Electric Orange Checking - The Basics

What is Electric Orange checking?

Electric Orange^SM is America's first all–electronic, paperless checking account. Earn a great rate, with online Bill Pay, easy access to cash, an Electric Orange MasterCard® Debit Card and more – it provides the access and convenience of checking with the earning power of savings.

View a short demo to learn about Electric Orange.

Electric Orange Terms & Conditions

What is an electronic checking account?

Electric Orange is a checking account without the paper. You can do everything – pay bills, mail a paper check, make a secure deposit directly into someone's account, transfer money – securely online at ingdirect.com. And with your Electric Orange Debit Card, you can access cash at ATMs worldwide or make purchases anywhere MasterCard® is accepted. You'll even receive all communications from us electronically.

After my Electric Orange checking is opened, will I receive paper checks to write?

No, this is a completely paperless checking account – you'll be able to make payments online or use your debit card for purchases. Also, please don't order paper checks from a third party provider – we won't accept them.

How do I set up Direct Deposit to my Electric Orange checking?

You can set up Direct Deposit one of three ways:

1. Give your ING DIRECT Account Number and our Routing Number, 031176110, to your employer. Learn more on how to get a voided check.
2. PRINT our blank Direct Deposit form and fill in your information.
3. You can access our pre-filled Direct Deposit form online.
   1. Sign in to ingdirect.com with your Customer Number or Saver ID and PIN
   2. Click on your 'Electric Orange'
   3. Select 'Account Maintenance'
   4. Scroll down and you will find the 'Direct Deposit form' under useful forms

Remember, you can choose to have all or only a portion of your paycheck direct deposited.

What if I really need a paper check to give or send to someone?

Electric Orange gives you options. For those times when you really need a paper check, you can send one from your computer. Learn more about mailing paper checks. And remember, you can always transfer money back to your linked checking account and write a check from that account as well.

What are the eligibility requirements for Electric Orange checking?

You must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident with a valid Social Security number, be at least 18 years old, and have a personal (non-business) checking account at another U.S. chartered bank to initially fund your Electric Orange. As part of the account opening process, we may or may not obtain information about you from a consumer reporting agency (a "hard pull"). If we do, we may or may not open Electric Orange for you based on that information.

You are not required to keep your other checking account after your Electric Orange is opened. You do not need to have another ING DIRECT account in order to apply for Electric Orange.

Can I have more than one Electric Orange checking?

Customers can only have one Electric Orange. For example, if you have a joint Electric Orange with another Customer, you cannot have another Electric Orange with anyone else or a single Electric Orange in your name only.

Can I use my personal finance software to track my Electric Orange checking transactions?

Sure. Downloading your financial transactions to your personal finance software, like Quicken®, Money® or CSV downloads works the same way it does for our other accounts. To download your transactions, click on your Electric Orange and click on the ‘Download’ link.

ING DIRECT requires Customers to use Web Connect to download their ING DIRECT account information. Learn more about downloading transactions.

Please note, however, ING DIRECT does not support aggregation services because we cannot monitor them to determine how they address security, privacy or the use of cookies.  Once account information leaves ING DIRECT, we have no control over our Customers’ personal information, nor do we know how it may be used.

How do I add a joint account holder to my Electric Orange checking?

To add a joint account holder online:

1. Sign in to ingdirect.com with your Customer Number or Saver ID and PIN
2. Click on your Electric Orange
3. Select 'Account Maintenance'
4. Under 'Account Ownership', click on 'Add' and follow the steps

The joint account holder you are adding will receive their own Customer Number and PIN as part of this process.

Please Note: If the joint account holder you’re adding is an existing ING DIRECT Customer, they will be asked to enter their Customer Number or Saver ID and PIN as part of the process.

In order for the joint account holder to transfer money in or out of the account, they must have a linked account.

Customers under the age of 18 cannot be added to Electric Orange. In addition, Customers can only have one Electric Orange.

How do I remove a joint account holder from my Electric Orange checking?

You’ll need to call 1-888-464-0727 to speak with an Associate.  The Associate will have to close your Electric Orange and open a new account in just your name in order to remove your joint account holder. You will not be able to do this until any pending transactions have posted.

Can my Electric Orange checking be a living trust?

Yes. You can register your account in the name of a Revocable Living Trust. Before you do this, make sure the ownership on your Electric Orange matches your trust. For example, the Grantor of your trust must be the primary account holder and at least 18 years old. If you list a Trustee, he/she must also be the joint account holder.

To make ownership changes, sign in to ingdirect.com with your Customer Number or Saver ID and PIN, click on your Electric Orange and then click ‘Account Maintenance.’

To register your Electric Orange in the name of a Revocable Living Trust, complete the ‘Certification of Trust' form. Keep in mind:

1. The Grantor and Trustee must be 18 or older.
2. If the Grantor’s name isn’t included in the title of the trust, you’ll also need to send a copy of the first page of the trust document.
3. The Grantor and Trustee names and addresses on the 'Certification of Trust' form must match the account information we have on file.

You can return the ‘Certification of Trust’ form and any supporting documentation one of three ways:

How do I get a voided check?

To get a voided check:

1. Sign in to ingdirect.com with your Customer Number or Saver ID and PIN
2. Click on your ‘Electric Orange’
3. Go to the Account Maintenance section
4. Scroll down to the ‘Useful Form’ area
5. Click on the link to print out a ‘Voided Check’

How often will I receive an eStatement?

All Electric Orange Customers receive an electronic statement – an ‘eStatement.’ Your eStatement will be produced each month there is activity (withdrawals or deposits) on your account. Interest being credited to your account at the end of each month is not activity. You’ll receive an email notification explaining when and how you can view your eStatement on our secure website. We don’t send eStatements via email. If you do not have any monthly activity on any of your ING DIRECT accounts, you’ll receive an eStatement on a quarterly basis.

Now that I'm applying for Electric Orange, do I need to close my checking account at my other bank?

You don’t have to keep your external checking account. You may decide to keep it open as you get used to electronic checking or for that very occasional check you may want to write from your checkbook.

To learn more about Electric Orange and get some helpful tips on switching checking accounts, check out our guide.

Is there any minimum balance I need in order to earn the interest rate?

You earn interest no matter what. If your balance is $49,999.99 or less, you earn an annual percentage yield of . If your balance is between $50,000-$99,999.99, your entire balance earns APY; and if your balance is $100,000 or more you will earn APY on your entire balance! (Rates variable, as of ).

How is my Electric Orange checking interest rate determined?

Your interest rate is determined by the balance in your account at the end of each day (12 AM ET). The rate is variable and may change from day to day if your account balance moves above or below the balance thresholds for each interest rate listed above.

How is my Electric Orange checking interest amount calculated?

Your interest is calculated daily by multiplying your interest rate by the balance in your account at the end of the day, and dividing by 365. (Divide by 366 when it’s a leap year.) Keep in mind, most deposits begin earning interest 2 bank business days after they’re initiated (so don’t include a new deposit in your calculations). Direct Deposits, like your paycheck or Social Security, begin earning interest immediately.

Your "Interest Earned This Month" is a total of the daily interest that has accrued to your Electric Orange since the beginning of the month. Your interest accrues daily, is compounded monthly, and is credited to your account at the end of the month.

What fees will I incur if I have Electric Orange checking?

Like you'd expect from ING DIRECT, there are no fees for having your account. But we want to be up front, and let you know that there are five charges you could potentially incur for certain extra services.

• Overdraft Line of Credit. You pay interest if your balance drops below zero and you use your Overdraft Line of Credit. Unlike traditional banks, Electric Orange does not charge a fee to use your overdraft, and there's no fee to sign up. If you use it, you will only pay interest on the amount you borrow.
• Overnight Delivery of a Check. If you use our Overnight a Check service to send payments via overnight courier (for those instances when you need to send money for next bank business day delivery) the cost is $20. First-class Mail a Check delivery is free if you can wait a couple of days.
• Overnight Delivery of a Replacement Card. If you request to have a replacement Electric Orange Card sent to you via overnight courier, the cost is $25. There is no charge for standard delivery of a replacement card.
• Stop Payment. If we're able to stop a paper payment at your request, there is a $25 stop payment charge. Learn more about Stop Payments.
• Foreign Transaction. If you use your Card for a foreign transaction (any transaction made in a foreign currency or that MasterCard® classifies as a cross-border transaction), a charge of 2% of the foreign transaction amount will be applied. If it’s in a foreign currency, this will be based on the amount after it’s converted to U.S. Dollars by MasterCard. This is in addition to what MasterCard may charge as part of converting the purchase to U.S. Dollars. Please remember to notify us if you are travelling overseas.  

How do I close my Electric Orange checking?

Please give us a call at 1-888-464-0727 if you'd like to close your Electric Orange checking. Associates are available from 8 AM to 8 PM, 7 days a week.