Consumer · Gift Cards
Can a Gift Card Expire in Colorado?
Whether a store gift card can expire in Colorado, plus the cash-back rule, the fee limits, the exceptions for bank and promotional cards, and how the state compares to the federal five-year floor. Cited to the statute.
The rules and exceptions in Colorado
What the law requires, when it does not apply, and how the state sits against the federal floor.
| The rule in this state | What it means |
|---|---|
| No fees at all | It is unlawful to sell a gift card that contains a service, dormancy, inactivity, maintenance, or any other type of fee, under C.R.S. § 6-1-722(3). There is no waiting period because no fee is permitted. |
| Cash back at 5 dollars or less | The issuer must redeem the remaining value in cash if the amount left is 5 dollars or less on request of the holder, under § 6-1-722(2). No purchase is required first. |
| Expiration follows federal law | Colorado sets no expiration rule at all, so the federal five-year minimum in the CARD Act is the only constraint on when a covered card can expire. |
| No surcharge for paying by gift card | A seller may not add a surcharge when a customer pays by redeeming a gift card, under C.R.S. § 5-2-212. |
| When it is different | What it means |
|---|---|
| Paper certificates | A gift certificate issued only on paper is excluded from the definition, so it falls outside both the fee ban and the cash-back rule. |
| Loyalty, promotional, and charity cards | Awards, loyalty, or promotional cards for which nothing of value was exchanged, and cards donated or sold below face value for charity fundraising, are excluded. |
| Open-loop bank cards | Cards usable with multiple unaffiliated sellers are excluded, though mall-wide and franchise-family cards stay covered. |
What you can do right now
Concrete, neutral steps if a gift-card balance is dishonored in Colorado. This is consumer information, not legal advice.
- Refuse any gift-card fee
Colorado bans every gift-card fee. A dormancy, service, inactivity, or maintenance fee on a Colorado gift card is not allowed.
- Ask for cash at 5 dollars or less
When the balance drops to 5 dollars or less, you can demand the remainder in cash on request, with no purchase required, under § 6-1-722(2).
- Rely on five years for expiration
Colorado has no expiration ban, so the federal five-year minimum controls. A covered card cannot expire earlier than five years.
- Complain if a card is dishonored
A violation is a deceptive trade practice. File a complaint with the Colorado Attorney General, Consumer Protection Section.
If a retailer voids a balance or charges an improper fee, a state consumer-protection office can take your complaint and enforce the gift-card rules.
→ Colorado Attorney General · File a ComplaintThis is general consumer information, not legal advice. Card terms and exceptions vary, so check your card and the statute, and use the complaint route if a balance is wrongly dishonored.
What Colorado gift-card holders get wrong
Colorado's gift-card statute is titled validity, exemptions, and definitions, and yet it never once says a gift card cannot expire. What it does instead is more useful day to day. Under C.R.S. § 6-1-722(3) it bans every fee: no service, dormancy, inactivity, or maintenance charge is allowed. And under § 6-1-722(2) it makes the store hand you cash for anything under 5 dollars just because you asked, with no purchase required, a stronger cash-back trigger than states that make you buy something first. The gap is expiration: Colorado law is simply silent on it, so the only constraint on when a covered card can expire is the federal five-year floor. Many summaries wrongly claim Colorado bans expiration, often citing the unclaimed-property definition that describes a gift card as one whose value does not expire, but that is bookkeeping for escheat, not a consumer prohibition. Colorado also uniquely lets tiny businesses out of the escheat system entirely if they sell 200,000 dollars or less in gift cards a year. A violation is a deceptive trade practice, which carries a real private action with treble damages and attorney fees.
Common questions
Can a gift card expire in Colorado?
Yes. Colorado law does not ban expiration. Only the federal five-year minimum stops a covered card from expiring sooner.
How do I get the last few dollars off a Colorado gift card in cash?
When the balance is 5 dollars or less, you can demand the remainder in cash on request, with no purchase required, under § 6-1-722(2).
Does the Colorado fee ban cover the Visa gift card I bought?
No. Under § 6-1-722(1)(b), cards usable with multiple unaffiliated sellers are excluded, so an open-loop bank card follows federal rules.
Is a paper gift certificate from a Colorado restaurant covered?
No. A gift certificate issued only on paper is expressly excluded from the definition, so the fee ban and cash-back rule do not apply.
Not legal advicePlainStatute provides plain-language summaries of public law for general information only. This is not legal advice. Statutes change; always confirm current requirements with the official source linked above before acting.