when you log into your online banking portal you will normally see two balances at the top the available balance and the current balance 
the available balance shows the amount available for immediate use in your account this balance is updated continuously throughout the day any electronic activity that takes place in the account whether it s a transaction through a teller an automated teller machine atm at a store or online affects this balance almost instantaneously any transaction involving a paper check may take several days to show up depending on how the recipient processes it the available balance does not include any pending transactions that have yet to clear depending on both the issuing bank and the receiving bank s policies check deposits may take anywhere from one to two business days to clear this process may take much longer if the check is drawn from a non bank or foreign institution the time between when a check is deposited and when it is available is often called the float time a customer s available balance becomes important when there is a delay in crediting funds to an account if an issuing bank has not cleared a check deposit for example the funds will not be available to the account holder even though they may show up in the account s current balance using the available balancecustomers can use the available balance in any way they choose as long as they don t exceed the limit they should also consider any pending transactions that haven t been added or deducted from the balance a customer may be able to withdraw funds write checks do a transfer or even make a purchase with their debit card up to the available balance for example your bank account balance can be 1 500 but your available balance may only be 1 000 that extra 500 may be due one or more things like a pending transfer to another account an online purchase a check you deposited that hasn t cleared yet because the bank put it on hold or a pre authorized payment for your car insurance you can use any amount up to 1 000 without incurring extra fees or charges from your bank you may go into overdraft and incur penalty fees if you go beyond that available balance and check holdsa bank may decide to place holds on checks under various circumstances which affects your available balance they include banks may not hold cash or electronic payments along with the first 5 000 of traditional checks that are not in question in 2018 new amendments to regulation cc availability of funds and collection of checks issued by the federal reserve took effect to address the new environment of electronic check collection and processing systems 1special considerationsthere are cases that can affect your account balance negatively or positively and how you can use it electronic banking makes our lives easier allowing us to schedule payments and allow for direct deposits at regular intervals remember to keep track of all your pre authorized payments especially if they pop up at different days of the month if your employer offers direct deposit take advantage of it not only does it save you a trip to the bank every payday but it means you can use your pay right away 