Why Can’t I Send My Venmo Balance?

If you can’t send your Venmo Balance, this is often a result of an issue with identity verification or insufficient Venmo funds. However, if you haven’t made a transfer recently and found that your Venmo balance has decreased contact Venmo’s customer support on chat or by phone (1-855-812-4430).

The same goes for if your account has been charged a negative balance for no reason.

Wondering “Why doesn’t Venmo use my balance?” If you relate to this problem, continue reading to finally resolve it! 

Since its introduction back in 2012, Venmo has been one of the most popular cash apps. With its streamlined transactions, user-intuitive interface, and social media-esque features, Venmo currently has an estimated client base of over 50 million users.

Although Venmo offers an unparalleled experience when it comes to facilitating transactions, you might run into some pesky issues related to your access to your Venmo balance.

If you haven’t been able to use your balance to complete purchases or send money to your friends recently and are left stuck wondering, “Why doesn’t Venmo use my balance?” then you’ve come to the right place!

Carry on reading to find out the solution to this common Venmo problem.

RELATED READ: How to Transfer Money from Venmo to Your Bank Account?

Why Can't I Send My Venmo Balance

Why Doesn’t Venmo Use my Balance?

If you can’t access and use your Venmo balance to carry out transactions or make purchases, this is usually the result of skipping the identity verification process while signing up.

However, if you’ve already verified your identity but can’t use the balance to complete certain purchases, then your Venmo funds aren’t sufficient.

In this case, Venmo will use your preferred payment method, be it your bank account, debit card, or credit card, to complete the transaction.

Why Can’t I Use My Venmo Balance?

Being unable to access your Venmo balance can drive anyone up the wall, not to mention that it defies the purpose of using the application in the first place since all your transactions will be processed through your bank account or credit or debit card if the problem persists.

Luckily, as this is a prevalent issue most new Venmo users experience at least once, you can take a look at the following points, determine which scenario best fits your case, and apply the suitable solution.

1. You Need to Verify Your Identity

In most cases, the reason why Venmo redirects a user’s transactions to be processed through their preferred payment method instead of tapping into their Venmo balance is that they haven’t verified their identity yet.

Since 2019, verifying your identity has been a requirement for using your Venmo balance. This is simply due to the USA Patriot Act cracking down on various cash apps, including Venmo, to ensure better safety measures for their users.

Unless you verify your identity, you’ll only be able to send money directly through your card or bank account. Although you’ll still be able to receive funds as well, you’ll need to transfer them to your bank account or card to access them.

How to Verify Your Identity on Venmo

Verifying your identity on Venmo is a pretty straightforward process. Just follow the next steps.

  • Open the Venmo application on your Android smartphone or iPhone.
  • Tap the hamburger icon (the three stacked lines) on the far left of the screen.
  • Launch the “Settings” menu and navigate to the “Security” options.
  • Select “Identity Verification.”
  • Follow the instructions by providing your full name, SSN, and birthday.
  • Finish the process by tapping “Next.”

Don’t worry if you don’t have a social security number. If Venmo can’t verify your identity using the personal details you’ve provided, you’ll receive an email requesting extra official documents like your driver’s license, IRS letter, passport, or a recent bank/credit card statement.

To make the process quicker, make sure that the text the document includes is legible and your photo, if applicable, is clear as well. Usually, if all goes according to plan, the identity verification process shouldn’t take more than three business days.

2. Your Balance Is Insufficient

If you’ve already verified your identity, but Venmo is still using your bank account or card to cover transactions, then your Venmo funds may not be sufficient. The way Venmo operates is that it uses just one payment method to complete transfers or transactions.

So, if the value of the purchase exceeds your current balance, you won’t be able to use your Venmo credit to complete it since Venmo doesn’t split payments.

In this case, you can always transfer your Venmo balance to your bank account to cover the transaction/purchase.

However, keep in mind that instant balance transfers incur a 1% fee ($10 max). So, if your transaction can wait and you really want to leverage your Venmo balance, you can initiate a free transfer to your bank account, but it’ll take 1-3 business days to be processed.

Why Is My Venmo Balance Too Low?

If there’s less money in your Venmo balance than you’ve expected, several reasons can be behind this.

First off, some of the balance might’ve been recently used to cover a purchase/transfer. You can always check your transaction history by clicking on the single-person icon on Venmo’s homepage.

Your credit may have also been used to offset a negative balance you’ve been charged. For example, a negative balance might occur due to a transaction error if you use your bank account as your payment method. In this case, Venmo sends the receiver the money but can’t access your bank account, making your Venmo account have a negative balance.

If you don’t have sufficient funds in your Venmo account to cover the negative balance, your account will be frozen until you transfer funds from your bank account to replenish your Venmo balance and regain access to Venmo’s services.

Bottom Line

So, why doesn’t Venmo use your balance instead of tapping into your bank account? After reading this article, you should now know all the different scenarios that can cause this problem.

Alternatively, you can submit a support ticket through Venmo’s website and attach screenshots if needed.

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