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Home > Guides > Faxing a voided check
Yes, and it is still the most common way employers collect your banking details. Write VOID in large letters across the front of the check, then fax it with your direct deposit form. A voided check cannot be cashed, but it carries the routing and account numbers payroll needs.
Take a blank check from the account you want paid into. Write "VOID" across the front in big letters with a dark pen or marker: large enough that nobody could mistake it for a live check. The critical detail is placement. Keep the VOID lettering over the payee and amount areas, but do not cover the strip of magnetic-ink numbers along the bottom edge: that strip holds your routing number (the bank's nine-digit code on the left) and your account number, and payroll needs both perfectly legible. A VOID that swallows the bottom numbers defeats the purpose. Do not sign the check: a signed voided check is a document nobody should have. Then photocopy or scan it for your own records before it leaves your hands.
Accuracy and deniability. Routing and account numbers are easy to mistype and hard to verify by eye, so a check gives payroll a printed source of truth instead of your handwriting. It also settles disputes: if a deposit lands in the wrong account, the voided check proves whose numbers were submitted. Some employers accept the numbers on the direct deposit form alone or pull them from your bank's app, but the voided check remains the default because it removes a whole class of transcription errors that are expensive to unwind.
| Risk | How real it is | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Shared fax machine printing your banking details | Real in busy offices | Fax to the HR contact's direct line, mark the cover sheet confidential, and confirm receipt by phone |
| Someone cashing the check | Not a risk if voided correctly | Big VOID, no signature; an unsigned voided check cannot be negotiated |
| Account numbers on file at payroll | Inherent to direct deposit | Accept it, but monitor your statements after setup, especially the first pay cycle |
| Old fax stored in machine memory | Possible on shared machines | Ask HR to clear the machine's memory, or use online fax so no office hardware holds your pages |
Yes, and they are growing. Many payroll systems now let you enter routing and account numbers in a self-service portal, often with micro-deposit verification: the employer sends two tiny deposits and you confirm the amounts, proving you control the account without paper at all. Some banks issue direct deposit forms from their app or website with the routing and account numbers pre-printed, which carry the same information without sacrificing a check. If your employer insists on the voided check anyway, ask whether an emailed scan is acceptable before you fax: email has its own risks, but it avoids the shared-machine output tray entirely.
You can fax a voided check by asking your AI assistant. Scan or photograph the voided check, check that the routing and account numbers at the bottom are readable, and send the file with your direct deposit form. The flow is a per-fax quote with the page count verified, you approve the exact total, you pay once through Stripe, and the fax is sent, with no office machine storing your banking details in its memory. LetterAgent covers US and Canadian fax numbers only and cannot receive inbound faxes. Faxing is currently available in testing while activation is in progress, so treat it as available in testing and confirm with payroll before any pay-cycle deadline.
Ready to fax it? Fax with LetterAgent: describe it to your AI assistant, approve the exact quoted price, and it is sent.
LetterAgent is a working name. Prices include print, postage, and our service fee. US prices in USD, Canadian prices in CAD (Canadian prices exclude applicable sales tax, added at checkout). Currently in private testing.
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