U.S. Congress passed the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 and it was signed by President Barack Obama on May 22, 2009. The CARD Act regulates expirations and fees on Gift Cards. Expirations are not allowed sooner than five years after issuance and must be clearly stated on the card. Additionally, dormancy fees can only be charged if the card is unused for 12 months or longer, the fee is disclosed on the gift card, and no more than one such fee is charged per month. The CARD act took effect in 2010. The federal statute joined the state regulation impacting the use of traditional accounting methods addressing unused card balances.
