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Consumer Credit Regulation: Amendment History

[74 Fed. Reg. 5244 (Jan. 29, 2009); 74 Fed. Reg. 36,097 (July 22, 2009) (interim final rule); 75 Fed. Reg. 7848 (Feb. 22, 2010); 75 Fed. Reg. 7925 (Feb. 22, 2010); 75 Fed. Reg. 37,583 (June 29, 2010); 76 Fed. Reg. 23,015, 23,016, 23,018 (Apr. 25, 2011); 76 Fed. Reg. 79,772 (Dec. 22, 2011)]

Consumer Credit Regulation: 10(a) General Rule.

1. Crediting date. Section 1026.10(a) does not require the creditor to post the payment to the consumer’s account on a particular date; the creditor is only required to credit the payment as of the date of receipt.

2. Date of receipt. The “date of receipt” is the date that the payment instrument or other means of completing the payment reaches the creditor. For example:

i. Payment by check is received when the creditor gets it, not when the funds are collected.

Consumer Credit Regulation: 10(b) Specific Requirements for Payments

1. Payment by electronic fund transfer. A creditor may be prohibited from specifying payment by preauthorized electronic fund transfer. See section 913 of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Regulation E, 12 CFR 1005.10(e).

2. Payment methods promoted by creditor. If a creditor promotes a specific payment method, any payments made via that method (prior to any cut-off time specified by the creditor, to the extent permitted by § 1026.10(b)(2)) are generally conforming payments for purposes of § 1026.10(b). For example:

Consumer Credit Regulation: 10(d) Crediting of Payments When Creditor Does Not Receive or Accept Payments on Due Date

1. Example. A day on which the creditor does not receive or accept payments by mail may occur, for example, if the U.S. Postal Service does not deliver mail on that date.

2. Treating a payment as late for any purpose. See comment 5(b)(2)(ii)-2 for guidance on treating a payment as late for any purpose. When an account is not eligible for a grace period, imposing a finance charge due to a periodic interest rate does not constitute treating a payment as late.

Consumer Credit Regulation: 10(e) Limitations on Fees Related to Method of Payment

1. Separate fee to allow consumers to make a payment. For purposes of § 1026.10(e), the term “separate fee” means a fee imposed on a consumer for making a payment to the consumer’s account. A fee or other charge imposed if payment is made after the due date, such as a late fee or finance charge, is not a separate fee to allow consumers to make a payment for purposes of § 1026.10(e).

Consumer Credit Regulation: 10(f) Changes by Card Issuer

1. Address for receiving payment. For purposes of § 1026.10(f), “address for receiving payment” means a mailing address for receiving payment, such as a post office box, or the address of a branch or office at which payments on credit card accounts are accepted.

Consumer Credit Regulation: Amendment History

[74 Fed. Reg. 5244 (Jan. 29, 2009); 75 Fed. Reg. 7848 (Feb. 22, 2010); 75 Fed. Reg. 7925 (Feb. 22, 2010); 76 Fed. Reg. 23,018, 23,019 (Apr. 25, 2011); 76 Fed. Reg. 79,772 (Dec. 22, 2011); 81 Fed. Reg. 84,369 (Nov. 22, 2016); 82 Fed. Reg. 18,975 (Apr. 25, 2017); 83 Fed. Reg. 6364 (Feb. 13, 2018)]

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Consumer Credit Regulation: 51(a)(1)(i) Consideration of Ability to Pay

1. Consideration of additional factors. Section 1026.51(a) requires a card issuer to consider a consumer’s ability to make the required minimum periodic payments under the terms of an account based on the consumer’s income or assets and current obligations. The card issuer may also consider consumer reports, credit scores, and other factors, consistent with Regulation B (12 CFR part 1002).

Consumer Credit Regulation: 51(a)(2) Minimum Periodic Payments

1. Applicable minimum payment formula. For purposes of estimating required minimum periodic payments under the safe harbor set forth in § 1026.51(a)(2)(ii), if the account has or may have a promotional program, such as a deferred payment or similar program, where there is no applicable minimum payment formula during the promotional period, the issuer must estimate the required minimum periodic payment based on the minimum payment formula that will apply when the promotion ends.

Consumer Credit Regulation: 51(b) Rules Affecting Young Consumers

1. Age as of date of application or consideration of credit line increase. Sections 1026.51(b)(1) and (b)(2) apply only to a consumer who has not attained the age of 21 as of the date of submission of the application under § 1026.51(b)(1) or the date the credit line increase is requested by the consumer (or if no request has been made, the date the credit line increase is considered by the card issuer) under § 1026.51(b)(2).

Consumer Credit Regulation: 51(b)(2) Credit line increases for young consumers

1. Credit line request by joint accountholder aged 21 or older. The requirement under § 1026.51(b)(2) that a cosigner, guarantor, or joint accountholder for a credit card account opened pursuant to § 1026.51(b)(1)(ii) must agree in writing to assume liability for the increase before a credit line is increased, does not apply if the cosigner, guarantor or joint accountholder who is at least 21 years old initiates the request for the increase.

Consumer Credit Regulation: Amendment History

[75 Fed. Reg. 7848 (Feb. 22, 2010); 76 Fed. Reg. 23,020 (Apr. 25, 2011); 76 Fed. Reg. 31,221 (May 31, 2011); 76 Fed. Reg. 79,772 (Dec. 22, 2011); 78 Fed. Reg. 25,818 (May 3, 2013)]

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(a)(1) General rule

1. Application. The 25 percent limit in § 1026.52(a)(1) applies to fees that the card issuer charges to the account as well as to fees that the card issuer requires the consumer to pay with respect to the account through other means (such as through a payment from the consumer’s asset account, including a prepaid account as defined in § 1026.61, to the card issuer or from another credit account provided by the card issuer). For example:

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(a)(2) Fees Not Subject to Limitations

1. Covered fees. Except as provided in § 1026.52(a)(2) and except as provided in comments 52(a)(2)-2 and -3, § 1026.52(a) applies to any fees or other charges that a card issuer will or may require the consumer to pay with respect to a credit card account during the first year after account opening, other than charges attributable to periodic interest rates. For example, § 1026.52(a) applies to:

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)-1 and 52(b)-2

1. Fees for violating the account terms or other requirements. For purposes of § 1026.52(b), a fee includes any charge imposed by a card issuer based on an act or omission that violates the terms of the account or any other requirements imposed by the card issuer with respect to the account, other than charges attributable to periodic interest rates.

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)(1) General Rule

1. Relationship between § 1026.52(b)(1)(i), (b)(1)(ii), and (b)(2).

i. Relationship between § 1026.52(b)(1)(i) and (b)(1)(ii). A card issuer may impose a fee for violating the terms or other requirements of an account pursuant to either § 1026.52(b)(1)(i) or (b)(1)(ii).

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)(1)(i) Fees Based on Costs

1. Costs incurred as a result of violations. Section 1026.52(b)(1)(i) does not require a card issuer to base a fee on the costs incurred as a result of a specific violation of the terms or other requirements of an account. Instead, for purposes of § 1026.52(b)(1)(i), a card issuer must have determined that a fee for violating the terms or other requirements of an account represents a reasonable proportion of the costs incurred by the card issuer as a result of that type of violation.

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)(2) Prohibited fees

1. Relationship to § 1026.52(b)(1). A card issuer does not comply with § 1026.52(b) if it imposes a fee that is inconsistent with the prohibitions in § 1026.52(b)(2). Thus, the prohibitions in § 1026.52(b)(2) apply even if a fee is consistent with § 1026.52(b)(1)(i) or (b)(1)(ii).

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)(2)(i) Fees That Exceed Dollar Amount Associated With Violation

1. Late payment fees. For purposes of § 1026.52(b)(2)(i), the dollar amount associated with a late payment is the amount of the required minimum periodic payment due immediately prior to assessment of the late payment fee. Thus, § 1026.52(b)(2)(i)(A) prohibits a card issuer from imposing a late payment fee that exceeds the amount of that required minimum periodic payment. For example:

Consumer Credit Regulation: 52(b)(2)(ii) Multiple Fees Based on a Single Event or Transaction

1. Single event or transaction. Section 1026.52(b)(2)(ii) prohibits a card issuer from imposing more than one fee for violating the terms or other requirements of an account based on a single event or transaction. If § 1026.56(j)(1) permits a card issuer to impose fees for exceeding the credit limit in consecutive billing cycles based on the same over-the-limit transaction, those fees are not based on a single event or transaction for purposes of § 1026.52(b)(2)(ii). The following examples illustrate the application of § 1026.52(b)(2)(ii).

Consumer Credit Regulation: Amendment History

[75 Fed. Reg. 7848 (Feb. 22, 2010); 75 Fed. Reg. 37,583 (June 29, 2010); 76 Fed. Reg. 23,021 (Apr. 25, 2011); 76 Fed. Reg. 79,772 (Dec. 22, 2011); 78 Fed. Reg. 18,795 (Mar. 28, 2013); 78 Fed. Reg. 76,033 (Dec. 16, 2013); 81 Fed. Reg. 41,418 (June 27, 2016); 81 Fed. Reg. 84,369 (Nov. 22, 2016); 82 Fed. Reg. 18,975 (Apr. 25, 2017); 82 Fed. Reg. 41,158 (Aug. 30, 2017); 83 Fed. Reg. 6364 (Feb. 13, 2018); 83 Fed. Reg. 43,503 (Aug. 27, 2018); 84 Fed. Reg. 58,020 (Oct. 30, 2019)]

Consumer Credit Regulation: 1026.53-1 through 1026.53-4

1. Required minimum periodic payment. Section 1026.53 addresses the allocation of amounts paid by the consumer in excess of the minimum periodic payment required by the card issuer. Section 1026.53 does not limit or otherwise address the card issuer’s ability to determine, consistent with applicable law and regulatory guidance, the amount of the required minimum periodic payment or how that payment is allocated.