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How to Load Your Card

Load Options

Your family’s funding card typically comes pre-loaded with a modest amount of money — from $5 to $50.

Once loaded, parents can move money instantly between any of the cards in the family using the FamZoo app.

Before long, you’ll need a secure way to reload your funding card.

Choose from these secure load options:

Bank icon

Bank Account

Transfer funds from your bank account to your card.

Takes 1-3 business days.

Often free.

SEE INSTRUCTIONS HERE
Direct deposit icon

Direct Deposit

Instruct an employer or government agency to deposit funds on your card.

Takes 1-5 business days.

Free.

SEE INSTRUCTIONS HERE
Digital Wallet

Digital Wallet

Transfer funds from an online digital wallet like Apple Pay.

Takes 0-3 business days.

Free except for instant transfers.

SEE INSTRUCTIONS HERE

Help!

Are you having trouble reloading and need some help?

Contact us online or call us at 412-326-9661.

Note: Our load options work for any FamZoo card. Most families load only the funding card, but there are times when loading the other cards directly is handy — like loading a teen’s card via direct deposit from a summer or part-time job.

The Most SECURE Solution

How is loading FamZoo cards so secure?

FamZoo. Funny name. Serious security.

You can rest easy knowing:

  • Nobody can steal your main bank account info from FamZoo. We never ask for it. We never store it.
  • Nobody can drain your main bank account using the FamZoo app. We never automatically pull funds from your bank account.

For the highest security from fraudsters (and crafty kids!), you always PUSH funds into FamZoo from your own secure online banking application or by using one of our other load options.

Bank Account

Transfer funds from your bank account to your card.

Reload from bank diagram

You can transfer funds to your FamZoo card from almost any conventional bank account using the online banking service provided by your bank or credit union.

If you ordered your cards through...

  • Amboy Bank — see the steps here.
  • Claremont Savings Bank — see the steps here.
  • Community Bank & Trust Waco — see the steps here.
  • Decorah or Cresco Bank — see the steps here.
  • Firelands Federal Credit Union — see the steps here.
  • Kohler Credit Union — see the steps here.
  • Lake City Bank — see the steps here.

Otherwise, follow these two-part instructions:

  1. One-time setup: Link your FamZoo card to your bank as an external checking account.
  2. Whenever you want to reload: Transfer funds from your bank account to the linked FamZoo card.

Note: If your financial institution does not support ACH transfers to external accounts, try using a money transfer service like Xoom or one of our other reload options.

Part 1: Link your FamZoo card to your bank

You only need to complete these steps once for each FamZoo card you want to fund from your bank.

  1. Get your FamZoo card’s routing and account numbers

    Each FamZoo card has its own bank routing and account numbers used for ACH transfers and direct deposit. These are different from the card number printed on the card and used for purchases.

    To find them, sign into FamZoo as a parent and open the Card Information screen for the desired card.

    Desktop UI:

    • Select Bank › Accounts.
    • Click the desired card’s balance to open its Transactions listing.
    • Click Card Information in the left-hand sidebar.

    Mobile UI:

    • Tap Accounts at the bottom of the screen.
    • Tap the desired card’s balance to open its Transactions listing.
    • Tap Card Information from the menu in the upper-right corner.
  2. Add the FamZoo card as an external checking account

    Sign into your financial institution’s online banking website and look for an option such as Add External Account, often found in the Transfers section.

    Add the FamZoo card manually using its routing and account numbers. You may be asked to search for our bank’s name first. Because FamZoo cards use a different routing number from the bank’s retail checking accounts, bypass that search and enter the FamZoo routing number directly.

    Be sure to identify the FamZoo card as a checking account, not a savings account.

    If you cannot find an external-account option in your bank’s mobile app, check the bank’s full online banking website instead. Some banks do not provide this setup option in their mobile apps.

  3. Verify the FamZoo card using trial deposits

    Choose trial deposits as the verification method.

    Your bank will typically send two small trial deposits to the FamZoo card, then reverse them.

    Do not use instant verification through account sign-in. Our card processor does not support that verification method. Trial deposits are the only supported method.

  4. Complete verification

    Allow 1–3 business days for the trial deposits to appear in your FamZoo card’s transaction history.

    Once they appear:

    • Note the trial-deposit amounts you see on the card’s Transactions screen in FamZoo.
    • Sign back into your bank’s online banking service.
    • Find the pending external account, often found in the Transfers section.
    • Enter the trial-deposit amounts to complete verification.

Setup complete. Your FamZoo card should now appear as an available destination when you make transfers from your bank.

Part 2: Transfer money to your FamZoo card

Once the one-time setup above is complete, reloading your card is simple.

  1. Start a transfer at your bank

    Sign into your bank’s online banking service and open its Transfer screen.

    Select:

    • From: The bank account you want to fund the card from.
    • To: Your linked FamZoo card account.
    • Amount: The amount you want to transfer.

    Be sure the amount is below your FamZoo card’s maximum transfer limit.

  2. Submit the transfer as an ACH transfer

    Submit the transfer using your bank’s normal ACH transfer option.

    Do not choose an expedited option if it sends a wire transfer. FamZoo cards can receive ACH transfers, but not wires.

  3. Wait for the funds to arrive

    Transferred funds typically appear on your FamZoo card within 1–3 business days. Weekends and bank holidays do not count as business days.

Direct Deposit

Instruct a payor to deposit funds directly on your card.

You can load paychecks, tax refunds, government benefits, and more onto your card via direct deposit. There is no fee.

Provide the routing and account numbers for your FamZoo card to your payor. You’ll find the numbers on the Card Information screen.

In most cases, you can elect to deposit a percentage of your pay or a specified fixed amount.

Digital Wallet

Transfer funds from an online digital wallet to your card.

Many popular digital wallets allow you to link your FamZoo card as a bank account using its routing and account numbers. Once linked, you can transfer funds stored in your digital wallet to your FamZoo account in 1 to 3 business days.

Several digital wallets also allow instant transfers when you add your FamZoo card as a debit card instead of as a bank account. Digital wallet providers typically charge 1.5% to 1.75% of the transfer amount, with a minimum fee of 25 cents and a maximum fee of $15 to $25.

This reload option is only convenient if you tend to keep a ready balance of funds in your digital wallet, or you have a quick way to add funds to your wallet when you need to reload your FamZoo card.

Popular options include:

Apple Pay Bank Transfer

If you have an iPhone and Apple Pay, you can reload your FamZoo card for free in 1 to 3 business days as follows:

  1. Add your bank debit card to your Apple Pay wallet. You can set up Apple Pay and add your bank debit card (not your FamZoo card) from Settings → Wallet & Apple Pay.

    See Apple’s instructions here.

  2. Add money to your Apple Cash card. Select the Apple Cash card in your wallet and tap on Add Money to pull in funds instantly from your bank debit card.

    See Apple’s instructions here.

  3. Transfer money from Apple Cash to FamZoo. Tap on Transfer to Bank on your Apple Cash card. You must choose the second transfer option “Transfer in 1 to 3 business days” and not the “Instant Transfer” option. The first time through you’ll have the option of adding a bank account using its routing and account numbers. Use your FamZoo card’s routing and account numbers found here.

    Funds typically arrive on your card by the next business day.

    IMPORTANT: Apple Pay only allows one bank account to be linked at a time for the purpose of Transfer to Bank. So, if you already have another bank account linked using its routing and account numbers, you’ll need to update it in your Apple Pay Wallet first. See Apple’s instructions here (under the section “How to update your bank account information”).

    IMPORTANT: Be sure that your iPhone display settings do not have the font size or the zoom cranked up. Otherwise, you won’t be able to see the 1 to 3 business day transfer option. Adjust your font/zoom settings to be in the normal or small range and try again. This is a known iPhone bug.

    See Apple’s instructions here.

Apple Pay Instant Transfer

If you have an iPhone and Apple Pay, you can reload your FamZoo card instantly as follows:

  1. Move some funds into Apple Cash (if you don’t already have a balance). See Apple’s instructions here.
  2. Add your FamZoo card as a debit card to Apple Pay. See Apple’s instructions here.
  3. Initiate an instant transfer to your FamZoo card. See Apple’s instructions here.

Troubleshooting tip: If your FamZoo card is not being offered as a destination for an instant transfer from your Apple Cash, try the following once you have money in Apple Cash:

  1. Remove all of your debit cards from Apple Pay.
  2. Tap on the Apple Cash card.
  3. Tap on the Transfer to Bank button.
  4. Select the option to add a debit card for instant transfer.
  5. Add your FamZoo debit card and complete the transfer.

PayPal Bank Transfer

If you have a PayPal account, you can transfer funds from your PayPal balance to your FamZoo card for free in 1 to 3 business days as follows:

  1. Link your FamZoo card to PayPal as a bank account. Before you can make your first transfer, you must link your FamZoo card to PayPal using its routing and account numbers. Follow the instructions here.
  2. Accumulate funds in your PayPal wallet. You must have funds sitting in your PayPal wallet in order to transfer them to your linked FamZoo card account.

    You must open a PayPal Balance Account before you can accumulate funds in your PayPal wallet. If your Payal Balance and a Transfer Money link are not visible when signing into PayPal, please see here.

  3. Transfer money from your PayPal balance to your card. To move funds from your PayPal balance to your linked FamZoo card:
    1. Sign into your PayPal account.
    2. Click on Wallet at the top of the page.
    3. Click on Transfer Money.
    4. Click on the Move money out option.
    5. Specify the amount, select your linked FamZoo card account as the destination, and complete the transfer.

    The money typically takes 1 to 3 business days to appear on your FamZoo card.

PayPal Instant Transfer

If you have a PayPal Cash or Cash Plus account, you can reload your FamZoo card instantly as follows:

  1. Move some funds into PayPal (if you don’t already have a balance). See PayPal’s instructions here.
  2. Add your FamZoo card as a debit card to PayPal. See PayPal’s instructions here.
  3. Initiate an instant transfer to your FamZoo card. See PayPal’s instructions here.

Cash App Bank Transfer

Funds in Cash App can be transferred to your FamZoo card for free in 1 to 3 business days as follows:

  1. Download the Cash App or visit cash.app and register an account.
  2. Add your FamZoo card as a bank account. Use your card’s routing and account numbers, and follow the instructions here.
  3. Receive money from another Cash App user. See the help entry here.

    Want to send money to yourself? Use this trick: register a second Cash App account under a different email, link it to your bank debit card, and send money to your first Cash App account.

  4. Cash out the received funds to your linked FamZoo account. See the help entry here.

    Tip: turn on the Auto Cash Out setting so that funds are transferred to your linked FamZoo account whenever they are received.

Venmo Instant Transfer

If you have a Venmo account, you can reload your FamZoo card instantly as follows:

  1. Move some funds into Venmo (if you don’t already have a balance). See Venmo’s instructions here.
  2. Add your FamZoo card as a debit card to Venmo. See Venmo’s instructions here.
  3. Initiate an instant transfer to your FamZoo card. See Venmo’s instructions here.

Having trouble? See the related article here