As it turns out, there's no easy answer to this question. Each casino cage has its own way of doing business.
The one thing they all agree on, however, is the check-cashing requirement of a valid photo ID and at least one credit card.
From what we were told, many factors are involved in trying to cash a check at a casino. Since most properties only cash certain types of checks, you may not be able to cash all types everywhere, including payroll, personal, cashiers, or travelers checks. We didn’t find any, for example, that accepted cashiers checks.
Some properties will not allow you to cash a check there if you’ve cashed one somewhere else within an allotted period of time. We were also told by some cages that you have to be a guest and/or player at that specific property in order to cash a personal check there, although this doesn’t by any means apply universally. If you’re not a guest and/or a player, most casinos have their own check-cashing card you can get (but this may take up to 20 days to process), while others may charge a fee (such as the Riviera, which rakes 3%).
The amount for which you’re able to cash a personal check varies and depends on the check-guarantee system the casino uses and your credit rating. Since some of the casino cages use the same check-guarantee companies, you wouldn’t be able to cash a personal check at one casino, then go to another casino and cash a personal check there if they use the same company. We also found that in order to cash a payroll check, the company you work for and the bank they use have to be in that casino’s system.
Below are some examples of the specific policies at certain properties. Note that we sometimes called back and got conflicting information, so to be on the safe side, we recommend that you contact the property for confirmation before you rely on being able to cash a personal check anywhere.
Mirage: Will cash a personal check for up to $500 but you cannot have cashed a personal check anywhere else in Las Vegas within the last 14 days.
TI: Here, you’ll be required to sign up for the casino’s own check-cashing system and need to bring along valid photo ID and a blank check. If you’re approved (apparently the decision process only takes a few minutes), you’ll thereafter be able to cash checks for between $500 and $10,000, depending on your credit rating.
Rio: The property uses the Telecheck check-cashing system, for which you’ll need to sign up (bring photo ID and a blank check). If approved, you’ll be able to cash checks up to a limit of $4,000 (based on approval) within any two-week period.
Flamingo: Only registered guests can cash a personal check, with a limit of up to $500 if they have one credit card, and up to $1,000 if they have two. Note that the credit cards must not be from the same bank by which the checking account is held.
Circus Circus: Circus uses a check-guarantee company called Certegy and, providing that your credit is approved, anyone can cash a personal check up to $1,000, with a limit of no more than $2,500 in any seven-day period.
We also checked on a couple of the check-cashing joints around town to find out what types of policies they have. Rapid Cash, located at 4921 W. Sahara Ave., cashes any type of check for any amount. For payroll checks, there’s a 2.5% fee, and for personal checks the fee is 10%. In order to cash a payroll check you need valid ID and a pay stub, as Rapid verifies your employer and its bank. They have to verify with your bank (and not all banks are willing to give this information, especially over the phone) that you have at least 10 times the amount a personal check is written for in your checking account. This location is open 24/7. Money Tree, located at 730 E. Flamingo Rd., also cashes any type of check for any amount. The fee for payroll and personal checks is 5.9%. If you’ve never previously cashed a payroll check there, you need to have a relative’s phone number and a pay stub along with valid ID, we were told.
