Check21

[David Reiser]

On Jan 21, 2012, at 11:28 AM, David Carlson wrote:

[snip stuff about Windows printing bug]
> 
> I hope that this isn't an incredibly dumb question.  Can GnuCash print
> Check21 compliant checks?  That is, if the print was the correct size?
> And if the checks are drawn on US or Canadian banks?
> 
> I assume that I can purchase Check21 compliant blank checks from
> someplace by telephone, perhaps, so that I do not transfer my checking
> account number over the internet.  Is that a fair assumption?
> 
> So far, I have not been able to figure out exactly why Intuit states
> that wallet checks printed from their Quicken 2005 or earlier programs
> are not Check21 compliant.
> 
> Is this an issue only for wallet size checks?
> 
> David Carlson

As far as I can remember, the two major features required of Check21 compatibility are that the background of the check has to be innocuous enough that it disappears when the check is scanned by whatever scanner banks use these days (keeps the important information OCR-able) and that there has to be no printing within a certain distance of the bottom of the check (prevents interference with 'reading' the MICR line at the bottom of the checks).

The background has nothing to do with any program's printing. I've noticed that lots of computer checks these days are being supplied with no background in the MICR region. My checks (purchased in 2009) have a dark band below the MICR line. Could be a problem in the future.

The minimum bottom margin is probably the feature that Intuit violated in earlier printing formats. Since their check formats are hard-coded, they have no interest in fixing earlier versions. Their view is "buy a newer version".

I'm pretty sure someone submitted a Check21 compatible format for wallet checks in gnucash. It also wouldn't be hard to modify existing ones.

I've never had a check flagged by my credit union as unacceptable, even using the older wallet check formats. Your mileage may vary, but considering that banks still must accept/deal with hand-written checks, it would seem unlikely that slightly out-of-spec printing formats would be rejected outright if a human can read the check if it's bounced to a second level of clearing inspection. It could be that I haven't hit anyone who absolutely requires Check21 yet, though.

Dave
--
David Reiser
dbreiser at earthlink.net