PayPal, in its sole discretion, reserves the right to place a hold on any payment sent to you for up to 180 days if PayPal believes there may be a high level of risk associated with you, your PayPal account, or your transactions or if PayPal is unable to verify your identity... We may also hold funds if we believe that you, your account, or your transactions may be associated with illegal, fraudulent, deceptive, or improper activity. In addition, PayPal may hold funds if we believe there may be potential violations of this user agreement, or if PayPal receives a dispute, claim, chargeback, or reversal relating to your account.
A 180-day fund hold can effectively lock you out of your money for six months, causing serious financial hardship, with limited ability to challenge the decision given the arbitration clause.
PayPal's User Agreement significantly affects your financial rights and access to funds ā PayPal can place holds on your money for up to 180 days and limit or suspend your account at its discretion. You waive the right to participate in class action lawsuits and must resolve all disputes through individual binding arbitration, which is generally more costly and less accessible for small-dollar claims. You can opt out of the arbitration agreement by sending a written notice to PayPal's Legal Department at 2211 North First Street, San Jose, CA 95131 within 30 days of first accepting the User Agreement.