Warning nobody is really receiving the bonus at the moment. This is definitely wait and see currently. We have more datapoints and discussions on this here.

Offer at a glance

Maximum bonus amount: $200

$200 Availability: CT, DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, VA, WV

CT, DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, VA, WV Direct deposit required: Yes, $100

Yes, $100 Additional requirements: None

None Hard/soft pull: Soft

Soft ChexSystems: Yes

Yes Credit card funding: None

None Monthly fees: Avoidable

Avoidable Early account termination fee: $50 180-days

$50 180-days Expiration date: August 18th, 2017

August 18th, 2017 Household limit: None listed

The Offer

No direct link to offer (go to mtb.com/checking and enter promo code QJ, but read our verdict first)

Open a new M&T personal checking account by August 18th, 2017 with the promotional code QJ and receive a sign up bonus of $200 when you do the following: Set up a qualifying direct deposit of $100 or more within 90 days of account opening



The Fine Print

Qualifying direct deposits include but are not limited to electronic deposits such as payroll or social security and do not include electronic money transfers or credits such as account-to-account transfers or those made through internet payment services

Bonus will post to the account within 90 days of meeting the direct deposit requirement

Limited to one bonus per customer

Offer may vary by region and product

Offer is nontransferable

All bank account bonuses are treated as income/interest and as such you have to pay taxes on them

Avoiding Fees

The bonus is available on any personal checking account, including: EZChoice Checking, MyChoice Checking, MyChoice Plus Checking, MyChoice Premium Checking, Classic Checking, Basic Banking. Let’s look at the easiest options for keeping fee free.

[Note that M&T Bank is one of the few banks that doesn’t give you a grace period, the requirements mentioned below must be completed your first month to keep it fee-free.]

EZChoice Checking

This account has a monthly fee of $9.95, soon changing to $6.95.

Monthly fee is waived by making just ONE transaction such as a deposit, withdrawal, or debit purchase.

MyChoice Checking

This account has a monthly fee of $6.95 that can be waived with any of the following methods:

Receive direct deposits totaling $200 or more

Make 10 or more monthly debit card purchases

Keep an average daily balance of $500 (might be $1,500 depending on your area) or more

Basic Banking

This account has a non-waivable $3 monthly fee.

Early Account Termination Fee

Account must be kept open for 180 days otherwise $50 bonus will be charged.

Our Verdict

Another M&T bonus, yay! People love these as you can get them out of state (just click out of the box asking for zip code originally) and you can also sign up for multiple accounts (with different codes) and get the bonus. Bonuses also post extremely quickly after meeting the requirements. There are two other active bonuses currently:

This will be added to our best bank account bonus page as soon as we get confirmation that non targeted people have received the bonus.

Hat tip to readers Kevin & Zalmy

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