What is NCUA Insurance?

National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) share insurance protects members' deposits at federally insured credit unions. Established by Congress in 1970, the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund (NCUSIF) provides coverage up to the standard maximum share insurance amount of $250,000 per member, per insured credit union, for each account ownership category. Like FDIC insurance, NCUA coverage is backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. Since the fund's creation, no credit union member has ever lost a penny of insured savings.

NCUA share insurance covers regular share accounts (the credit union equivalent of savings accounts), share draft accounts (checking), money market share accounts, and share certificates (CDs). Retirement accounts such as IRAs and Keoghs are separately insured up to $250,000. Joint accounts are insured up to $250,000 per co-owner. Revocable trust accounts with named beneficiaries may qualify for coverage up to $250,000 per unique beneficiary, subject to a five-beneficiary cap.

The NCUSIF is funded entirely by federally insured credit unions through a one-percent deposit of insured shares into the fund and periodic premium assessments. No taxpayer dollars support the fund. Federally chartered credit unions must carry NCUA insurance. State-chartered credit unions may choose to be federally insured; the overwhelming majority opt in. Members can verify their credit union's insurance status through NCUA's online Credit Union Locator tool or by looking for the official NCUA insurance sign displayed in branches and on websites.

Although NCUA and FDIC insurance provide identical mathematical limits of protection, they apply to different financial structures. The FDIC covers commercial banks, whereas the NCUA insures credit unions, which are member-owned, not-for-profit financial cooperatives. Due to this cooperative ownership model, credit union accounts represent shares of equity in the institution; thus, savings accounts are designated as 'share accounts,' checking accounts as 'share draft accounts,' and CDs as 'share certificates.' To help members verify that their funds are structured correctly to capture maximum coverage, the NCUA hosts a digital Share Insurance Estimator on MyCreditUnion.gov, allowing depositors to calculate their exact coverage based on their account types and named beneficiaries.