When a Series I savings bond reaches maturity, two things happen at once: interest stops accruing, and any interest you’ve been deferring becomes taxable that year whether you cash the bond or not. That is the core of what happens when I bonds reach maturity, and it’s why the 30-year date matters even if you’re happy to leave the money alone. A matured I bond is a frozen balance with a tax bill attached.
Interest Stops at 30 Years
Every I bond earns interest for exactly 30 years from its issue date, structured as a 20-year initial period followed by a 10-year extension.1U.S. Treasury Fiscal Data. Treasury Savings Bonds Explained Once the 30-year mark passes, accumulation stops completely, regardless of whether the bond has been redeemed.2TreasuryDirect. I Bonds Holding a matured bond earns you nothing further.
The 30-year endpoint is different from the earlier milestones that sometimes get confused with maturity. You can redeem an I bond after one year, and if you cash it before the five-year mark, you lose the last three months of interest. That penalty disappears at five years. Final maturity at 30 years is a separate event: it’s when the bond simply stops working.
For electronic bonds, TreasuryDirect tracks the maturity date for you. For paper bonds, look at the issue date printed on the certificate and count forward 30 years. Treasury stopped selling paper I bonds on January 1, 2025, including the tax-refund purchase option, but many paper bonds are still out there.2TreasuryDirect. I Bonds
The Tax Bill Comes Due in the Maturity Year
All I bond interest is subject to federal income tax and exempt from state and local income tax.3Internal Revenue Service. Tax Topic 403 – Interest Received Most owners defer that tax until redemption or maturity, so a bond held the full 30 years can pile up a large amount of untaxed interest that all becomes reportable at once.4TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds That lump sum can be enough to push you into a higher bracket in the maturity year.
The catch that surprises people: if your bond matures and you don’t cash it, the interest is still taxable in that 30th year. For electronic bonds, Treasury automatically moves the matured proceeds into a Certificate of Indebtedness inside your TreasuryDirect account. You’ll receive a 1099-INT reflecting the full lifetime of interest, and you owe tax on it whether or not you’ve transferred the money to your bank.4TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds
If you’ve been reporting interest annually instead of deferring, the maturity year is less dramatic, because you’ve already paid tax on the interest as it accrued and only the final year’s accrual is new.
How to Cash a Matured Bond
Treasury doesn’t charge a fee to redeem, so the full value comes to you. The procedure depends on whether the bond is electronic or paper.
Electronic Bonds
Log into TreasuryDirect, open ManageDirect, and select “Redeem securities.” Choose the bond, and the proceeds transfer to your linked bank account.5TreasuryDirect. Cashing EE or I Savings Bonds If the bond has already matured and moved into a Certificate of Indebtedness, transfer the funds out from there.
Paper Bonds
Paper I bonds can be cashed at a bank or credit union, or by mail to Treasury. If you go to a financial institution, bring the physical bond and valid ID. Many banks will only cash bonds for established customers; Federal Reserve guidance recommends a 12-month banking relationship, and each institution sets its own policy.6Federal Reserve Financial Services. Savings Bond Redemptions Frequently Asked Questions Call ahead if you’re not sure.
To redeem by mail, complete FS Form 1522 and send it with the bonds to the address on the form.7Department of the Treasury | Bureau of the Fiscal Service. FS Form 1522 – Special Form of Request for Payment of United States Savings and Retirement Securities If you’re cashing more than $1,000 in total value, your signature has to be certified. Authorized certifiers include notaries, bank officers, commissioned military officers, and judges or clerks of a U.S. court, among others.8TreasuryDirect. Signature Certification A paper bond must be cashed for its full value; there’s no partial redemption.
If the Paper Bond Is Lost or Damaged
File FS Form 1048 to claim the value of a lost, stolen, or destroyed paper bond. If you don’t have the serial numbers, Treasury Hunt can search for bonds tied to your Social Security number and generate a version of FS Form 1048 for bonds issued in 1974 or later.9TreasuryDirect. Get Help for Lost, Stolen, or Destroyed EE or I Savings Bond That version of the form has to be signed in front of a notary or certifying official before you mail it.
Inheriting a Matured Bond
If you’ve inherited a bond that has already reached maturity, the redemption path depends on how it was registered. A bond with a named payable-on-death beneficiary transfers to that beneficiary on proof of death, and they can cash it or have it reissued. Without a named beneficiary, a legal estate representative handles the redemption or distribution, with letters of appointment dated within one year of submission. For estates holding $100,000 or less in Treasury securities where no formal administration is planned, an eligible family member can act as a voluntary representative and skip probate.10eCFR. Title 31 Part 315 Subpart L – Deceased Owner, Coowner or Beneficiary
Inheritance doesn’t erase the deferred interest. For electronic bonds that get reissued, Treasury reports interest earned up to the reissuance date on a 1099-INT in the deceased owner’s name or the estate’s, and interest after reissuance under the new owner’s Social Security number.4TreasuryDirect. Tax Information for EE and I Bonds For paper bonds that pass to a new owner and are later cashed, the 1099-INT shows the full lifetime of interest in the new owner’s name, and the new owner has to demonstrate to the IRS which portion belonged to the previous owner. IRS Publication 550 covers the split.
If You’ve Lost Track of an Old Bond
A matured I bond that sits unredeemed isn’t forfeited, and the accumulated value doesn’t vanish. But it stops growing, and the tax on deferred interest is due in the maturity year regardless.
Treasury has moved inquiries about unredeemed matured bonds over to individual states’ unclaimed property programs. States can search Treasury’s database of matured, unredeemed securities and help with claims, including bonds that may have been turned over to the state as unclaimed property.11TreasuryDirect. Treasury Hunt If you think an old paper bond is out there somewhere, start with your state’s unclaimed property office. For electronic bonds, the money is already waiting in your TreasuryDirect account as a Certificate of Indebtedness; you just need to log in and transfer it out.