§ 4404 Stale Check Payment Rules

• •Banks don't have to pay a check if it's more than 6 months old (except certified checks).
• •If the bank pays an old check by mistake, they can take the money back from your account.
• •This rule is to protect banks from paying really old checks.

You write a check to your friend on January 1st but they forget to cash it. In August, they find it and try to cash it.

The bank can say no because it's been more than 6 months. If they pay it by mistake, they can take that money back from your account.