Cash a Paper EE or I Savings Bond at a Bank or TreasuryDirect

Check ownership, series and redemption eligibility

A U.S. savings bond is a Treasury security, not an ordinary check deposited into a checking account. Paper Series EE and I bonds have ownership and redemption rules that differ from bank checking and mobile check deposit. TreasuryDirect says you can redeem only bonds you own or co-own, or for which you have accepted legal evidence showing entitlement. Whether the bond is old enough to cash, what its value is and how much interest has accrued depend on the series and issue date. A person who finds a bond in a relative's papers should not assume the printed face amount equals current redemption value or that possession establishes legal ownership.

Read the owner and beneficiary inscriptions before approaching the bank. Joint ownership, a deceased owner's estate and a gift bond can trigger different documentation processes. TreasuryDirect offers an official Savings Bond Calculator for paper bonds so you can estimate current value without using an unrelated trading site. For typical EE and I bonds, TreasuryDirect states that redemption ordinarily starts after 12 months; cashing before five years forfeits the last three months of interest, subject to any applicable Treasury exception. Check the series rules and bond age before cashing. Unlike a bank deposit certificate that may renew automatically, an EE or I savings bond has its own Treasury terms. Decide whether you need the money now or want to continue earning under those terms.

Ask your bank what it will actually cash

TreasuryDirect advises people with paper EE or I bonds to ask the bank where they maintain an account whether it cashes savings bonds, how much it will cash at one time and what identification or other documents it requires. Not every bank provides this service, and having a checking account does not entitle you to immediate redemption at every branch. Call the institution's regular customer-service or branch number before traveling with original bond certificates. Ask whether service is available only to account holders, whether a holding-history requirement applies and whether an appointment is needed for unusual ownership situations.

If the bank agrees, verify the precise identity and endorsement process, and retain any receipt explaining the amount paid. A $500 printed denomination may not equal the bond's current redemption proceeds. The bank should explain whether proceeds will be handed over, deposited into your checking account or otherwise made available under its procedures. Depositing the cash proceeds into checking is a different step from redeeming the Treasury bond. Do not sign or stamp the bond in advance unless instructed by the authorized paying agent. If staff cannot verify a bond or decline redemption, ask about the official TreasuryDirect alternative rather than handing the original to a third-party buyer.

Use TreasuryDirect procedures when the bank cannot help

TreasuryDirect provides Form FS 1522 and instructions for submitting paper bonds for redemption. For certain submissions, signatures must be certified; the current TreasuryDirect guidance indicates certification is necessary when the bond value being cashed exceeds $1,000 under the specified form process. Read the actual form and special-circumstance rules before sending documents. People outside the United States, owners who changed names, legal representatives and surviving co-owners may have additional instructions. Processing time is not necessarily the same as a branch teller redemption, so plan ahead if the money is needed for an approaching bill.

Send bonds only to the official address shown on the current Treasury form, using a trackable mailing method consistent with the instructions. Keep copies or detailed records of serial numbers, bond owners, series and issue dates before mailing. TreasuryDirect also supports converting eligible paper bonds to electronic form without redeeming them, which may be useful when the owner wants to keep holding the bond. Conversion is not the same as cashing out or receiving spendable bank money. If the bond is already electronic, the redemption occurs through the TreasuryDirect account's permitted management function and may allow partial redemption subject to rules that differ from paper bonds.

Estimate interest and understand tax reporting

Savings bond interest and tax reporting differ from ordinary bank savings interest in several ways. TreasuryDirect explains that many owners defer federal tax reporting of EE or I savings bond interest until redemption or another applicable tax event, though some use an annual reporting method. A person redeeming at a bank may receive Form 1099-INT from that bank; TreasuryDirect says it issues its own form when it redeems paper bonds. Do not count the full redemption amount as interest: part of the payment represents invested principal, and the taxable interest portion must be identified under the applicable tax rules.

Suppose an eligible paper bond originally cost $1,000 and redeems for $1,460. The $460 difference represents gross accrued interest for the simplified example, not an investment gain of $1,460. The exact original issue price and interest calculation depend on series and issue terms. The tax treatment can also be affected by ownership, estate transfer and whether interest was reported in earlier years. Consult IRS guidance or a tax professional for a complicated estate or education exclusion claim. Keep the 1099-INT with the redemption record and reconcile it against any prior annual interest reporting to avoid counting the same amount twice.

Keep the paper instrument safe until redemption is complete

A paper bond should be handled like a valuable original security. Record identifying information without posting a public photograph revealing the serial number and ownership details. If you send it to TreasuryDirect, retain proof of mailing and any case correspondence. If it is stolen, lost or damaged, TreasuryDirect has separate replacement or recovery procedures; do not assume a photograph is a negotiable substitute for the original. When redeeming at a bank, check the teller's confirmation and the resulting account credit or cash amount before considering the transaction finished.

For older family bond collections, make an inventory of every instrument's series, issue date, owner, beneficiary and estimated value. Some bonds may have stopped earning interest, while others remain eligible to accrue under their terms. Organize legal documents if owners are deceased and seek official Treasury instructions where the printed name no longer matches current identification. Avoid hurried redemption solely because a bank representative says a paper certificate is “outdated.” The real decision involves ownership, remaining earning potential, cash needs and the tax year in which interest may become reportable. Those facts can be more consequential than the convenience of redeeming at the nearest branch.

Frequently asked questions

Does every U.S. bank cash paper savings bonds? No. Ask the bank whether it offers the service and for whom.

Can I cash only half of one paper bond? No. TreasuryDirect states that paper bonds are redeemed in full.

Is the whole redemption amount taxable interest? No. Distinguish original principal from accrued interest.

MyBankAnswers Editorial Verdict

Paper savings bond redemption is a Treasury ownership process with a bank-service option, not a normal check deposit. Verify the series, owner, redemption eligibility and official value before deciding where to cash it. Call your bank to confirm participation and its documentation limits, or follow TreasuryDirect's current forms and certification instructions. Keep original bond identifiers and mailing records secure, especially in estate situations. The tax question concerns the interest portion and any prior reporting, not the entire redemption proceeds. If there is no urgent cash need, compare the bond's remaining earning potential with the practical benefit of redemption rather than assuming a paper instrument must be cashed immediately.

Sources and verification

• TreasuryDirect: Cash EE or I Savings Bonds
• TreasuryDirect: Convert Paper to Electronic Bonds
• TreasuryDirect: Tax Information on EE and I Bonds
• TreasuryDirect: Comparing EE and I Bonds