Payday loans in New Jersey
Payday loans are ruled out in New Jersey, which lacks an authorizing law, sets a 30% yearly criminal usury cap for individuals, and bans check cashers from advancing money on postdated checks.
- Payday lending
- Banned
- Max cost
- 30% APR
- Top amount
- None allowed
Are payday loans legal in New Jersey?
State criminal usury statutes and the Check Cashers Regulatory Act make payday loans illegal in New Jersey. Usury is charging interest above what the law permits. A written contract has a civil limit of 16 percent yearly, and charging an individual more than 30 percent is criminal usury. The Consumer Finance Licensing Act allows licensed lenders to offer up to $50,000 in installments, meaning payments spread over time. The rate you agree to on those loans still cannot exceed 30 percent a year.
State law also forbids check cashers from giving you cash for a postdated check, which carries a future date. Unlicensed internet lenders from other states or countries provide almost all payday loans to residents. Lenders need a New Jersey license to issue any personal loan worth $50,000 or less. The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance looks into this illegal lending. You can report a lender by filing an online complaint with the department or calling 1-800-446-7467.
- New Jersey applies its criminal code to high-rate lending, where charging an individual over 30% yearly is criminal usury.
- Check cashers, who operate payday loans in many states, cannot give cash on a postdated check.
- A separate civil usury ceiling of 16 percent applies when a written contract establishes the interest rate.
- The banking commissioner issued a warning to residents in 2013 that payday loans came mostly from internet lenders outside the state.
New Jersey payday loan laws
- Law in force
- New Jersey's criminal usury law and its Check Cashers Regulatory Act
- Cited as
- N.J.S.A. 17:15A-47 (what check cashers may not do) and N.J.S.A. 2C:21-19, the criminal usury law
- Fees under the law
- The law permits no loan or forbearance with an interest rate above 30% per annum (50% for corporations).
- Installment lending limits
- The Consumer Finance Licensing Act lets licensed consumer lenders offer installment loans up to $50,000 at an agreed rate, within the 30% criminal usury cap.
Also checked against the DOBI personal finance FAQ about civil and criminal usury rates and a 2013 DOBI press release on payday lenders. Full statute text.
Online lenders that list New Jersey
Six companies we track say they lend in New Jersey: 2 online installment lenders, 3 tribal lenders and 1 loan broker.
Both lenders with a posted APR post a top APR above New Jersey's 30% APR cap.
| Lender | Kind | Posted APR |
|---|---|---|
 NetCredit | Installment | 34.99% to 99.99% |
 OppLoans | Installment | 99% to 195% |
 Viva Payday Loans | Broker | Partner lenders quote 4.99% to 1,386% |
Tribal loans in New Jersey
The state banking department in New Jersey has warned that nearly all payday lending to residents is by foreign or out-of-state lenders lacking the licence New Jersey requires, at rates that break state criminal and civil usury caps.
On the immunity claim tribal lenders make, see are tribal loans legal.
Three tribal lenders we track list New Jersey as a state they lend in. One of the three publishes an APR: 99% to 490%. That lender posts a top APR above New Jersey's 30% APR cap.
| Lender | Posted APR |
|---|---|
 Spotloan | 99% to 490% |
 Minto Money | Not published |
| American Web Loan | Not published |
Need cash in New Jersey? Ask about cheaper routes
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New Jersey and the states around it
| State | Payday lending | Max cost | Top amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | Banned | 30% APR | None allowed |
| Delaware | Allowed | None in the law | $1,000 (a loan of $1,000 or less qualifies as a short-term consumer loan) |
| New York | Banned | 16% APR | None allowed |
| Pennsylvania | Banned | None in the law | None allowed |
New Jersey loans with no credit check
Installment loan rates: The Consumer Finance Licensing Act lets licensed consumer lenders offer installment loans up to $50,000 at an agreed rate, within the 30% criminal usury cap.
See no credit check loans: the checks lenders still run, and the price.
Verify a lender's license in New Jersey
- Look the lender up on the license list before you hand over any bank details.
- Lenders here answer to the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI).
- Had trouble with a lender? Report the lender.
Sources for New Jersey
- The law does not allow any interest rate above 30% per year.; Corporations and LLCs may face annual rates as high as 50%.; Charging criminal usury over 50% counts as a crime of the second degree.law.justia.com
- Check cashers cannot give cash in exchange for a postdated check.law.justia.com
- DOBI puts the criminal usury limit at 50% for corporations and 30% for everyone else.nj.gov
- Unlicensed lenders from other states provide most payday loans to residents.; Where a written contract defines the rate, the civil usury limit is 16 percent.; Lenders on the internet outside the state can victimise residents.nj.gov
- Licensed consumer lenders may issue installment loans of up to $50,000.law.justia.com
- Personal loans of $50,000 or less require a consumer lender licence.nj.gov
- You may file complaints online via DOBI's Consumer Inquiry and Response Center.; Consumer hotline number run by DOBInj.gov