Deal has ended, view more bank account bonuses by clicking here.
Offer at a glance
- Maximum bonus amount: $300
- Availability: If you live or work in any of the following areas, you are automatically eligible to join Bellco: Adams County, Alamosa County, Arapahoe County, Boulder County, Broomfield County, Denver County, Douglas County, El Paso County, Fremont County, Garfield County, Huerfano County, Jefferson County, Larimer County, Las Animas County, Mesa County, Moffat County, Pueblo County, Rio Blanco County, Weld County. Possibly nationwide via $5 donation that they cover.
- Direct deposit required: Yes, $500+ within 60 days
- Additional requirements: None
- Hard/soft pull: Hard pull. Recent dp suggest soft pull
- ChexSystems: Yes
- Credit card funding: None
- Monthly fees: None
- Early account termination fee: Bonus forfeit if closed within one year
- Household limit: None listed
- Expiration date: August 31, 2026
The Offer
- Bellco Credit Union is offering a $300 bonus when you open a new checking account and complete the following requirements:
- Receive a direct deposit of $500 within 60 days of account opening
The Fine Print
- Valid only if you don’t have an active checking account with Bellco and you open a new checking account at any Bellco branch location or online, from June 1, 2026, through August 31, 2026 (the “Offer Period”).
- Limit one bonus per account. Limit one bonus per household.
- To qualify for this offer, you must be or become a Bellco member and qualify for a checking account with Bellco; you cannot qualify if you already have a current checking account with Bellco.
- To receive the $300 bonus, you must: 1) open a Bellco checking account, which is subject to approval, during the Offer Period; and 2) have at least one qualifying direct deposit of $500 or more into your checking account.
- The first required deposit ($500 minimum) must be credited to your new checking account within 60 days of the date the account was opened.
- Direct deposit must be recurring and come from payroll, pension, Social Security, or other recurring government benefits as indicated by deposit description.
- The monthly direct deposit cannot be multiple direct deposits combined to reach the required $500 minimum
- . The $300 bonus will be deposited into the new checking account within 90 days of meeting the direct deposit requirement.
- The $300 bonus will be given if the account opened is in good standing (i.e. not overdrawn) at the time the bonus is paid.
- The $300 bonus will be reported as interest earned on IRS Form 1099-INT, and you are responsible for any applicable taxes. T
- o retain the $300 bonus, the checking account must remain open and in good standing for at least one year from the date of the account opening; otherwise, Bellco reserves the right to reclaim the bonus amount.
- All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them
Avoiding Fees
Monthly Fees
Free checking has no monthly fees to worry about.
Early Account Termination Fee
Bonus forfeit if closed within one year.
Our Verdict
Suspect this one won’t last very long, especially if the nationwide route actually works. Might be able to stack with $100 referral as well (please do not share referrals in this post, but you may share them in the linked post).
Hat tip to reader David F & Bockrr
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
Messaged bellco today for the second gift card for recurring deposit. They said to wait for 60 days from second deposit.
Got the 100 today from referral after scheduling an appointment with my near by bank. The banker was sweet and gave me a call prior to my appointment. He went ahead and processed my referral on call and saved me a visit . Looks like 2 people referred me and they were confused to whom to give. Now next wait is for recurring deposit 100 dollars GC.
I got the 300 yesterday. Might need to visit the bank I guess for the referral. ,3rd party referral company was not able to track.
I think I messed up on my referral, my p2 only put in an initial 100 instead of 250. I quickly transferred in 500 so hopefully it triggers. I also didn’t order the debit card until I had the account for like a month.
Had a similar experience at Fourleaf where online applicants who applied early with bad Chex were approved but I was rejected in person with decent Chex. Most credit unions up their Chex sensitivity after being on DoC for a while.
Yeah, probably YMMV. She made it sound like it was a policy though, and it was decided by the back office. 🤷♂️
Per my DP below from 6/19 application, I was approved 1/1, 2/2, 2/3, 7/6, 13/12, 15/24, 15/36. The policies must not be consistent or they changed.
Denied OOS in-branch for Chex, 0/1, 4/3, 9/6, 17/12, 28/24. Banker requested an override from the back office, but they declined. She said they auto-approve at 1/6, but they will accept up to 3/6 on review.
Nope.
Did you get the bonus from the Fidelity CMA?
Opened 7/16, several Huntington BP deposits of 500 and some change, each coded as “deposit.” Bonus not arrived by 8/19 as expected, trying a few other options now. Chase biz standard ACH with a sole prop under my name, categorized as “uncategorized” so unsure if it will work. Wondering if the business name matching my name is making it not work as previous DPs state chase biz was categorized as “paycheck/salary. Gonna try transfers from a few other options, including current and see I can get something categorized as “paycheck/salary.”
Did you do the standard ACH or same-day ACH?
Just tried my own chase biz DD and it codes as “uncategorized” weird.
Thanks for the DP! Emailed you for a referral.
It coded as Paychecks/Salary
Paid ACH service, sometimes with these credit unions I just want get it done without trial and error because they can be somewhat picky on what they accept for DD.
Did you use the paid ACH service? Or normal fee free transfer?
What did the Chase biz DD code as in categories?
“Recurring” = “whatever your source of income is” IMO. They want something switched over
Can you please let us know, which banks counted as DD ?
Applied OOS, went to manual review, denied next business day. The denial email didn’t say anything specific but a representative said it was due to Chex. My inquiries were 1/1 (a little over a week ago), 4/3, 8/6, 17/12, 32/24, 41 total. No hard pull. Open to citizens, permanent residents, and non-permanent residents. After submitting the application I got asked to upload ID, then do biometric verification through Vouched with a selfie & opening + closing your mouth and all that. Asked for proof of address after that & gave lots of options. If it ever comes up there was nowhere on the application I saw to put in a promo code.
What all count as DD ? Wise , Sofi any one used ?
Very easy bonus! 6/11 – Opened within footprint ($25 initial deposit) 7/3 – $515 real employer DD 7/15 – $300 “Interest Adjustment-Deposit 90th Anniversary Cash Back” posts Will keep open with $50 for a year to avoid losing the bonus
6/9 Opening $25 deposit hit 6/16 Chase Biz DD $501 7/14 Chase Biz DD $501 7/15 Interest Adjustment-Deposit 90th Anniversary Cash Back $300 So it seems like you might need 2 DDs pretty easy bonus! Ring the Bell!
6/9 – Account opened 6/26 – Real DD 7/10 – Real DD 7/15 – $300 bonus paid
6/4 – Account opened online, $5 initial funding from Cap1 checking 6/12 – $501 Current push 7/10 – $501 Current push 7/15 – $300 bonus payout Deposits from Current got categorized as “Paychecks/Salary”
Have you tried asking with the username StompAllPuppies? Maybe that will work
JP, instead of the community thanking you , we want to take a big dump on your forehead.
Current members, could just be in-footprint or out-of-footprint (or state) as well
& you were approved with those numbers? Guessing you live out-of-footprint if you used the family member for eligibility, but do you live in-state?