A direct deposit authorization form is how an employee tells an employer to pay wages straight into a bank account by ACH instead of handing over a paper check. It captures the routing and account numbers, the account type, and the employee's signed consent. Download it free, fill it in, and sign.
Free to use. Legally binding under the ESIGN Act, UETA, and eIDAS.Updated November 2026 by Document eSign
A direct deposit authorization form is the document an employee signs to have wages paid electronically into a bank account instead of by paper check. The employee gives the employer three things: the bank's 9-digit routing number, the account number, and the account type, checking or savings. The signed form is the employer's permission to send those payments through the ACH network, the system US banks use to move payroll, and its proof of the account details if a deposit ever goes to the wrong place. One form can route an entire paycheck to a single account, or split it across two, say most of the pay to checking and a fixed amount to savings. It is a short form, but it does real work. It authorizes the deposits, lets the employer correct a payment made in error, and stays in effect until the employee changes or cancels it. Note the direction of money here. On this form the employee is pulling their own pay in. That is the opposite of an ACH debit authorization, where a business you owe money to, a gym or a lender, is given permission to pull payments out of your account. Same ACH network, opposite direction, different form.
Who uses it
A new hire setting up how they get paidAn employee switching banks or moving pay to a different accountSomeone splitting each paycheck between checking and savingsA small-business owner or HR team onboarding staff onto payrollA payroll provider that needs signed authorization and account details on file
What's inside
Employee and employer identification, with a payroll or employee ID
The core authorization to deposit net pay by ACH
Bank details for the primary account: institution, routing number, account number, and type
An optional second account so pay can be split
A line to allocate a dollar amount or a percentage to each account
A prenotification and timing note on when the first deposit lands
An authorization to correct and reverse deposits made in error
How long the authorization lasts and how to revoke it
An employee certification that the account details are correct
A governing-law line that defers to your state's wage-payment rules
HOW IT WORKS
From template to signed in three steps.
01
Start from the template
Open it in the editor with the fields already mapped, or download the DOCX to edit offline.
02
Add signers and send
Drop signature and date fields, then route each party in order or in parallel.
03
Get a sealed copy
Everyone signs, and you get a tamper-evident PDF plus an audit certificate.
Free forever. No credit card. Your recipients sign with no account.
The details
Everything to know before you send it.
1
How to fill it in
The employee completes the whole form; the employer only needs the signed copy and the bank details to set up the deposit. Accuracy on the numbers is the part that matters, because a wrong digit sends pay to the wrong place.
Enter your name, your employee or payroll ID, and the employer's name.
Fill in the primary account: bank name, the 9-digit routing number, the account number, and whether it is checking or savings.
Choose what goes to that account: your full net pay, a set dollar amount, or a percentage.
To split your pay, complete the second account section and set how much goes there; the rest lands in the primary account.
Attach a voided check or a direct deposit slip from your bank so payroll can confirm the numbers.
Read the authorization and the reversal and revocation terms, then sign and date it.
2
Where to find your routing and account numbers
Both numbers sit along the bottom of a paper check. The routing number is the 9-digit number in the bottom-left corner; it identifies your bank. The account number is the longer number to its right. If you bank online or do not have checks, your bank's app or website shows the same two numbers, usually under account details or a direct deposit setup screen. One warning: the routing number on a check is not always the one your bank uses for ACH direct deposit, especially at large banks that assign different routing numbers by region or by purpose. When in doubt, use the ACH or direct deposit routing number your bank lists, not the wire number, which is different. A voided check or an official direct deposit form from the bank removes the guesswork, which is why most employers ask for one.
3
Can my employer require direct deposit?
Federal law sets one firm limit. Under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and its Regulation E, an employer cannot require you to receive wages at a particular financial institution it picks. The rule, at 12 CFR 1005.10(e)(2), says no one may require a consumer to establish an account for receipt of electronic fund transfers with a particular institution as a condition of employment. So even where direct deposit is mandatory, you get to choose your own bank, or the employer has to offer another way to be paid. State law goes further in many places, and this is where it varies. Some states require your voluntary written consent before any direct deposit and bar making it a condition of the job. California, for example, requires the employee's voluntary authorization and lets the employee choose the financial institution (Labor Code section 213). New York requires the employee's advance written consent, which must be revocable, and does not let an employer force direct deposit over an objection (Labor Law section 192). Other states allow a mandate only with alternatives like a paper check or a payroll card. Check your own state's wage-payment rules before treating direct deposit as required, because the answer is not the same everywhere.
4
Splitting your pay across accounts
Most payroll systems let you send one paycheck to more than one account, and this form has a second account section for that. The common setup is a fixed amount or a percentage to savings and the remainder to checking, which automates saving without you moving money each payday. You can usually add more than two accounts in a payroll system, but keep the paper simple: name one account as the primary that receives whatever is left after the fixed splits are taken out. Be clear about dollar amounts versus percentages. A fixed 200 dollars to savings behaves differently from 10 percent of net pay when your hours change week to week. If the math ever does not add up, the primary-account rule is the safety net, so the leftover always has somewhere to land.
5
When the first deposit actually lands
Direct deposit rarely starts the very first payday. Employers and payroll providers often send a prenotification first, a zero-dollar test entry that confirms the account and routing numbers are valid before any real money moves. Under the ACH rules, if a prenote is sent, the first live deposit cannot go out until at least 3 banking days after the prenote settles. In practice that means your first pay after you sign up may still come as a paper check while the prenote clears, and direct deposit kicks in on the following cycle. Not every employer uses prenotes, so some start direct deposit immediately, but if your first deposit is late or arrives as a check, this is usually why. After the account is verified, deposits typically post on payday itself.
6
Errors, reversals, and fraud
Mistakes happen, and the form addresses them head on. By signing, you let the employer correct a deposit made in error and reverse funds sent to the wrong account or in the wrong amount. The ACH rules give an employer a narrow, time-limited window to reverse a genuine error, such as a duplicate deposit or a wrong amount, which is why the authorization matters. The bigger risk today is direct deposit diversion fraud, where a scammer poses as an employee and emails HR a request to change the deposit account, rerouting the next paycheck. Protect against it on both sides: employees should set up or change bank details through a verified channel, not a casual email, and employers should confirm any change request with the employee directly before updating payroll. Treat a mid-cycle request to change the account number as something to verify, not just process.
7
Changing or canceling it
A direct deposit authorization is not permanent. It stays in effect until you change or cancel it in writing, or until your employment ends. To switch banks, submit a new form with the new account rather than editing the old one, so payroll has a clean record of what changed and when. Give it time: a change usually takes one or two pay cycles to take effect, because payroll may need to run a new prenote on the new account. Keep the old account open until you have confirmed a deposit has actually landed in the new one. You can revoke direct deposit entirely and ask to be paid another way the employer offers, and in states that require your consent, that consent is revocable by law.
8
Signing it
A direct deposit authorization is complete once the employee signs it; it does not need to be notarized or witnessed. You can print it and sign by hand or fill it in and sign online, and an electronic signature is valid for this kind of authorization under the ESIGN Act and UETA. The employer keeps the signed form and the attached voided check on file. Under the ACH rules an employer has to retain the authorization for 2 years after it ends, so expect your signed form to stay in your payroll record even after you cancel it.
This template and the guidance on this page are provided for general information only and are not legal advice. Laws differ by country and state, so review the final document against your own situation and have a qualified lawyer check anything high-value or regulated before you sign.
FAQ
Questions, answered.
What is a direct deposit authorization form?
It is a short form an employee signs to have wages paid electronically into a bank account instead of by paper check. It gives the employer the bank's routing number, the account number, and the account type, plus signed permission to send pay through the ACH network.
What information do I need to set up direct deposit?
Your bank's 9-digit routing number, your account number, and whether the account is checking or savings. Most employers also ask for a voided check or a direct deposit slip to confirm the numbers. You can send your full paycheck to one account or split it across two.
Can my employer require direct deposit?
Federal law lets an employer require electronic payment only if you can choose your own bank; it cannot force you to use a particular institution (12 CFR 1005.10(e)(2)). Many states go further and require your written consent or an alternative like a check or payroll card. California and New York, for example, cannot make direct deposit a condition of employment. Check your state's rules.
How long does it take for direct deposit to start?
Often one or two pay cycles. Employers commonly send a prenote, a zero-dollar test deposit, to verify the account, and the ACH rules require waiting at least 3 banking days after the prenote settles before the first real deposit. Your first pay may still come as a check while the prenote clears.
Can I split my paycheck between two accounts?
Yes. This form has a second account section so you can send a fixed amount or a percentage to one account, usually savings, and the rest to a primary account, usually checking. Payroll systems often support more than two accounts, but the leftover always lands in the account you name as primary.
How do I change or cancel direct deposit?
Submit a new authorization form with the updated account, or tell payroll in writing to stop it. Allow one or two pay cycles for the change to take effect, since a new prenote may run, and keep the old account open until a deposit lands in the new one. Your consent to direct deposit is revocable.
Is the direct deposit authorization form available in Word format?
Yes. Download the direct deposit authorization form as a Word (.docx) file and edit it in Microsoft Word, Google Docs, or Pages. You can also download a PDF or fill it in and sign online.
Can I download the direct deposit authorization form as a PDF?
Yes. A print-ready PDF is available alongside the Word version. Download either one free, or fill it in and sign online without downloading anything.
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