Q. What is SaveNOW?
A. SaveNOW is a higher interest savings account, which offers 3% interest rate bonus.
Q. What are the requirements for a SaveNOW account?
A. Savers must be Ohio residents and can only participate once every other year.
Q. How does the 3% bonus work?
A. The Ohio Treasury places a deposit with the participating bank. At the conclusion of the year-long program, your SaveNOW account will earn 3% interest paid by the Ohio Treasury. The saver will receive a total of 3% interest on the average daily SaveNOW account balance.
Q. What is the minimum and maximum balance?
A. There is no minimum balance. The maximum balance on which you can receive the 3% interest is $5,000.
Q. Who can participate?
A. Any Ohio resident who has not participated in the SaveNOW program within the last 12 months.
Q. Can I participate more than once?
A. Yes. However, savers can only participate once every other year.
Example: If you enrolled in January 2010, you cannot participate again until January 2012.
Q. If I participate, can my spouse and/or child(ren) also participate?
A. Yes. Each Ohioan is eligible for one SaveNOW account. A parent, grandparent, dependent or guardian for a minor may also open a SaveNOW custodial account. *Savers must abide by the participating banks rules and/or regulations regarding custodial accounts. Certain restrictions may apply.
Q. How and where do I sign up?
A. A select number of banks throughout Ohio participate in the SaveNOW program. Please visit a participating bank to complete the application and open a savings account. To view a list of participating banks please visit
the SaveNOW homepage.
Q. Can I enroll at more than one bank during the same time?
A. No. Only one SaveNOW account is allowed at a time.
Q. How long does the program last?
A. SaveNOW is a year-long program on a rolling basis. Therefore, participants can sign up at any time during the year.
Q. How do I know if I’m enrolled in the program?
A. Participants will receive a welcome letter via mail or e-mail within 60 days of enrolling. If you do not receive a welcome letter, please contact the Treasurer’s office via e-mail at savenow@tos.ohio.gov or via phone (see below).
Q. Can I leave my account open after the one year period?
A. Yes. However, after the conclusion of the program, the account will no longer receive a 3% interest rate bonus. Therefore the savings account interest rate will return to the standard interest rate given by the bank.
Q. Can I withdrawal the funds from my SaveNOW account prior to the conclusion of the one year program?
A. Yes. However, your account will only receive 3% of the average daily balance for that one year.
Q. If I live outside of Ohio for a period of the year, am I still eligible?
A. Yes, as long as you are a resident of Ohio or if you were a resident when you joined the program.
Q. What is the SaveNOW financial education program?
A. Savers will participate in a financial education program developed and administered by the Ohio Treasury. Throughout the one year program, participants will receive three financial education newsletters. Participants must complete a financial literacy survey. Some of the topics covered in the survey include saving, budgeting, protection against identify theft, credit card use, banking, loans and debt. If you do not receive the newsletters, please contact us.
The financial education program does not consist of any classes and the information will be distributed via mail or emailed directly to the saver where possible. In the case where email distribution is not possible, the saver may visit the bank to view the newsletters and to take
the survey online.
Q. What must I do to receive the 3% interest bonus?
A. Each saver should complete the
financial literacy survey, unless savers receive the survey via mail. The survey should only be completed once and taken no sooner than the 10th month of your program.
To complete the survey, please fill out all required information on the SaveNOW application. Do not intentionally leave any fields blank and be sure to include your SaveNOW ID number. Parents or guardians who opened a custodial SaveNOW account should complete the survey pertaining to their information, not the child’s. One survey is required for each participant.
Q. What is the SaveNOW ID number?
A. This number is assigned to each saver after enrolling into the program and can be found on the welcome letter.
Q. When will I receive my bonus from the bank?
A. Upon completion of the survey, savers will receive the 3% interest bonus no later than one month after their program concludes approximately in the 13th month after opening the account.
Q. What is Ohio Saves and how is it associated with SaveNOW?
A. Ohio Saves encourages people to gain financial stability by building wealth and reducing debt. It offers access to saving strategies, the American Saver Newsletter and is affiliated with America Saves. In March 2010, the Ohio Treasury partnered with the Ohio Saves program. Each SaveNOW applicant will be enrolled into the Ohio Saves program, unless the applicant decides to opt out at the time of completing the SaveNOW application. The Ohio Saves program provides Ohioans with the opportunity to continue receiving financial literacy after the completion of the 12-month SaveNOW program. To learn more about Ohio Saves please visit
www.ohiosaves.org.
For questions, please call the Ohio Treasurer’s Office at (614) 466-6546 or (800) 228-1102.