Can Gift Cards Expire in Oregon? Fees, Refunds, and Exceptions

In Oregon, gift cards generally cannot expire. State law prohibits retailers from selling a gift card with an expiration date, and it also bans inactivity, maintenance, and service fees that would quietly erode the balance. There is one narrow exception for cards sold below face value. The rules apply to cards redeemable at a single retailer or an affiliated group of stores; Visa, Mastercard, and other multi-merchant cards fall under separate federal rules instead.

The No-Expiration Rule

Under ORS 646A.276, a retailer cannot sell a gift card that has an expiration date, that loses value over time or from sitting unused, or that carries inactivity, maintenance, or service fees.¹ A $50 card you bought last year is still worth $50 today, and will be worth $50 five years from now.

The statute defines “gift card” broadly enough to cover physical plastic, emailed codes, and similar prefunded records. But the definition is limited to cards redeemable at a single merchant or an affiliated group of merchants.² That scope matters when you look at what the law does not reach.

The Exception for Discounted Cards

A retailer may sell a gift card with an expiration date only when all three of these conditions are met:

The card is sold below face value (for example, a $50 card sold for $40).
The card clearly displays the words “EXPIRES ON” or “EXPIRATION DATE” followed by the actual date, printed in at least 10-point type.
The expiration date is at least 30 days after the date of sale.

Miss any one of these and the sale violates Oregon law.³ The exception is designed for promotional deals like “pay $25 for a $30 card,” not for putting a shelf life on a full-price card.

One related point: the ban applies to selling a card with an expiration date. Cards handed out for free as part of a promotion or donation aren’t sold, so an expiration date on a “buy one entrée, get a $10 bonus card” offer is permitted.¹

Cards Oregon Law Does Not Cover

Oregon’s definition of “gift card” explicitly leaves out several categories, and those cards don’t get the no-expiration protection:

Cards usable at more than one seller, such as Visa, Mastercard, and American Express gift cards.
Prepaid telephone calling cards.
Prepaid commercial mobile radio services.
Prepaid transportation cards, such as transit passes.

These carve-outs are built into the definition itself.² If your card isn’t tied to one merchant or one affiliated group, Oregon’s rules don’t reach it.

What the Federal Floor Says

Multi-merchant cards still get some protection. Under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, a gift certificate, store gift card, or general-use prepaid card cannot expire earlier than five years after issuance or the date funds were last loaded, and the expiration terms must be clearly stated on the card.⁴ Federal rules also allow dormancy, inactivity, or service fees only after 12 months without activity, with clear disclosure, and no more than one such fee per month.⁵ So a Visa gift card can eventually pick up a monthly fee, but not in the first year and not without disclosure.

No Fees on Retail Gift Cards

Oregon’s ban on fees is broad. A retailer can’t slip in an inactivity fee, a maintenance fee, or a service fee, and creative renaming doesn’t help; a “dormancy charge” or “account management fee” that reduces the card’s balance is illegal.¹ Combined with the ban on value that declines over time, this is what keeps a $50 card worth $50.

Cashing Out a Small Balance

Once you’ve made at least one purchase and the card’s remaining balance drops below $5, Oregon law lets you redeem that balance for cash, meaning actual money or a check. You make the request to the merchant identified on the card, even if a different company issued it.¹

The right has limits. It doesn’t apply to promotional cards given for free or at a discount as part of a donation or offer, to cards from entities under the federal Communications Act, or to gift cards redeemed to an online account for purchases.¹ If you’ve loaded the balance into an online account, the cash-out right no longer applies to what’s left there.

When a Retailer Closes

The one situation Oregon’s law can’t fix is a retailer going out of business. A non-expiring card is still a promise from a specific merchant, and if that merchant disappears, the card can become worthless.

In a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the company usually asks the court for permission to keep honoring gift cards, since refusing would drive away customers, and courts typically allow it. In a full liquidation, gift card holders are unsecured creditors, which puts them near the back of the line and often means recovering nothing. If you hear a retailer is in financial trouble, use your card now rather than waiting.

If a Store Refuses to Honor Your Card

Selling a gift card in violation of Oregon’s rules is classified as an unlawful trade practice under ORS 646.608, which gives the state enforcement authority.⁶

Start with the store manager or corporate customer service. A lot of these problems come from employee confusion about the law rather than company policy, and a direct conversation often clears it up. If it doesn’t, file a consumer complaint with the Oregon Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Section, which reviews complaints and may contact the business on your behalf.⁷

1
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 646A.276 – Sale of Gift Card That Expires, Declines in Value, Includes Fee or Does Not Give Option to Redeem
2
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 646A.274 – Definitions for ORS 646A.276 and 646A.278
3
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 646A.278 – Requirements for Sale of Gift Card That Expires
4
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693l-1 – General-Use Prepaid Cards, Gift Certificates, and Store Gift Cards
5
eCFR. 12 CFR 1005.20 – Requirements for Gift Cards and Gift Certificates
6
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Code 646.608 – Additional Unlawful Business, Trade Practices; Proof
7
Oregon Department of Justice. Consumer Protection