Financial Tips • Create and follow a monthly, weekly, and daily budget. Cut out unnecessary expenses. Contact the California Department of • Prioritize your . Pay off or cards Financial Protection and Innovation to What You Need with the most expensive rates first. check the licensing status, history of • Build a “rainy-day” fund by setting aside small disciplinary actions, or to file a complaint to Know About amounts of money per paycheck. against a payday lender. • Contact a local consumer service for help developing a monthly budget or a Payday Loans with creditors. Learn more about payday loans form the DFPI:

www.DFPI.ca.gov Use Caution with Online Payday Loans! • Payday Information Verify the license of a lender before sharing Toll-Free 1-866-275-2677 personal information! You can verify a lender’s • Fees for Payday Loans license by checking www.dfpi.ca.gov or calling TTY 1-800-735-2922 1-866-275-2677. • California Law Protections

Unlicensed lenders may: • Credit Counseling For additional copies of this publication, • Illegally collect from you without permission, even please e-mail your request to • Avoiding if you are unable to repay the loan. [email protected] • Charge an far higher than what California law allows. • Sell or pirate your personal financial information. • Operate out-of-state or out-of-country, making it difficult to track them down and recover lost State of California funds. Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency • If you wish to file a formal complaint against an unlicensed lender, visit https://dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint. www.DFPI.ca.gov

CDDTL 001 (REV 02/21) What is a ? How California Laws Protect You: If You Have Credit Problems: A payday loan is a short-term, high-cost loan. A • To do business in California, all payday lenders – Call your creditors and ask them to waive late fees, borrower will write a post-dated check for the full whether a storefront or online - must be licensed reduce interest rates, or work with you to establish amount of the loan and repay it or have the funds by the Department of Financial Protection and a repayment schedule that you can manage. deducted from their account on their next payday, Innovation (DFPI). Visit the department’s website up to 31 days later. For example, a borrower writes (www.dfpi.ca.gov) to verify a lender’s license. If you miss bill payments or have other credit a $300 check, pays a $45 fee, and receives $255 troubles, you may benefit from the services of a in cash. • A payday lender may make only one loan at financial counselor who can review your financial a time to a consumer and may only charge a situation and help develop a personalized money maximum fee of 15% of the total amount of the management plan. Be aware: just because a debt If You Take Out a Payday Loan: check (up to $45). Additional fee restrictions management agency claims to be “non-profit” Borrow only as much as you can pay back in full on apply for military servicemembers. does not guarantee the services are legitimate or your next payday and consider other unexpected affordable. expenses or alternate forms of credit. If you cannot • Payday lenders must post their California license afford to pay back the loan on the due date, do not and a fee schedule at every location. A reputable debt management agency should take out a second payday loan to cover the cost. provide free information without requiring your • A payday lender cannot make a new loan to pay personal details. Avoid organizations that push a Doing so can lead to a cycle of debt which will be off an existing loan. difficult to recover from and expensive. as your only option before they analyze your financial situation. • A payday lender cannot issue a new loan while Fees for Payday Loans: a borrower still has an existing loan, even if the Visit the National Foundation for Credit Counseling combined balance of the existing loan and the (NFCC) website (www.nfcc.org) or call toll free Under California law, the maximum amount a new loan does not exceed $300. 1-800-388-2227 for assistance with credit problems consumer can borrow in a payday loan is $300. and creditors. The maximum fee a payday lender can charge is • If your check bounces, the payday lender may 15% of the amount of the check (up to a maximum charge only one bounced check fee (up to $15). of $45). Additional fee restrictions apply for military Be aware: your may charge you additional If You Are Facing Bankruptcy: servicemembers and their dependents. fees for insufficient funds. Federal law requires mandatory credit counseling A 15% fee is equivalent to an annual percentage • Additional fees cannot be charged if you request before you can declare bankruptcy. For help and rate (APR) of 460% for a two-week loan. By an extension of time or payment plan. However, information about credit counseling, see the FTC’s comparison, a loan for a new car generally has an the payday lender is not legally required to grant publication, Filing for Bankruptcy: What to Know APR between 4% and 7%. APR is the total annual your request. (http://dfpi.us/bankruptcywhattoknow). interest and any additional costs or fees that a The U.S. Department of Justice Trustee Program borrower pays on a loan. APR is used to reveal the • The contract for a payday loan must be provided to you in your primary language. approves organizations to provide mandatory total cost of borrowing money. counseling before you can declare bankruptcy • A payday lender cannot threaten to prosecute and mandatory education after you declare Loans to Military Members and their you in criminal court to recover insufficient funds. bankruptcy. Dependents: • You may have other legal protections under To find an approved organization near you, see the Because of recent changes in federal and California law. If you need help or suspect DOJ’s List of Approved Providers of Personal California law that restrict payday loan fees for violations of the law, please contact the DFPI. Financial Management Instructional Courses military servicemembers and their dependents, (http://dfpi.us/bankruptcycounseling). some payday lenders may choose not to make loans to servicemembers and their dependents.

California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation | TOLL FREE 1-866-275-2677 | TTY 1-800-735-2922 | www.dfpi.ca.gov