Circle FAQs

As the Circle Pay product has been discontinued for fiat accounts, customers are no longer able to convert their account balances from BTC or cash out funds directly. This means these customer will only be able to send the funds on-chain to another address.

To send money on-chain using the Bitcoin network, you can follow these simple steps:

Login to your account at pay.circle.com/signin

Go to **Send Money**

Enter the Bitcoin (and/or BCH and BSV) address(es) you wish to send to

Enter the amount you wish to send

Other FAQs:

Q: I still own some Bitcoin SV (BSV) and/or Bitcoin Cash (BCH), what should I do?

A: You should withdraw your crypto assets as soon as possible. As early as March 1, 2020, we will start converting BSV and BCH to BTC.

Q: What happens if I don’t withdraw my crypto assets from Circle Pay?

A: You have until March 1 to withdraw your assets. If you don’t you may be charged fees, may see your assets traded into Bitcoin, and may have your assets sent to the government in accordance with applicable laws. You will still be able to withdraw your assets after March 1, 2020, until your account is determined to be dormant. At that time, the account will be closed and remaining assets will be sent to your state government in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Q: What fees might I be charged?

A: US customers may be charged two fees. A monthly service fee equivalent to $10 USD starting March 1 and a one-time dormancy fee equivalent to $30 USD in accordance with applicable unclaimed property laws. International customers will only be charged the service fee.

Q: Will I incur fees if I don’t have the assets to cover the fees?

No. We will only charge fees up to the amount in the account. If an account goes to zero, we will close the account permanently and no additional fees will be owed by the customer.

Q: Why are you trading my Bitcoin SV and/or Bitcoin Cash into Bitcoin?

A: We do not plan to maintain wallets that support BSV and BCH, so we can no longer support these currencies during the final wind down of Circle Pay.

Circle Pay users who held Bitcoin prior to August 1st 2017 on Circle Pay have been credited with both Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin SV forks, even if the BTC is no longer held in Circle Pay. For example, if you held 1 BTC in Circle Pay at the time of the fork but withdrew all of your BTC from Circle Pay already, you will now hold 1 BCH and 1 unit of BSV and none of BTC.

In June we started the process of deprecating Circle Pay globally and completed shut down for the product’s functionality on September 30th. However, as an eligible fork holder, we have continued limited product functionality to let you withdraw all of these assets as soon as possible.

To withdraw your coins, you can log into your Circle Pay account on the web here whereyou will see your current BCH and BSV balance (note the mobile app does not support withdrawing the forks). You will need to create addresses in another wallet to send that BCH and BSV. You will only be allowed to withdraw the full amount for both coins.

Please note, these transactions are irreversible and will not be able to be cancelled once initiated. Also, for some customers, we may need to collect further personal information from you prior to withdrawing.

Some customers may still also hold BTC and we encourage you to withdraw all three assets from Circle Pay.

If you have any further questions, please reach out to us at [email protected] and we will be happy to help!

A lot of your account's options are in your Settings. When logged in online, please follow these steps:

Click on your name in the top right corner and select Settings

Go to the Advanced tab

Click Request Transactions at the bottom of the page

Circle will send you an email with your last year'stransaction history attached as a CSV file. In other words, requesting the history in 2017 will provide all of your transactions from 2016.

In this report you can expect the following details about each transaction:

Date and Time

Reference ID

Transaction type

From account (which funding source or sender)

To account (can be a debitcard/bank or another bitcoin address)

BTC amount

USD equivalent amount

Status of the transaction

USD to BTC conversion rate (at the time of transaction)

Rather than BTC, could also be GBP or EUR

Taxes and your Circle account

Bitcoin transactions and trading may be subject to tax liabilities.

Income - If bitcoin is used for payment for goods or services, it is considered income and is subject to income tax rules.

Capital Gains - When you have incurred profit or loss from buying and selling bitcoin, it is recommended that you claim this on your taxes.

Circle will maintain a record of your transaction history, which you will be able to access through your Circle Account for purposes of making any required tax filings or payments, but it is your responsibility to determine what, if any, taxes apply to the payments you make or receive, and to collect, report, and remit the correct tax to the appropriate tax authority. Circle will make any tax withholdings or filings that we are required by law to make, but Circle is not responsible for determining whether taxes apply to your transaction, or for collecting, reporting, or remitting any taxes arising from any transaction.

As of 5pm EST, September 30th, 2019, all product support for Circle Pay has been discontinued.

If you still have a remaining balance in your Circle account, please reference the Help Center article for further information on how to claim these funds, or reach out to us at [email protected] and we will be happy to help!

Go to your Settings.

Select Cards and Banks.

Select the logo and name of your institution. If you are using Circle on the web, you can search for the name of your institution and select it from the list.

You'll be prompted to provide the credentials associated with your bank login. (We never store this information; we only use it to do a one-time authentication.)

Once this is complete, you can begin to use your bank account with Circle!

If you do not see your bank in the list, it is not one that is supported by our system at this time.

Unfortunately, not all banks in the US are included in the system. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Troubleshooting

If you're running into any issues, reach out to us at [email protected] and we will be happy to help!

As of 5pm EST, September 30th, 2019, all product support for Circle Pay has been discontinued. Customers will be able to log in to their account, but will not be able to execute any activity, withdrawals or transactions. You will still be able to request a .csv of your transaction history.

If you have a Circle account with a remaining balance after September 30th, 2019, you may still be entitled to these funds. However, these funds cannot be claimed through your account and will need to be claimed through other means. Please carefully review the instructions below to determine how to claim your balance.

For Customers located in the United States:

Starting on Monday September 30th, 5pm EST, you will no longer be able to initiate a withdrawal from your Circle Pay account. To access any remaining balance, you will need to log into your Circle Pay account here: https://pay.circle.com/signin.

Please note, you will need to receive a secure 6 digit code to the phone number already associated with your account. If you do not have access to the phone number, please contact us at [email protected] for further assistance.

After you log into your account, click “LINK BANK” on the top then either “Add another account” in green in the middle of the screen or “Add Bank Account” in the green box. NOTE - you cannot link or cash out using a Debit Card. Follow the instructions to add a bank account of your choosing. After you link your bank, and it is confirmed, please send an email to [email protected] letting us know and we will initiate the full balance transfer to your bank account.

We highly suggest that you cash out your funds as soon as possible. In the near future, we will begin the process of escheating your funds to your state of residence. At that time, you will have to contact the relevant state department directly to receive them, a process that can take weeks or months.

For Customers located in the United Kingdom or European Union:

All remaining funds can ONLY be claimed by contacting us at [email protected]. Please initiate a request from the email address on your Circle account, stating you would like to claim your remaining balance. If the email address you used to sign up for the account is no longer valid, then please also include your full name and the phone number on the account so we can locate it.

Once we hear from you, we will provide the next steps for this process, which will include collecting additional information about your bank so we can process the funds. Once the necessary information is collected by our support team, it will take at least 7-10 business days for the funds to appear in your designated bank account.

PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to return funds via Debit Cards, Credit Cards or Checks.

The Circle Pay product is being discontinued and all customers have been notified to cash out all remaining funds from their account. Multiple communications and reminders have been sent to all customers from June 2019 to September 2019 to facilitate the timely withdrawal of funds.

For customers with account balances, who have not withdrawn by September 23rd, 2019, we may assess a Dormancy Fee to cover the cost of escheating funds to respective states, to claim at a later date, as well as the cost of supporting on-going technical and business operations.

This Dormancy fee will be deducted directly from the remaining balance of an account, up to but not exceeding $30. This fee will NOT be deducted from credit cards, debit cards or bank accounts currently linked to accounts and your account balance will never go negative.

The fee will be visible in your account under the transactions section and history, labeled as “Dormancy Fee”.

For Customers located in the United States:

A one-time dormancy fee may be assessed on all accounts with a balance greater than $0 on September 23rd, 2019. This fee will not be assessed to customers located in Texas or Maryland.

For Customers located in the United Kingdom or European Union:

A recurring annual dormancy fee may be assessed on all accounts with a balance greater $0 on September 23rd, 2019.

Circle Pay features seamless fiat payment experiences that let people around the world transact across different countries and currencies. Last year, we worked to build upon our existing blockchain infrastructure to launch USDC (US Dollar Coin) -- a digital token whose value is tied to the US dollar that has already been integrated into hundreds of other products and services, and handled nearly $2B in transaction volume on-chain.

USDC uses blockchain technology to transfer value over the open internet. This year, we are working towards merging the seamless fiat on-ramps of Circle Pay with the crypto native payment infrastructure of USDC in our other products.

The integration of USDC into Poloniex and our core wallet services will allow us to interoperate with other payment applications also built on blockchain infrastructure. More importantly, USDC will allow customers to transact with more people around the world, as it utilizes public global blockchains that enable anyone with an internet connection to transact.

We believe this is an integral step toward our goal of building a more connected and financially inclusive financial system on crypto and blockchain technology.

In the long term, we believe that we will all benefit from cost efficiencies through leveraging USDC and public blockchains as our payment rails. In the short term however, these changes mean affecting customers on Circle Pay today with the deprecation of our fiat payment rails. We thank all of the Circle Pay users and hope you will continue to take this journey with us.

Other FAQs:

How do I cash out?

How do I add a card or bank account to my Circle account?

I am trying to cash out but it keeps asking me for more information. How do I update my profile?

I cannot withdraw to my bank or card, how can I get the money off my account before July 8th?

How do I contact Circle Support?

Circle believes that the future of finance will be built on open blockchain technology and that global payments will become reality through fiat tokens and stablecoins such as USDC. Circle Pay clarified that vision over its successful 5-year lifespan, but it also largely relies on interfacing with the traditional financial system and untokenized fiat currencies.

As such, we believe that it is appropriate to discontinue Circle Pay at this time. We will continue to work toward connecting every person on the planet through an open financial system built on crypto assets and blockchain technology through CENTRE and USDC, and in other Circle products such as Poloniex and SeedInvest.

All customers who use Circle Pay to send, receive or hold US Dollars, British Pounds or Euros are affected at this time. Your account will undergo changes starting on July 8th, 2019.

Circle Invest, Poloniex and SeedInvest customers are not affected by these changes.

Other FAQs:

How do I cash out?

How do I add a card or bank account to my Circle account?

I am trying to cash out but it keeps asking me for more information. How do I update my profile?

I cannot withdraw to my bank or card, how can I get the money off my account before July 8th?

How do I contact Circle Support?

To comply with US and EU regulations, we will not be able to offer a Circle account to customers under the age of 18 in the US and 16 in the EEA.

Why am I being asked for this information?

As a regulated financial services company, we are required to identify our customers to ensure compliance with applicable laws and keep our platform safe for customer use. These requirements are an essential part of preventing fraud, managing risk, and protecting our platform against use for money laundering, terrorist financing, and other unlawful activities.

Once you have submitted this information and that information is verified, you can continue to send money between currencies, countries and friends. If we need to review this information further, your account will be sent to a queue to be reviewed by our Account Services team, who will review your account and get back to you over email as soon as possible.

Why me?

Some customers have provided all of this information, while others have only provided partial information. To ensure compliance, consistency, and maximum account security, we are asking all of our customers to provide this additional information at this time. Those pieces of information are instrumental to verifying a customer’s identity, but if we are still having trouble doing so, we might request additional information in-app, including a government issued photo ID and a selfie image.

I’ve been a customer for a while. Why now?

Circle is constantly working to improve our compliance processes, which enable us to meet our obligation to “know our customers” under the federal Bank Secrecy Act. To that end, we are legally required to obtain and verify certain identifying information from all of our customers. This enables us and our regulators to ensure that we are providing our customers with a secure and compliant way to send and receive money.

What if I don’t want to provide this information?

If you would like to continue using Circle to hold a balance or send and receive funds, we will need to verify your identity. We highly encourage every customer to provide this information to maximize account security and to ensure that you are the one authorizing transactions made using your account.

At the moment, the majority of supported countries outside of the United States are situated in Europe. Customers in different countries will see that they have slightly different experiences on Circle Pay, depending on their country’s regulatory procedures and Circle Pay’s ability to work with those specific countries.

Country

AppAvailable

Translated?

Austria

Belgium

Bulgaria

Croatia

Czech Republic

Denmark

Estonia

Finland

France

Germany

Greece

Hungary

Iceland

Ireland

Italy

Liechtenstein

Lithuania

Luxembourg

Netherlands

Norway

Poland

Portugal

Romania

Slovakia

Slovenia

Spain

Sweden

UK

US

The table above clarifies what to expect. The first column indicates whether the Circle Pay mobile app is available in that country, and whether customers from that country can sign up for an account. If there is a check mark, the Circle Pay app will be available in both the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. The second column indicates whether our app is translated and localized for that country. If the app is available but not translated for that country, it means you will be able to get early access to the app in that country by downloading and using the app in English.

Note: While our app is not yet available in Switzerland (coming soon!), customers in other countries can already link cards issued in Switzerland. Customers in all supported European countries in the left column above can link cards from other supported European countries!

We are actively making an effort to make the app available in as many countries as possible, and will strive to provide it in local languages as well - as we do, we will keep updating the table above.

All the words related to the Circle Experience

Debit Cards

The best thing to link to Circle. Fast, easy, free.

ACH

Means Automated Clearing House. It's a network that banks use to communicate to one another.

Two-factor authentication

Another layer of security when taking actions on your account. Usually a SMS or TOTP code.

Transfer Timelines

While most transfers are instant, sometimes there are delays!

Processing fees

Credit card transactions usually have a fee due to our Merchant Category Code.

Merchant Category Code

How other institutions categorize our payments. Ours is 4829.

Exchange fees

When you pay for something that costs $1, but you use British Pounds, there can be an exchange fee.

Money Messages

The phrase we use for what you can send and request to others using Circle.

Giphy

A curated source of GIFs.

FDIC Insurance

Means that Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation protects your US Dollars if an FDIC-insured bank or savings association fails

KYC

Means Know Your Customer. Circle has to abide by country regulatory policies, which means we need to know who you are in order to provide a money transferring service.

Note: If you are a Circle customer in the UK/Europe and want to know about the complaint procedure there, please check out the Complaint Policy here as the legal language and regulating bodies are slightly modified.

Pursuing excellent service is a passion of ours. But sometimes things happen and we can fall short.

In the event that you're dissatisfied with Circle (whether that be our product or service) we want to know about it so that we may work towards resolving it for you.

How to file a formal complaint

While you are free to express your complaint over the phone, for the sake of clarity and our understanding, we also suggest writing in from within your Circle app or by clicking here.

Our team is ready to handle any and all requests, so once we identify yours as a formal complaint, we will do the following:

Acknowledge that we have received your complaint

Ask follow up questions if there are any required to resolve your complaint

Investigate and detail your complaint, as well as provide a justified resolution

Note: We aim to resolve complaints fully within 8 weeks.

Regulatory Guidance

Our procedures are aligned to guidance from our regulators at the US Department of Treasury's FinCENand the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). If our response does not adequately resolve your complaint, please feel free to contact the CFPBon their complaints webpagehere.

Ensure you have a zero balance and get in touch with us. Closing your account with Circle is simple: ensure you have a zero balance and get in touch with us. If you are considering closing your account, we’d love to know why. We strive for an exceptional experience and your feedback is greatly appreciated. For compliance and regulatory reasons, some aspects of your account registration information are required to be maintained. You can read more about it in our Privacy Policy and User Agreement. If you do choose to close your account, you have the option to reopen it in the future!

Circle wants to make sure your account is as secure as possible

A strong password is an important security feature and we want to help you create a strong deterrent.

How do we determine the strength of a password? We test the strength of a password by calculating how long it would take to crack with brute force.

Unlike most password strength checkers that just require one of each lowercase/uppercase/number/special characters/at least 6 characters/etc, Circle's more holistic approach provides you with an actionable recommendation to make your password more secure. We require two-factor authentication when you sign in, so evenif your password is compromised you have a second layer of security. ( What is two-factor authentication? )

Remember, it is your responsibility to have a strong password -- but it is also your responsibility to remember that password! Please make a point to remember or securely store your information.

Two-factor authentication provides extra security for the sign in process

Two-factor authentication provides extra security for the sign in process. It requires you to know both your email and password, as well as provide a verification code from a second device, usually a mobile phone.

SMS

Each time you sign in, a verification code is sent to your registered phone number via SMS. Keep in mind that this SMS can take a few minutes to arrive, especially for our customers outside of the US. If the code doesn’t appear after a few minutes, you can request it again.

here

This code is only good for one use. By entering the verification code that is sent to you, you are able to verify that you are in possession of your registered phone, and that you are the only person signing into your account, making 2FA more secure than a simple username and password when signing in.

Google Authenticator / Authy App

Download the Google Authenticator or Authy app to your iOS/Android device. These apps are the 2FA alternative to a text message sent to your phone. Connected to your Circle account, the app generates a 6 digit verification code that is good for one use.

You must set it up while signed into your account:

Navigate to Settings and then Security

Under the Method section, you can select Google Authenticator as opposed to Text Message

Enter the verification code received by SMS, then scan the QR code with your authenticator app to sync your app to your Circle account

Enter the new code from your authenticator app and click Done

Now, when you log in to your Circle account or initiate transactions, head to your chosen Authenticator app for your verification code and enter it into the space for the verification code.

Additional 2FA information:

Circle also allows customers to personalize 2FA settings for cashing out. You can elect to require 2FA for transfers that exceed a custom defined threshold over a 24 hour period, or you can keep the default settings, which require 2FA for cash out transfers of any amount of money.

Note: This feature is set by default for amounts over $30, over a rolling 24 hour period. You may customize this for an amount of your choice in the Security tab in your Settings page.

If you lose access to your registered 2FA device, please go, fill out the form with your details, and attach a color image of your government issued ID, as well asa color selfie image of yourself holding your ID next to your face, so we can match your face with your ID. We will follow up once it is reset!

2FA is required for all Circle accounts and cannot be disabled.

There is a chancewe will need to ask for a government issued photo ID and a selfie

Sometimes we may ask for additional verification if we are unable to verify your identity.

We use a variety of ways to verify your identity, but both of the following allows us to get you up and running quickly.

A government issued photo ID

A selfie image

It also helps us fight bad guys (and gals) who are stealing identities and committing fraud.

We understand that it may seem cumbersome or overly invasive to ask for your government issued photo ID and a selfie image. However, as a federally licensed money service business (MSB), we are subject to Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering (BSA/AML) legislation. These laws require us to ‘Know Your Customer’ which means that when you link a debit card or take another action within Circle, we may have to verify that you are who you say you are.

In the event that you've lost your device, asking for a photo of your ID acts as a temporary form of two-factor authentication.

Note: If you are a Circle Pay customer in the EEA or UK, please check out the applicable Refund Policy here as the legal language is slightly different.

This article describes our process for handling errors and questions about your electronic transfers. If you need your password reset, please take a look at our help article on the subject. If you need your phone reset, please take a look at our help article on the subject.

Error Resolution Process

If you find an error within your transaction receipts/statements from Circle Pay, or have any questions about your previous money transfers, you are welcome to email us at [email protected], call us at (800) 398-7172, or write to us at Circle Internet Financial Inc., Attention: Compliance, P.O. BOX 52235, Boston, MA 02210. Please contact us as soon as possible if you think that your statement or receipt is wrong, or if you need more information concerning a transfer/transaction on your statement or receipt.

In order for us to investigate the error, you must contact us within 60 days of receiving the first receipt/statement where the error is present.

When you contact Circle Pay about the error, you should provide your name and email address so we can identify your account. We also require a description of the error or discrepancy, where it would be helpful to describe in detail why you think there is an error, and to include the exact amount (in USD or EUR/GBP) of the suspected error.

Once you report the error, we will investigate the alleged error, and determine within 10 business days whether an error occurred or whether it was an unauthorized transaction. We will tell you the results of our investigation within 3 business days after the completion of the investigation. Errors are corrected as soon as possible after confirming that an error occurred, accompanied by a clear and comprehensive description of the error identified and steps taken to resolve the error. Check out Section 19: Unauthorized Transactions in your User Agreement for more details.

Regardless of the results of our investigation, we will send you an email explaining the basis for our decision. If you have any questions or concerns regarding our decision, you can request further information regarding the details that led to our decision.

We go above and beyond when it comes to security.

Here at Circle, we want to make sure our customers feel secure. We protect both you and your data in a variety of ways to ensure a seamless and secure payment experience.

Storing Your Personal Information

AES 128-bit symmetric encryption & PCI Compliant

All personal and financial information is encrypted with two levels of AES 128-bit symmetric encryption. In other words, the data is encrypted using keys that are themselves encrypted using other keys, with separate key storage mechanisms for each layer. Circle is fully PCI- DSS compliant as a business.

Account Protection Features

Two-factor sign in, logout active sessions

Circle Pay requires two-factor authentication when signing up and signing in, so even if your password is compromised there are reinforcements to help keep your information safe! ( What is two-factor authentication? )

You also have the option to a) sign out of all of your current sessions on your devices if you lose a device or fear one of your devices was compromised and b) set send/cash out thresholds that require two-factor authentication.

Regulated

Regulated by FinCEN, audited regularly

We are registered as a federally regulated money services business with the US Dept of Treasury’s FinCEN. Our technology and accounting practices are audited regularly, and our team has a track record of success in both technology and financial innovation/regulation, with team members who worked for the JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and numerous successful technology companies.

Be sure you’re insured

FDIC Insurance

All USD balances are backed by FDIC insurance for up to $250,000. For more information on that, see Section 11 of our User Agreement.

World class support team

Contact us whenever you have security questions or concerns!

If you ever have any questions about security, or something seems off, we welcome you to reach out to our world class Circle Pay support team! We are experts on both the product and surrounding security measures Circle takes in order to keep you safe.

When signed in to your account, you can always click/tap on Help in the menu in order to send our team a message from within Circle Pay. If there is a security issue, be sure to include details that will help our support agents sort out the situation!

BE SAFE (stranger danger)

Only send to family and friends!

Although we spend a lot of time keeping you secure, we still encourage each and every one of our customers to be safe when using Circle Pay. Treat money on Circle Pay like you would treat cash in person: don’t give it away to people you don’t know.

Only send money to family and friends, and never give away any login information, or financial details. For more tips on sending money safely, check out this help article.

We want to be extremely clear about our User Agreement.

Here at Circle, we want to be extremely clear about our User Agreement and some of the components therein that you might not be aware of. It’s always been available to read here ( US version and international version ), but we do also understand that it’s long and there is some legalese involved, which makes the reading part less than desirable.

Our hope is that these words help bring clarity to why we’d break up with you if you violated what we agreed upon when we began our relationship.

Note: We no longer offer the ability to buy and sell Bitcoin. Customers who hold Bitcoin can continue to receive and send Bitcoin, but once they convert their balance to another currency, they will not be able to convert it back to Bitcoin. For more information, check out our help article about the changes, found here.

Be who you are.

Sometimes in life you have to be a certain age to buy something. And not getting what you want can be tough. Waiting for it is even tougher. Most parents probably had to deal with the same thing when they were young too. But if we suspect that you purchased a fake ID, we’ll have to close your account and end the good thing we had going.

That’s not a knife.

There are a variety of reasons why you can’t purchase most weapons on the Internet in the first place. They are not our rules; they’re the federal government’s. If you’d like to purchase these items (that's a knife ), we strongly suggest that you go to a physical store and use a different form of payment. Otherwise, we will have to close your account.

Chemicals, research substances, and things that can get you high.

Would Walter White be excited that you just purchased that item ? If so, then your paranoia about your Circle account being closed may start sooner than you think.

Also, while we understand that buying marijuana in the US is legal in a few states, it’s not legal yet to buy it on the Internet. We’re not trying to ruin your vibe. We’re simply bound by the laws in place, and we don’t want anything getting in the way of building you a great product.

What is there to hide?

The dark web is a place where a lot of good can happen and a lot of bad can happen. The technology that powers it, like The Onion Router (TOR), is at the forefront of the privacy and security innovation, no doubt. But when running a financial business like Circle, the dark web’s focus on privacy makes it tricky for us, because it becomes a haven for illegal activity like drug trafficking and money laundering. As a result, customers using Circle to buy or sell items on the dark web do not remain Circle customers for long, regardless of what is being bought or sold.

The flop.

First off, most gambling sites don’t work with Circle. The popular ones that we’ve noticed use a system that send funds back to the originating address. This misses the benefit of bitcoin addresses being one-time use tokens.

Secondly, we aren't allowed to process gambling winnings. So even if you win, you still lose .

We do apologize to non-U.S. folks that don't think twice about placing a bet online, but U.S. law won't allow us to do that.

The takeaways.

It’s worth saying again, all of this information regarding illegal activity is available in our User Agreement under the Sections titled Restricted Activities and Prohibited Payments.

There are other illegal activities that are a bit more obvious that you should not be participating in as well (e.g. terrorist financing, ponzi scheming, money laundering), but the ones listed above are ones that we feel might be innocently misunderstood. And we’d hate for it to result in some sort of surprise breakup. Those are the absolute worst.

If you have any questions, thoughts, or concerns, please get in touch with us. Our team is happy to respond to any and all inquiries regarding this.

We'll walk you through the steps of how you can troubleshoot.

If text message (SMS) is not working for you, try these steps:

Make sure the number is valid and that the dial code is correct. You can use this link to make sure your country code is correct

Check with your provider to make sure you can receive "promotional" SMS, since some providers classify Circle text messages differently than standard text messages

If you’re still having trouble, you might need to reset your device - please follow the instructions here and we'll be happy to help

If you use Google Authenticator or Authy:

Note: When signing-up and resetting your device you can only use SMS. You can change to an Authenticator application afterwards, but you need to prove you own a phone number.

If you are experiencing trouble with your Google Authenticator code and you are using an Android phone, it might be because the time on your Google Authenticator app is not synced correctly.

To make sure that you have the correct time:

Go to the main menu on the Google Authenticator app

Click Settings

Click Time correction for codes

Click Sync now

On the next screen, the app will confirm that the time has been synced, and you should now be able to use your verification codes to sign in. The sync will only affect the internal time of your Google Authenticator app on your Android phone, and will not change your device's Time and Date settings.

You may have to reset your 2FA device and restart Authenticator:

Please go here, fill out the form with the requested details, and we'll be happy to help you reset your phone number

Once you have reset your phone number, please enter your Settings

Under Security, you can switch back to Google Authenticator

Doing this will generate a new QR code for you to scan, and you should have no further trouble logging into the account

Yes we are .

In the U.S., Circle is regulated by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN"), which is a bureau of the U.S. Department of Treasury, as a Money Services Business. We are also licensed as a money transmitter in certain states and we're actively engaged with other states on receiving additional such licenses. Additional details about the scope of Circle’s regulatory approvals can be found in the User Agreement and on the Licenses page.

Beyond the U.S., Circle is regulated as an Electronic Money Institution by the Financial Conduct Authority, held accountable to the Treasury (responsible for the UK's financial system) and to the Parliament. Because we are an EMI, that allows us to passport our license across the EEA.

Since the regulatory framework for online money transfer firms is still being developed, we are closely monitoring the actions of government authorities to ensure we meet any future obligations.

Since we started, our vision has been to make money work like the internet: instant, global, secure and free. Circle Pay is making payments more social than ever and diving headfirst into next-gen blockchain technology, rather than the buying and selling of bitcoin itself directly on Circle Pay. What’s this mean for you? Lots of options.

Please note: This article is only for Circle Pay customers who signed up for Circle Pay and held Bitcoin before December 7, 2016.

1. Sell your bitcoin and cash out

To get your bitcoin out of Circle Pay, just go to Settings>Currency and convert your balance to dollars, pounds or euro (availability is based on where you live). You’ll then be able to cash out instantly.

Note: You must have a valid linked card or bank account to do this.

2. Send that bitcoin packing

Move your money to any bitcoin address including any exchange or wallet of your choosing anywhere in the world. This option is only for Circle Pay customers who hold Bitcoin.

3. Store your bitcoin with us

You're welcome to hold bitcoin in your Circle Pay account and it will be covered by our third party private insurance, like always. You can also receive bitcoin to any address associated with your account.

Note: You can no longer buy and sell bitcoin through Circle Pay.

4. Convert to your local currency to pay friends and get paid

Go to Settings > Currency and convert your bitcoin balance to dollars, pounds or euro (availability is based on where you live).

Note: Once you switch your currency, you can’t return to bitcoin and you can no longer send money to bitcoin addresses.

A few reasons this option is :

Send money just like a text or email (or better yet, receive it)

Travel between $, and . Best rates. No fees. No, really.

Put your money where your text is in iMessage

If you are still interested in buying and selling cryptocurrency, please check out our other product, Circle Invest, which allows you to buy and sell multiple cryptocurrencies easily and instantly. You can find the app under Circle Invest in both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. For more information on Circle Invest, please check out the help center for the app, found here.

It's easy to reset! Navigate to this page, and we'll help you reset it.

Once you enter your email there, we'll send you an email with a link in it for resetting your password.

Clicking on the link in that email will take you into Circle, where you can enter your new password and confirm your authorization of the change. We will send you a verification code via text message on your registered phone number, and you will enter that code into the space provided to complete the change. Then, you can sign in using your email address and newly created password!

We're here to help!

Our goal has always been to make moving money fast, easy, and free! But if itseems to be a little confusing, or you need some help with something, you are always welcome to reach out to our friendly support team. If you have a Circle Pay account, you'll get the quickest response by signing in to your account, going to your settings, and clicking/tapping on Help. Send us a message from there and we will get back to you as soon as possible!

If you aren't a customer or you have a general question about Circle Pay, you can send us a messageby clicking here.

We are also available via email. Feel free to send a question to [email protected] and we will respond as soon as we can.

Don't worry, we'll help you set up a new account phone number!

In the event that you've lost/changed your phone and cannot sign in, please go here.

Fill out the form with your details, and attach a color image of your government issued ID, as well asa color selfie image of yourself holding your ID next to your face, so we can match your face with your ID. Once your identity is verified, we willreset your phone number so that you can change the account to matchyour current number.

Are you interested in investing in Bitcoin? Bitcoin Cash? Ethereum? Litecoin? Our new app Circle Invest allows you to invest in various cryptocurrencies easily, and we don’t charge commission!

If you are interested in Circle Invest and want to try it out, follow this link and download the app. It will only be available in the US initially, but Circle Pay customers outside of the US will be notified once the new app launches in their area.

If you are here looking for help with Circle Invest, make your way over to the Circle Invest Help Center where you’ll find more information on getting started, and answers to commonly asked questions. You can also contact our Circle Invest support team there to answer any questions you may have!

Some information about Bitcoin for Circle Pay customers who still hold it.

Note: We no longer offer the ability to buy and sell Bitcoin on Circle Pay. Customers who hold Bitcoin on Circle Pay can continue to receive and send Bitcoin, but once they convert their balance to another currency, they will not be able to convert it back to Bitcoin. For more information, check out our help article about the changes, found here. If you want to buy and sell Bitcoin (and other cryptocurrencies), you can check out our other app, Circle Invest, which is currently available for most US residents.

Sending Money using the Bitcoin Network

Bitcoin customers on Circle Pay can send money to anyone anywhere in the world no matter what Bitcoin wallet the recipient uses (other cryptocurrencies are not supported on Circle Pay). As the message above mentions, only customers holding Bitcoin on Circle Pay will be able to send money to a BTC address. All transactions are free, secure, and fast no matter where you are sending the funds.

Sign in to your Circle Pay account and navigate to the Send tab. There, you can enter in the amount you’d like to send.

You will have to enter the Bitcoin addressto choose where to send your funds. Once the recipient sends you the address for their destination, we suggest copying and pasting the address into the send page to prevent any mistakes.

Alternatively, you can use the Circle Pay app to scan a QR code to send funds, and that will fill in the address information for you! (Other Bitcoin services and online merchants provide QR codes to complete payments.) To scan a QR code, select the QR Code option on the main Account tab, and just point your camera at the code.

How long do bitcoin transactions take to complete?

Bitcoin transactions can take anywhere between a few minutes to about 40 minutes.

That being said, the timeline depends on the network itself. Since the settlement of bitcoin transactions is governed by the speed of confirmations on the blockchain (the public ledger of all Bitcoin transactions), Circle has no way of canceling transactions or speeding them up.

A single confirmation on the blockchain happens within ten minutes. And since Circle requires four such confirmations before clearing a transaction and no longer considering it Pending, the average completion time for these transactions is about 40 minutes.

Note: If 40 minutes has passed, just keep checking back! It will eventually complete .

Where can you find your Bitcoin address?

As mentioned in the note at the top, only customers who hold Bitcoin on Circle Pay will be able to generate an address. When someone who isn't on Circle wants to send you money, you need to generate a Bitcoin address for destination of payment (Circle Pay customers can just send money to each other via email address). Circle Pay makes it easy to create as many Bitcoin addresses as you would like.

Here's how to generate a BTC address for your Circle Pay account:

On Circle.com

Click on your name in the top right corner of the screen

Click on Get Address in the dropdown menu

On iOS

Click on the Settings button, second from the right under your account balance on the main Messages tab

Choose My Address from the list

At the top of the screen, select My Address

On Android

Click on the QR Code button, after clicking on the 3 vertical dots in the top right corner of the main screen

At the top of the screen, select My Address

This will generate a new Bitcoin address every time that will stay connected to your Circle Pay account.

You can send that QR code and Bitcoin address to anyone that you choose by copying the address (if you are using a browser) or by selecting the sharing option at the bottom of that page (if you are using a mobile phone).

Other cryptocurrencies

At the moment, Circle does not support any other cryptocurrencies on Circle Pay. For buying and selling Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other cryptocurrencies, you can check out our other product Circle Invest, which is currently available for most US residents.

As a federally regulated financial institution, Circle must provide annual updates to all customers regarding certain policies to ensure that all of our customers are up-to-date on how we handle privacy, and how a customer can report any errors in their account statements.

Can I unsubscribe from these annual notices? How about my monthly transaction notices/statements?

Both the annual notices and the monthly transaction history notices are necessary in order for Circle to remain compliant. The monthly notices are provided so that you can review your account activity to ensure that everything is correct. The annual notices allow you to remain updated on our Privacy Policy, which lets you know how we manage the personal information you have given to us. These annual notices also remind you how to report any issues/errors on your monthly transaction statements.

Because these are required by law, you cannot unsubscribe. Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause!

Can I find your Privacy Policy at any given time, without waiting for the email?

Of course! You can always check out our Privacy Policy on our main website, found here.

What is the process for reporting and resolving an error on my account statement?

You can review the process for reporting and resolving errors on your statement by taking a look at our Help Center article on the subject, found here.

Please find your country and the accepted ID type below.

Note: Regardless of issuing country, only laminated ID documents which display Latin alphabet letters can be processed.

North America

Country

Accepted IDs

Anguilla

Passport

Antigua and Barbuda

Passport

Bahamas

Passport

Barbados

Passport, ID, Driver License

Belize

Passport

Bermuda

Passport

Canada

Passport, ID, Driver License

Cayman Islands

Passport

Costa Rica

Passport, ID, Driver License

Dominica

Passport

Dominican Republic

Passport, ID

El Salvador

Passport, ID, Driver License

Grenada

Passport

Guatemala

Passport, ID, Driver License

Haiti

Passport, Driver License

Honduras

Passport, ID, Driver License

Jamaica

Passport, ID, Driver License

Mexico

Passport, ID, Driver License

Montserrat

Passport

Nicaragua

Passport, ID

Panama

Passport, ID

Puerto Rico

ID, Driver License

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Passport

Saint Lucia

Passport

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

Passport

Trinidad and Tobago

Passport

Turks and Caicos

Passport

USA

Passport, ID, Driver License

Virgin Islands-British

Passport

South America

Country

Accepted IDs

Argentina

Passport, ID, Driver License

Brazil

Passport, ID, Driver License

Chile

Passport, ID, Driver License

Colombia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Guyana

Passport

Paraguay

Passport, ID, Driver License

Peru

Passport, ID, Driver License

Suriname

Passport

Uruguay

Passport, ID, Driver License

Venezuela

Passport, ID, Driver License

Europe

Country

Accepted IDs

Albania

Passport, ID

Andorra

Passport

Austria

Passport, ID, Driver License

Belarus

Passport, Driver License

Belgium

Passport, ID, Driver License

Bosnia & Herzegovina

Passport, ID

Bulgaria

Passport, ID, Driver License

Croatia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Czech Republic

Passport, ID, Driver License

Denmark

Passport, ID, Driver License

Estonia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Finland

Passport, ID, Driver License

France

Passport, ID, Driver License

Germany

Passport, ID, Driver License

Gibraltar

Passport

Greece

Passport, ID, Driver License

Guernsey

Passport

Hungary

Passport, ID, Driver License

Iceland

Passport, Driver License

Ireland

Passport, ID, Driver License

Isle of Man

Passport, Driver License

Italy

Passport, ID, Driver License

Jersey

Passport

Kosovo

Passport

Liechtenstein

Passport, ID, Driver License

Lithuania

Passport, ID, Driver License

Luxembourg

Passport, ID

Macedonia

The former Yugoslav Republic of (MKD)

Passport, ID, Driver License

Moldova

Passport, ID, Driver License

Monaco

Passport

Montenegro

Passport, ID, Driver License

Netherlands

Passport, ID, Driver License

Norway

Passport, Driver License

Poland

Passport, ID, Driver License

Portugal

Passport, ID, Driver License

Romania

Passport, ID, Driver License

Russia

Passport, ID, Driver License

San Marino

Passport

Serbia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Slovakia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Slovenia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Spain

Passport, ID, Driver License

Sweden

Passport, ID, Driver License

Switzerland

Passport, ID, Driver License

United Kingdom

Passport, ID, Driver License

Asia

Country

Accepted IDs

Armenia

Passport

Bahrain

Passport, Driver License

Bangladesh

Passport, ID, Driver License

Bhutan

Passport

Brunei Darussalam

Passport, Driver License

Cambodia

Passport

China

Passport, ID, Driver License

Georgia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Hong Kong

Passport, ID

India

Passport, ID, Driver License

Indonesia

Passport, ID

Israel

Passport, Driver License

Japan

Passport

Jordan

Passport

Kazakhstan

Passport, ID

Korea (South)

Passport

Kuwait

Passport, Driver License

Kyrgyzstan

Passport

Lao People’s Democratic Republic

Passport

Macao

Passport

Malaysia

Passport, ID, Driver License

Maldives

Passport

Mauritania

Passport

Mongolia

Passport

Nepal

Passport, ID, Driver License

Oman

Passport, Driver License

Palestine

Passport

Philippines

Passport, ID, Driver License

Tajikistan

Passport

Timor-Leste

Passport

Qatar

Passport, Driver License

Saudi Arabia

Passport, Driver License

Singapore

Passport, ID, Driver License

Sri Lanka

Passport, Driver License

Taiwan

Passport

Thailand

Passport, ID

Turkey

Passport, ID

Turkmenistan

Passport

United Arab Emirates

Passport, ID, Driver License

Uzbekistan

Passport

Vietnam

Passport, ID

Australia / Oceania

Country

Accepted IDs

Australia

Passport, Driver License

Fiji

Passport

Marshall Islands

Passport

Micronesia Federated States

Passport

New Zealand

Passport, Driver License

Palau

Passport

Papua New Guinea

Passport

Tonga

Passport

Vanuatu

Passport

Africa

Country

Accepted IDs

Angola

Passport

Benin

Passport

Botswana

Passport, ID, Driver License

Burkina Faso

Passport

Burundi

Passport

Cameroon

Passport, ID, Driver License

Cape Verde

Passport

Chad

Passport

Comoros

Passport

Djibouti

Passport

Egypt

Passport

Equatorial Guinea

Passport

Ethiopia

Passport

Gabon

Passport

Gambia

Passport

Ghana

Passport, ID, Driver License

Guinea

Passport

Guinea-Bissau

Passport

Kenya

Passport, ID

Lesotho

Passport

Liberia

Passport

Madagascar

Passport

Malawi

Passport

Mali

Passport

Mauritius

Passport

Morocco

Passport, ID

Mozambique

Passport

Namibia

Passport

Niger

Passport

Nigeria

Passport, ID, Driver License

Rwanda

Passport, ID

Senegal

Passport, ID

Seychelles

Passport

Sierra Leone

Passport, ID

South Africa

Passport, ID, Driver License

South Sudan

Passport

Swaziland

Passport

So Tom und Prncipe

Passport

Tanzania

Passport

Togo

Passport

Tunisia

Passport, Driver License

Uganda

Passport, Driver License

Zambia

Passport

Circle does not provide merchant services at the moment

At this stage, Circle does not provide merchant services of any kind. We are purely focused on providing the most seamless digital consumer finance tools possible.

With that said, we are constantly investigating ways to make Circle even better, so keep an eye out for new features as we grow!