SIGforum
$10000 cash vs check
November 17, 2025, 10:46 AM
calugo$10000 cash vs check
It's my understanding if you put down $10000 cash as a down payment on a vehicle the dealership is required to notify the IRS. Does the same hold true if you write a personal check for 10 grand? Friend of mine is looking to purchase a car but she's concerned about the IRS getting involved if she puts down 10 grand in cash, I told her to just write a check.
November 17, 2025, 10:55 AM
egregoreIs there a cite or source for this? It doesn't make sense. Banks are supposed to report a deposit of such an amount, but buying a car has nothing to do with this.
"The Almighty, He put some livin' things on this earth so a man can eat." - Festus Haggen, Gunsmoke November 17, 2025, 10:58 AM
P250UA5I've put $10k down a couple times & don't recall anything IRS related.
The Enemy's gate is down. November 17, 2025, 11:02 AM
12131I’ve paid more than 10k in cash for a car. What IRS involvement are we talking about ?
Q
November 17, 2025, 11:08 AM
oddball^^^^^
Same. My wife and I paid cash for new cars for years and never heard a peep from the IRS.
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November 17, 2025, 11:10 AM
GreymannCash or check doesn't matter, the transaction is supposed to be reported.
https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/u...ge-cash-transactions[snip] Generally, any person in a trade or business who receives more than $10,000 in cash in a single transaction or in related transactions must file a Form 8300. By law, a "person" is an individual, company, corporation, partnership, association, trust or estate. For example, dealers in jewelry, furniture, boats, aircraft or automobiles; pawnbrokers; attorneys; real estate brokers; insurance companies and travel agencies are among those who typically need to file Form 8300.[snip]
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November 17, 2025, 11:17 AM
Sig2340quote:
Suspicious Activity Reports (SAR)As of April 1, 2013, financial institutions must use the Bank Secrecy Act BSA E-Filing System in order to submit Suspicious Activity Reports.
A financial institution is required to file a suspicious activity report no later than 30 calendar days after the date of initial detection of facts that may constitute a basis for filing a suspicious activity report. If no suspect was identified on the date of detection of the incident requiring the filing, a financial institution may delay filing a suspicious activity report for an additional 30 calendar days to identify a suspect. In no case shall reporting be delayed more than 60 calendar days after the date of initial detection of a reportable transaction.
Under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), financial institutions are required to assist U.S. government agencies in detecting and preventing money laundering, and:
Keep records of cash purchases of negotiable instruments;
File reports of cash transactions exceeding $10,000 (daily aggregate amount); and
Report suspicious activity that might signal criminal activity (e.g., money laundering, tax evasion).
Because the auto is being financed, you are dealing with a "financial institution," hence, the need for an SAR.
SARs are often submitted when the amounts are far below the federal thresholds. Under Obama, a gun shop in Georgia had the IRS seize nearly a million bucks from their accounts via civil forfeiture because their bank deposits were <$10K. The bank submitted the SAR. There was a reason for the shop's practice: their insurance carrier required them to have no more than $10K in cash on-site. The IRS did not care. It took a huge fight, getting Congress involved, to get his funds back. The owner is now a member of Congress!
Nice is overrated
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Airsoftguy, June 29, 2018
November 17, 2025, 11:23 AM
Gustofer$9999. No muss no fuss.
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November 17, 2025, 11:27 AM
gjgalliganI know some dealers will not allow you to use $10,000+ when buying a a new vehicle. $9,999.00 + a check for the rest was just fine though.
Integrity is doing the right thing, even when nobody is looking.
November 17, 2025, 11:27 AM
Johnny 3eaglesI just wrote a personal check for a bit over $40k for a car. Nobody cared.
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November 17, 2025, 11:28 AM
MikeinNCI wrote a check for a brand new Lincoln Nautilus last year-$60k and the IRS never called, wrote or emailed us.
The bank notifies the IRS about amounts ver 10k. It was a one time thing and isn’t suspicious. But if we wrote checks that high over and over it would be suspicious.
My friend who is now the DAI 8 in NC, used to work for BB&T and did suspicious investigations for them. Car purchase in and by itself it’s not a problem.
But there’s no way I’d carry 10k around in cash for a car purchase.
“You may beat me, but you will never win.” sigmonkey-2020
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BigSwedeIt's over $10k cash, a check is fine. We are required to fill out form 8300 and send it to IRS
November 17, 2025, 11:36 AM
P250UA5quote:
Originally posted by BigSwede:
It's over $10k cash, a check is fine
That makes sense then, both of my $10k down were check pmts.
The Enemy's gate is down. November 17, 2025, 11:39 AM
mcrimmThis is dealing with cash only - not checks. While $10,000 is the baseline, Many, including banks will report lower amounts. Especially if they suspect 'Structuring' smaller transactions to add up over $10,000.
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When you have no future, you live in the past. " Sycamore Row" by John Grisham November 17, 2025, 12:00 PM
egregorequote:
Generally, any person in a trade or business who receives more than $10,000 in cash in a single transaction or in related transactions must file a Form 8300.
I get from this that A, the burden of reporting is on the dealership on their end, not the car buyer on hers, and B, the transaction is 10 grand exactly, not
more than 10 grand. $10,000.01 would be "over." Right?
Exact WordsFor those who bought their cars for cash outright, you didn't give the money to the financial institution, you gave it to the dealer. It would be on the dealer to report it, not the buyer. Similarly, with the 10 grand down payment, that isn't going to the FI. Do I have any or all of this right?
I am not seeing any scenario where the OP's friend has to report anything.
"The Almighty, He put some livin' things on this earth so a man can eat." - Festus Haggen, Gunsmoke November 17, 2025, 12:01 PM
slosigThe government is interested in making sure they know what is going with your money. They want to make sure that they get all their taxes. They reqire banks to report cash transactions over $9999 and also have reporting requirements for auto dealers. If your bank doesn’t file enough SAR (Suspicious Activity Report), they are likely to catch heat for it.
If one has cash income that has been reported on their taxes, who cares if the dealership files a report on the cash down payment? If one has cash income that has not been reported and had the tax paid on it, it goes without saying that one is breaking the law and might be well advised to be very careful where and how they use their (untaxed) cash.
November 17, 2025, 12:11 PM
229DAKIf you are doing nothing illegal, you have nothing to worry about.
I paid for my last car with a check from my credit union. The dealership verified the check and for sufficient funds in place. After that, no one else cared how I paid for the car.
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November 17, 2025, 12:18 PM
xd45manquote:
Originally posted by 229DAK:
If you are doing nothing illegal, you have nothing to worry about.
1984 called to say hello.
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November 17, 2025, 01:28 PM
sig2392Payments made via wire transfer, personal checks, or credit/debit cards are not considered cash and do not trigger the reporting requirement.
Because the government can trace those anyway.
November 17, 2025, 01:32 PM
architectNote that you cannot "get away" with writing two $5K checks for a single transaction. This is called "structuring" and is a criminal offense, even if there is nothing illegal about the transaction itself.
1984 indeed!