The Short Term Loan
RCW 31.45.073 — seven hundred dollars or thirty percent of monthly income, and no more than eight a year
The size. The principal of a small loan, or of all small loans to one borrower at a time, may not exceed seven hundred dollars or thirty percent of the borrower's gross monthly income, whichever is lower.
The fee. Interest or fees may not exceed in the aggregate fifteen percent of the first five hundred dollars of principal, and ten percent of any principal above five hundred dollars.
The due date. The due date is on or after the borrower's next pay date, or the second pay date if the next is within seven days. The loan may not run more than forty-five days from origination unless both agree to extend it with no additional fee or interest.
Eight in twelve months. A borrower may not receive more than eight small loans from all licensees in any twelve-month period, and a licensee may not lend to a borrower in default on another small loan until it is paid or two years have passed.
Licensing, the disclosures the lender owes, and what happens when a check is returned are set out in other parts of the law that are not on this page. Whether a particular loan broke these limits is a question for the state's financial regulator or a licensed Washington attorney.
Sources for this section (1)
- RCW 31.45.073 — Small loans: amount, term, number and fee limits
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of September 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Washington attorney.