# Chime: refer a friend

Canonical: https://dealaka.com/referrals/chime-refer-a-friend

This is what an EXISTING customer earns for referring someone. For what a new customer gets for opening the account, see the offer entry linked below.

- Status: live
- Referrer earns: Not published per approved referral (targeted, not a fixed rate: Set by your active offer)
- Referred person earns: $100
- Cap: 10 per calendar year, per person
- Cap scope: per person
- Requirement: Get a qualifying direct deposit of $200+ in 45 days
- Tax form: 1099-MISC
- Link sharing: The terms do not say
- Institution: Chime
- Verified: Jul 21, 2026 against chime.com
- Note: Dealaka links only the issuer's own program page and takes no share of any referral reward.

## Summary
Chime does not publish what the referrer earns. Its own help page says the bonus depends on the offer active when your friend signs up, so any specific figure quoted elsewhere is somebody's own targeted offer rather than a rate. The referred person's $100 is fixed, and the cap is a count rather than a dollar ceiling: ten successful referrals a calendar year.

## How the referrer gets their link
Get your referral link from the Chime app.

- Share your referral link

## Tax treatment
Chime issues both forms by side: a 1099-INT at $10 or more of interest and qualifying bonuses, and a 1099-MISC at $600 or more in promotions, sweepstakes, or prizes. It lists referrer bonuses under the 1099-MISC.

## When it pays
After the friend's qualifying direct deposit settles.

## Fine print that matters
- The referrer amount is set by the offer active when your friend signs up, not when you send the link, and Chime publishes no figure.
- The cap is ten successful referrals per calendar year. A $1,000 annual dollar cap circulates elsewhere and is not confirmed on Chime's own pages.
- The friend needs a qualifying direct deposit of $200 or more within 45 days, and must activate their card within 14 days of it.
- Chime is the only program we track that names both tax forms and splits them by side, with the referrer's bonus under the 1099-MISC threshold of $600.
- Chime describes sharing on social media in its marketing, but publishes no referral terms document, so we make no claim about where the link may go.

## Sources
- chime.com standard referral program help page <https://help.chime.com/what-is-chimes-standard-referral-program-eca42e30> (checked Jul 21, 2026)
- chime.com 1099 form help page <https://help.chime.com/whats-a-1099-form-68e74bc0> (checked Jul 21, 2026)

_This entry is reference information, not financial or tax advice. Referral terms change without notice and the figure shown to you may differ from the one shown to someone else. Confirm on the issuer's own page._