William Lipovsky
Short Answer — Depending on the reason why your bank account was closed, you can usually reopen it by initiating new transactions after a period of inactivity, by paying negative balances, or by contacting your bank to clear up any confusion about potentially suspicious or fraudulent activity. However, if your bank closed your account because you displayed a pattern of overdrafts or suspicious transactions, you may not be able to reopen the account.
Why Do Banks Close Personal Accounts?
In general, when it comes to personal checking and savings accounts, there are three primary reasons why a bank may close your account:
- Inactivity
- Excessive overdrafts/prolonged negative balance
- Suspicious or fraudulent activity
Additionally, there are very few laws and regulations that govern account closure; banks are legally permitted to close accounts for any reason, without notice.[1] However, banks do often send written notice of account closure.
Below, we analyze the main reasons that banks close personal accounts and whether or not you can reopen the account in each case.
Closure Due to Inactivity
Banks will mark inactive bank accounts — those that have had no transactions for a long period of time — as dormant and eventually close them because they are expensive to maintain.
Dormancy is slightly different from account closure in that a dormant account still exists; however, you cannot use it. Dormant accounts are closed to new transactions, internet banking, check requests, etc.
After an extended period of dormancy, banks will send the funds in your account (whether checking or savings) to the state government as unclaimed property. This can happen after there has been no activity in a dormant account for three to five years.[2]
If your bank sent the funds in your dormant account to the state, you can reclaim them by contacting your state treasury or unclaimed property office and submitting a claim.
Note that the amount of time you can keep an inactive bank account open varies according to state laws and the individual bank’s rules.
Many banks will mark inactive accounts dormant after as little as six to 12 months of no activity, representatives from Chase Bank, KeyBank, and Wells Fargo said.
Reopening the Account
You can usually reopen an inactive account by making a transaction (deposit or withdrawal) within a certain period of time, though you may want to check with your bank to make sure your transaction will suffice.
Banks are required to contact you about an inactive account before reclassifying it as dormant. That notice will typically include specific information about how long you have to reactivate the account.
Once the bank classifies your account as dormant, you can still reopen it. To do this, you will typically need to submit a written request to your local branch. There are no fees for account reactivation.
Closure Due to Excessive Overdrafts
When you make transactions and payments from your account that amount to more than the funds in the account, you will overdraw the account, meaning that it will have a negative balance.
The length of time your account can be negative before the bank closes it will vary by bank and can be anywhere from 30 days to three months or more. You can usually find information about how long you can have a negative balance before your account is closed in your bank’s deposit account agreement.
Most banks will charge hefty overdraft fees, and some have limits on the number of overdraft transactions you can make in a period of time.
Reopening the Account
Whether or not you can reopen a bank account that’s closed because of overdrafts depends on the specific bank’s policies, as well as the amount and frequency of the overdrafts.
In general, if your account is closed because the balance has been negative for too long, you can reopen it by paying the negative balance, which usually includes your transactions plus overdraft fees for each item that bounced. You can check your bank’s account agreement for specific information.
However, if your account is closed because of a high frequency or recurring pattern of overdrafts, you will likely be unable to reopen it. You will still have to pay off your negative balance and any associated fees. Note that your bank may report this type of account closure to ChexSystems account verification. This will make it difficult for you to open an account at another bank.
In some cases, the bank will allow you to open a savings account if your checking account has been closed due to excessive overdrafts. You may also be able to open a new checking account at an online-only bank, a bank that doesn’t use ChexSystems or offers second chance accounts, or a credit union that doesn’t use ChexSystems.
Closure Due to Suspicious or Fraudulent Activity
Banks will automatically close accounts (both checking and savings) that show obvious or proven fraudulent activity. However, they may also freeze or close an account that has suspicious activity or that they suspect of fraud.
The definition of suspicious activity varies by bank. Some types of activity that banks may consider suspicious or potentially fraudulent include:
- Multiple accounts under the same name
- Accounts opened in a different city or state than the accountholder’s reported residential and/or work address
- Large, frequent transactions for account holders with no employment record
- Unusual surges in account activity or deposit amounts
- Multiple deposits in round numbers (especially large deposits)
- Large amounts of money transferred to or from overseas accounts
- Cash deposits that are just under $10,000 (since any cash deposit that is $10,000 or more must be reported to the Internal Revenue Service)[3]
Reopening the Account
If your bank closes your account due to suspicious or fraudulent activity, it will file a Suspicious Activity Report with the U.S. Department of the Treasury.[4] If this happens, you will not be able to reopen the account, and it is unlikely that another bank will allow you to open an account.
However, since banks will notify you before closing your account, you may be able to resolve the situation before your account is closed. If you can prove that there was no fraud, or show legitimate sources for suspicious deposits, you may be able to keep your account.
Note, however, that banks reserve the right to close accounts for any reason, and they may choose not to do business with you if your account is deemed a risk.
See our related research for more information on what you can do if your account is closed or frozen due to suspicious activity.
Reopening a Bank Account at Major U.S. Banks
Below, we provide information about each bank’s options for initiating the reopening of a bank account. Note, however, that depending on your specific situation, fees may apply.
Bank of America
- Sign in to your online account (if possible) and submit a request for reactivation under the “Request Service” section.[5]
- Call (800) 432-1000 to discuss reopening your account.[6]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
Capital One
- Call (877) 383-4802 for Capital One Bank or (800) 289-1992 for Capital One 360 to discuss reopening your account.[7][8]
- Visit a branch to submit an in-person request.
Chase
- Call (800) 935-9935 to discuss reopening your account.[9]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
Citibank
- Sign in to your online account (if possible) and follow the instructions for reactivation.[10]
- Call (800) 374-9500 to discuss reopening your account.[11]
Fifth Third Bank
- Call (800) 972-3030 to discuss reopening your account.[12]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
HSBC
- Call (800) 975-4722 to discuss reopening your account.[13]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
KeyBank
- Call (800) 539-2968 to discuss reopening your account.[14]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
M&T Bank
- Call (800) 724-2440 to discuss reopening your account.[15]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
PNC Bank
- Call (888) 762-2265 to discuss reopening your account.[16]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
TD Bank
- Call (888) 751-9000 to discuss reopening your account.[17]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
U.S. Bank
- Call (800) 872-2657 to discuss reopening your account.[18]
- Visit a branch to submit a written request.
Wells Fargo
- Sign in to your online account (if possible) and submit a request for reactivation.[19]
- Call (800) 869-3557 to discuss reopening your account.[19]
- Visit a branch
For more information about banking, see our research on what you need to open a bank account.
