social Security payment, SSI payment, civil service retirement payment, VA compensation/pension, Worker’s Compensation, or a Federal Employee payroll deposit.
- You can receive your pay up to 2 days faster with Bluebird Direct Deposit.
How Bluebird Direct Deposit Works
When you sign up for the American Express Bluebird card, you can set up Direct Deposit to have your paycheck deposited into your card account.
To set up Direct Deposit on your Bluebird card, follow these steps:
Step 1:
To get started, you need to make sure you have the following:
- Your Bluebird Account is active: This means that you have successfully signed up for the card and registered it online.
- Your Permanent Card is activated: If you picked up a temporary card at a Walmart store and registered it online, you have to wait for the permanent card to be mailed to you, which you have to activate before you can begin the direct deposit process.
- Your employer or payroll department Direct Deposit Check with your Human Resources Department or the payroll provider for your job to make sure that they offer Direct Deposit.Some employers don’t offer the service, which means you will not be able to add funds to your Bluebird account using this method.
- Your direct deposit comes from a U.S. bank account: The Walmart Bluebird Card only accepts Direct Deposits from banks or credit unions based in the United States of America.
- The direct deposit does not exceed the maximum balance and monthly limits: As of the time of writing this article, you are only allowed to Direct Deposit a total of $100,000 to your card each year (on all your Bluebird accounts).Which means you can only send a maximum of $8,333 each month using this method. If your total monthly paycheck or government payments exceeds this amount, then you can only send $8,333 of it to your Amex Bluebird Card.
Step 2:
Once you have met all the criteria above, it’s time to set up your Bluebird Direct Deposit. Here is how to do that:
- Log in to your Bluebird Account online or through the Bluebird Mobile App and click on Add Funds.
- Select “Set up Direct Deposit” to view your Bluebird Account number and Bank Routing number.
- Print out and complete the Bluebird Direct Deposit Form and submit it to your employer to process the request. Certain employers may require you to use their own form or process.
For a detailed, step by step process on how to set up your Bluebird Direct Deposit, including screenshots of the pages you need to visit, click here to see our detailed instructions.
Bluebird Direct Deposit Time
There is some confusion about what time paychecks are direct deposited on Bluebird accounts.
Part of the reason for this confusion is that Bluebird, in it’s advertising about the Direct Deposit service promises that you can get your paycheck 2 days faster, as shown below:
Here is what you need to know:
Yes, you can get your paycheck two days faster if you use Bluebird Direct Deposit but you have to understand how the process works because it may not apply to all situations.
First, you will get your paycheck faster, up to 2 days faster if your employer submits payroll information to the bank before payday.
Some employers submit their payroll to banks a few days in advance of the payday. If your employer does that, Bluebird is promising to make your pay available to you, up to two days from your payday, assuming your employer submits the pay information to them in advance of payday.
If your employer does not do this and only submits payroll to banks the night before payday, then you will not be able to get your pay faster through Bluebird Direct Deposit.
Here is how it usually works:
Here is how the Bluebird Direct Deposit time works with the 2 days early process.
- Let’s say you were scheduled to be paid on Friday, the 15th.
- If your employer deposits your pay earlier with banks, you can expect to see your pay in your Bluebird Account between 1:30 pm and 11:00 pm on Wednesday the 13th.
It’s usually more like a day and a few hours early.
Bluebird Direct Deposit Problems and What to Do
If this is your first time setting up your Bluebird Direct Deposit, and your payday has passed and you have not received your payment in your Direct Express account, here is what you need to do:
First, it takes about 1-2 pay cycles before Direct Deposit begins to show up in your Bluebird account. You should check the previous way you were receiving your pay to make sure it was not sent there. You can also call your HR department or your employer to verify how your recent pay was sent.
If you are used to receiving your pay via Direct Deposit with Bluebird and you checked your account and the money has not arrived, there could be one of two things going on:
It’s either a delay with your employer or with Bluebird. Check with your employer first to make sure direct deposits were sent on time – especially if there was a federal holiday that week.
If the problem is not with your employer, then contact Bluebird Customer Service.
We hope this article was helping in explaining the Bluebird direct deposit time and when to expect your paycheck or government benefits to be deposited.
If you have Bluebird direct deposit, please share your experience with us in the comments section below. We would like to know if you are getting your pay faster – 2 days faster as advertised by Bluebird.