Payday loans in Iowa
Iowa permits payday loans as licensed delayed deposit services, letting a lender hold your check for up to 31 days per Iowa Code chapter 533D.
- Payday lending
- Allowed
- Max cost
- $15.00 per $100 borrowed
- Top amount
- Across the checks held from one borrower, the total cannot exceed $500.
At that cap, a $100 loan over 14 days can carry $15.00 in fees: $115.00 back in total, close to 391% APR.
Are payday loans legal in Iowa?
Yes, the Iowa Delayed Deposit Services Licensing Act in Iowa Code chapter 533D makes payday loans legal in Iowa. For up to 31 days, a licensed lender holds your check, and Iowa calls this arrangement a delayed deposit service. At any one time, a lender can hold no more than two of your checks. The total value of those checks must not go over $500. On the first $100 of the check, the fee limit is $15, and on each additional $100, the limit is $10. The highest penalty allowed is $15 when your check cannot be cashed on the date you agreed upon.
State law bans rollovers, preventing a lender from paying off, refinancing, or combining your check deal with another from that same company. Before giving a check, ensure the lender has an active Iowa license. You may search for any company at no cost using NMLS Consumer Access. Regarding financial companies chartered in Iowa, the Finance Bureau within the Iowa Division of Banking takes online complaints. It also recommends this search service.
- In Iowa, payday lending is termed a delayed deposit service; licensing for this practice, where lenders hold borrower checks, began July 1, 1995.
- Per $100 of the check face amount, the fee is set at $15 for the first $100 and $10 for each later $100.
- One borrower may have at most two checks held by a lender for no longer than 31 days, with a $500 total limit.
- A lender cannot use another deal from the same lender to pay off one postdated check deal because rollovers are barred.
- House File 2329 in 2026 established a flat three percent monthly rate for regulated consumer loans, signed May 2, 2026, and effective July 1, 2026.
Iowa payday loan laws
- Law in force
- Iowa Delayed Deposit Services Licensing Act
- Cited as
- Iowa Code chapter 533D
- Fees under the law
- Ten dollars applies to each subsequent one hundred dollar increment, while fifteen dollars applies to the first one hundred dollars of the check face amount.
- Most you can borrow
- Across the checks held from one borrower, the total cannot exceed $500.
- How long a loan runs
- 31 days
- Rollovers
- A postdated check transaction may not be repaid, refinanced or consolidated by a lender using the proceeds of another one.
- Loans you can hold at once
- From any one borrower, the limit is two checks.
- Installment lending limits
- Effective July 1, 2026, House File 2329 sets a flat three percent per month for regulated loans (Iowa Code 536.13), replacing old tiered monthly rates.
Also checked against law.justia.com. Full statute text.
Online lenders that list Iowa
Eight companies we track say they lend in Iowa: 1 online installment lender, 6 tribal lenders and 1 loan broker.
| Lender | Kind | Posted APR |
|---|---|---|
 NetCredit | Installment | 34.99% to 99.99% |
 Viva Payday Loans | Broker | Partner lenders quote 4.99% to 1,386% |
Tribal loans in Iowa
Under Iowa Code 533D.3, only a delayed deposit business with a physical Iowa site gets an Iowa license, which means online-only payday lenders cannot hold one. If a company has no Iowa location, any online payday loan it offers you is not a licensed Iowa loan.
On the immunity claim tribal lenders make, see are tribal loans legal.
Six tribal lenders we track list Iowa as a state they lend in. Three of the six publish an APR, from 73.7% to 725%.
| Lender | Posted APR |
|---|---|
 Mobiloans | 73.7% to 405% |
 Spotloan | 99% to 490% |
 BrightLending | 325% to 725% |
 MaxLend | Not published |
 Minto Money | Not published |
| American Web Loan | Not published |
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Iowa and the states around it
| State | Payday lending | Max cost | Top amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iowa | Allowed | $15.00 per $100 borrowed | Across the checks held from one borrower, the total cannot exceed $500. |
| Illinois | Banned | 36% APR | None allowed |
| Minnesota | Allowed | 50% APR | Consumer small loans with one payment are limited to $350; consumer short-term loans are limited to $1,300. |
| Missouri | Allowed | Fees and interest can go up to 75% of the loan, and that includes renewals. | You may owe no more than $500 at once to one lender and its affiliates. |
| Nebraska | Banned | 36% APR | A total of $500 across all checks held from a single borrower |
| South Dakota | Banned | 36% APR | None allowed |
| Wisconsin | Allowed | None in the law | interest and fees count toward the combined total due to all payday licensees, capped at whichever is smaller: 35% of gross monthly income or $1,500 |
Iowa loans with no credit check
Installment loan rates: Effective July 1, 2026, House File 2329 sets a flat three percent per month for regulated loans (Iowa Code 536.13), replacing old tiered monthly rates.
See no credit check loans: the checks lenders still run, and the price.
Verify a lender's license in Iowa
- Look the lender up on the license list before you hand over any bank details.
- Lenders here answer to the Iowa Division of Banking (IDOB), Finance Bureau, part of the Department of Insurance and Financial Services.
- Had trouble with a lender? Report the lender.
Sources for Iowa
- The fee for the first $100 of the check face amount cannot exceed $15.; The fee cap stands at $10 for every additional $100 of the check face amount.; The total for checks held from one borrower must stay at or below $500.legis.iowa.gov
- Licensing for delayed deposit services began on July 1, 1995.idob.iowa.gov
- To find Iowa licensed financial services companies, IDOB points consumers to NMLS Consumer Access.idob.iowa.gov
- IDOB accepts complaints regarding state-chartered financial companies and provides an online form for this purpose.idob.iowa.gov
- Under House File 2329, regulated loans may carry at most three percent per month.legis.iowa.gov
- The Governor signed HF2329 on May 2, 2026, with an effective date of July 1, 2026.legis.iowa.gov