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ARTICLE · 02 JANUARY 2026

CFPB: Earned Wage Products Are Not Loans Under TILA

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On December 23, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion stating earned wage access products fall outside the definition of credit under TILA's Regulation Z...

United StatesConsumer Protection
A.J. Dhaliwal
A.J. Dhaliwal
Mehul Madia
Mehul Madia
Maxwell Earp-Thomas
Maxwell Earp-Thomas
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On December 23, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion stating earned wage access products fall outside the definition of credit under TILA's Regulation Z, withdrawing a Biden-era proposed interpretive rule that identified all such products as credit.

Under the CFPB's guidance, "covered" EWA products do not constitute credit. Covered EWA arrangements are limited to advances that do not exceed a worker's earned wages and that require repayment solely through employer-facilitated payroll deduction. In addition, the provider must represent that it has no legal or contractual recourse for amounts not repaid (i.e., no debt collection efforts), must not report repayment activity to consumer reporting agencies, and must not assess an employee's credit risk.

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