Membership Eligibility
Welcome, future member! Discover the credit union difference.
Bay Federal Credit Union is a full-service, not-for-profit financial institution that proudly serves a large group of individuals and businesses across the heart of the central coast.
Membership Information
As a local, member-owned, not-for-profit financial cooperative, we are passionate about contributing to the community and being an integral part of its incredible story. Whether a community member is looking to buy a home, purchase a car, save some money, or access the latest in banking technology, our local and friendly employees are here to help!
- Do you live, work, worship, or attend school in Santa Cruz, San Benito, or Monterey County?
- Does an immediate family member of yours have an account with Bay Federal?
- Are you a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, club, non-profit, or other type of business* physically located or headquartered in Santa Cruz, San Benito, or Monterey County?
Then you’re likely eligible!
Review the documentation required to open a new account and join today!
What is a Credit Union?
A credit union is a not-for-profit financial institution that is owned by all of their members (account holders) with the primary goal of serving the financial interests of their members. In their simplest form, credit unions use the money deposited by members to make loans to other members. The interest paid on those loans goes directly back into the credit union and is used to:
- pay interest on member savings deposits;
- create and improve financial services;
- and strengthen the organization with additional assets and reserves.
Credit Union members elect a group of their peers to serve on the credit union's 100% volunteer Board of Directors. Directors spend countless unpaid hours developing and guiding the credit union in the pursuit of exceptional members service.
Individual members accounts are insured to at least $250,000 by the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF) through the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), a federal agency. The NCUSIF is the credit union equivalent of the FDIC. Having additional account owners and beneficiaries may increase the amount of insurance on your accounts.
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Joining FAQs
Your credit union membership begins when you open your membership savings account. This account establishes your membership and must remain open for as long as you wish to be a member. Once you have opened your savings account, you may apply for any other account, loan, or service offered by the Credit Union.
An immediate family member includes a spouse, child, sibling, parent, grandparent/grandchild, stepparents/children/siblings, adoptive relationships, or persons living in the same residence and maintaining a single economic unit.
You only need to register once! Your BayFedOnline and BayFed Mobile App username and password are the same.
To get started, you will need your social security number, Bay Federal member number, date of birth, mother's maiden name, and current contact information.
To register from a desktop computer, click on the blue Log In button at the top of any page on this website and then click New User.
To register on the BayFed Mobile App, download the app from Google Play or the App Store, launch the app and tap Sign Up in the bottom left corner.
Savings accounts can be opened for children at any age but members under 18 years of age are required to have a parent or legal guardian as a joint owner on their account. Youth checking accounts can be opened beginning at the age of 13 and require a parent or legal guardian to remain a joint owner on their account until the age of 18. To open an account for a minor, visit your local branch and one of our team members will be happy to assist you. For more information on youth accounts visit here.
Bay Federal Credit Union does not offer Safe Deposit Boxes.
When you open an account you will receive your account number and member number.
For future instances, your account number can be found on the top of each statement, or you can log into online or mobile banking, select the account, and click "Account Details."
The minimum deposit varies by account type.
Please browse our account types to find more information.
Our hold times will vary depending on the type of deposit.
*Certain LLCs and LLPs may not be eligible; to confirm eligibility, please call us at 831.479.6000 or 888.4BAYFED.