Deal has ended, view more bank account bonuses by clicking here.
Update 9/12/26: Deal is available again until 9/30/2026. Hat tip to reader quisp
Update 3/15/25: Available again. Hat tip to ShawntheShawn
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $250
- Availability: Must be a resident of Tulare, San Joaquin and Solano Counties
- Direct deposit required: Optional
- Additional requirements: See below
- Hard/soft pull: Soft pull
- ChexSystems: Unknown
- Credit card funding: Can fund up to $150 with a credit card
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: Unknown
- Household limit: None listed
- Expiration date: None listed
The Offer
- Valley Strong Credit Union is offering a $250 checking bonus when you open a new checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Open a new checking account (with a starting amount of $25).
- Direct deposit to your Valley Strong account OR an average of 12 credit and/or debit transactions per month for 90 days.
- A Valley Strong debit card.
The Fine Print
- New accounts must be open and in good standing for 90 calendar days.
- Payment will be made automatically to the qualifying account by direct deposit on or around the 91st day after the new account is opened.
- Taxes due are the sole responsibility of the recipient. Valley Strong Credit Union will report to state and federal agencies as required by applicable law.
- This offer cannot be combined with other offers.
- Must be a resident of Tulare, San Joaquin and Solano Counties.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
They offer a free checking account with no monthly fees.
Early Account Termination Fee
I wasn’t able to find a fee schedule so unsure if there is any EATF.
Our Verdict
Shame it’s restricted to so few counties, this is a fantastic bonus that is worth doing and we will add it to our best bank account bonuses.
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- 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
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- Bank Bonus Posting Times
$250 Checking Program Requirements: A Regular Share Account is required for Valley Strong Membership. This offer is valid only for new, eligible* checking accounts and can be redeemed only once per Member. You must use promo code NEW250 at account opening and make the minimum opening deposit. You are ineligible if you currently have or have previously had a checking account with us. Accounts must remain open and in good standing** for 90 calendar days. An active Valley Strong debit card is required. You must set up direct deposit into your Valley Strong account. You must enroll in online banking.
does anyone know if this is churnable? I know I had it last year and closed it.
I called and got the actual web address for the offer. It is $750 and expires 12/31/25. The T&C does state ya gotta be a Solano County resident though. I’m guessing this place is small enough to validate every new customer, especially those with a new customer promo code. I’m not in Solano County, nearby though. But I was in an applicable/relevant county for the Provident CU $475 bonus and they declined me so I’m leaning towards ignoring CUs altogether. The T&Cs for most banks now are so complex they don’t seem worth it. DD thresholds and restrictions, debit card spend, bill pay spend, length of deposits, length of time account to be open, “average balance” minimums and specific amount at end of month, blah blah blah. There’s **SO** much fine print now, it borders on false advertising.
I’ll call them today and inquire. It even shows expiration of 12.31.2025, so it can’t be an outdated ad….
If anyone gets this to work please let us know
I was on Facebook just today, and had a Valley Strong ad come across my screen. I took a screenshot of it because I’ve never heard of them. $750 bonus, “NEWCHECKING” offer code, expires 12/31/2025. New checking account with qualifying activities. I still have the screenshot, but I can’t track down the ad itself on FB anymore, and all my Google searches coming up empty. I don’t think I even scrolled to see the T&Cs, I just screenshot’d to research later tonight. Can anyone confirm?? Chuck William Charles
Chuck William Charles This is expired.
super easy sub for p1 and p2. 3/21 account opened, put in $1 via payroll every two weeks, bonus posted 6/15. we are both 12+ chex inquiries in last 12 months. thank you doc!
There are no data points for what qualifies as Direct Deposit for Valley Strong. Does anyone have experience here? https://www.doctorofcredit.com/knowledge-base/list-methods-banks-count-direct-deposits/#Valley_Strong_Credit_Union
ShawntheShawn👈🏾 Jay So, this is rather amusing. Someone at this CU seems to have read our discussion below on stacking the referral and checking bonuses, and panicked. The old referral page has been taken down completely ( https://www.valleystrong.com/refer-member ), and a brand new referral page built instead ( https://www.valleystrong.com/refer-friend ). The new referral page explicitly states that the “ newly referred Member must open an eligible checking account with [the] referral code,” which eliminates the possibility of a stack. The “conjunction” language has been removed. I guess I should feel flattered. Welp, this bonus just became much less interesting without the extra $500 in two-player mode. Might still try for it at some point if I happen to be near a branch (nearest branch is a 2-hour drive away); probably won’t bother with trying online.
Thanks for the info. Yeah, I don’t foresee myself in Cali anytime real soon, but someone might find it useful.
Some (hopefully helpful) information from a conversation I had with a CSR today. As usual, any information given out by a single CSR is YMMV. (1) The agent I spoke with said that one can still join this CU by becoming a member of the Financial Fitness Association first, but there are two important limitations. This path (i) only works for consumer, not business, memberships, and (ii) only in-branch. Z Gadget - Bank Bonus Geek 🔗 So the bonus is still technically nationwide, but, realistically, this is only helpful to folks who either live just outside the footprint (Bay Area, Sacramento, Southern California), or frequently travel to somewhere near the footprint and can go to a branch. (2) If you apply online and choose the “work in the footprint” option, you are not required to provide supporting documentation. This mattered to me because my sole prop business has clients in the footprint for whom I do work there, but the nature of that work is confidential. (3) I was also told two things that seem to contradict each other, so YMMV squared on this one. On the one hand, I was told that the “spouse of an existing member” category only works for consumer, not business, memberships. So if you are a business member, even if it’s just a sole prop, neither your P2 nor your P2’s business can join on the basis that they are the spouse of a member (even if P2’s business is also a sole prop). On the other hand, I was also told that a business can use the FFA route to join indirectly by having the owner get a consumer membership, and then having the business join as being related to an “existing member.” However, this route is sort of pointless because it would likely prevent the business from getting the larger referred business bonus because it is being treated as an existing member.
Ha-ha, I noticed that part and I thought you did too because your Step 2 does emphasize starting with the checking promotion after the referral bonus has been received. I think your plan addresses it cleverly in theory. In practice? We never know:) RM
Rereading the referral terms, it does say that “[t] he Business Refer A Friend Program cannot be used in conjunction with other offers.” But I think if you do them sequentially, you are not using them “in conjunction,” so most likely it should still work.
Correction: you do need to have a business account to refer a business: “ Program Exclusions: Regular Shares, Regular Club, Makes Cents Checking, CentsAble Checking, Certificate, Money Market, Rocky Raccoon Minor, Grow Strong, Grow Strong Checking, Trust, Representative Payee, Utma, Coogan, Conservator, Estate, Court Ordered, and Club accounts are not eligible for business referrals.”
ShawntheShawn👈🏾 Thanks! Now I just have to figure out whether they will actually let me qualify for membership (and then find someone to refer me). I have a business in a county bordering the footprint, and have clients within the footprint, so I need an answer from them as to whether that qualifies as “working” in the footprint.
Ah, I see. When you said it can be stacked with the referral bonus, I thought you meant the traditional approach of killing two birds with one stone. Now you explain it, I think it makes sense. It is not a stacking per se, as essentially you will be doing the two offers separately and sequentially, and you have to wait until you have received the bonus from the referral promotion to proceed with the other offer. But it is a very neat plan you came up with and it should work according to the terms. RM
Z Thanks for this DP. FFA no longer shows up as an option when you start an application (at least I don’t see it), so I am not surprised by what you were told. I have a business in a county bordering the footprint, and have clients within the footprint, so I am now trying to figure out whether that qualifies as “working” in the footprint. Gadget - Bank Bonus Geek 🔗
No, I do not currently have any account and I’m not even in footprint, but despite that, I’d be happy to try someone’s referral if DoC permits.
Jay I assume you currently have an account and will be able to refer if permitted? It does not look like you need to have business account to refer a business, but I may try to call to double-check.
You’re absolutely right…if you open only the business share account with $500 opening deposit, then it does seem that you can do both! Nice find.
Jay Tagging for post above.
ShawntheShawn👈🏾 Tagging for post above.
ShawntheShawn👈🏾 Jay I think the two offers do stack — you just have to do it the right way. Please let me know if I am missing something in the steps I set out below. Step 1 : Get a business referral promo code and only open a new “Business Share Account.” Do not open any checking accounts. This is one of the options for getting a $250 business referral bonus. (“ Open a new Business Share account with a minimum balance of $500.”) https://www.valleystrong.com/refer-member Step 2 : Once you get the $250 referral bonus, open a new business checking account with promo code NEW250. https://www.valleystrong.com/250 The terms for this bonus do not require that you be a new member, only that you not have had a checking account before: “This offer is valid only for new, eligible* checking accounts and can be redeemed only once per Member. You must use promo code NEW250 at account opening and make the minimum opening deposit. You are ineligible if you currently have or have previously had a checking account with us.” What am I missing?
My experience with an OOS attempt: Called the number listed, and was asked to stop by a bank location. However the CSR seemed generally unsure of the “ there may be alternative methods through which we can qualify you” clause on their website. They checked if an FFA membership would work and said no, must live in an approved county or be relative. However, YMMV as always.
Understood. I was just adding information for Will after s eeing RM’s comment and your request.
I agree, I never said that they stacked. I’m saying that the business referral offer is better than using NEW250. You’ll get your money sooner, and you don’t have to do 36 debit transactions.
I do not think they stack. The referred person/business receives a referral/promo code to use in the application, and there is only one promo code box in the application, you use either NEW250 or the referral code.
You’re right, the $250 business referral offer is indeed better than this public personal offer because there’s basically no requirements to receive the $250 other than simply opening the account! The new Business Member (“Referred”), must do the following to qualify for a payout for “Referred” and “Referrer.” Open a new Business Share account with a minimum balance of $500, or; Open a new Business Share (minimum balance of $5) and a Business Checking account (minimum balance of $100), or; Open a new Business Share (minimum balance of $5) and a Business Money Market account (minimum balance of $1,000) New account(s) must be open and in good standing for 30 calendar days. New account(s) must maintain the minimum balance for 7 calendar days. Payout will be made automatically to the qualifying account by direct deposit between the 31st – 40th day from when the new account was opened. Program Limitations: Referring Members can make an unlimited number of referrals; however, can only earn a maximum of $500 per calendar year for qualifying referrals. Employees of Valley Strong are not eligible for this promotion. Btw the language on the personal and business offers implies that it is not possible to receive both. William Charles In light of this, will you be opening up referrals for the $250 business offer?
savingwizard did you ever go for this one?