Treasury Enables Instant Federal Agency Disbursements via FedNow Service

FedNow® Service Now Available for Instant Federal Agency Disbursements Through Treasury’s Digital Payout Program

10/02/25 Washington, DC – FedNow® Service Now Available for Instant Federal Agency Disbursements Through Treasury’s Digital Payout program.

The Federal Reserve’s FedNow Service is an instant payments infrastructure that allows participating banks and credit unions to send and receive transactions within seconds on behalf of their customers — 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Today, Treasury has expanded its use of the FedNow Service to federal agencies that issue payments through the Digital Payout Program.

The inclusion of the FedNow Service into Treasury’s Digital Payout program will equip agencies with a modern way to provide instant payments to individuals. More broadly, it will support the federal government in expanding access to customer centric financial management solutions that are modern and efficient.

“We’re excited to offer instant payments as an option in our Digital Payout tool for our agency partners,” said Marshall Henry, Director of the Fiscal Service Digital Disbursement and Debit Card Solutions program. “Treasury is uniquely positioned to support federal programs and mitigate the risk of financial fraud by using efficient and modern technologies like the FedNow Service. Adding the service to our suite of digital payment options supports Treasury’s long-term goal for federal financial management and the push for electronic payments that allow safer, quicker access to funds and have less risk of fraud. We remain dedicated to advancing the tools, services and data available to support federal agencies nationwide.”

“The expansion of instant payments into federal disbursements is significant — it brings immediacy of money movement to people when they need it most,” said Mark Gould, chief payments executive for the Federal Reserve Financial Services. “The ability to meet need with speed will be a key differentiator for both agencies and financial institutions that participate in the FedNow Service. We look forward to the benefits that greater access to instant payments will bring to more people’s lives.”

FedNow Service in action

Treasury’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service, which disburses and collects money on behalf of U.S. government and federal agencies, added the FedNow Service to its money movement toolkit in July 2023 alongside other payment methods such as ACH, wire and prepaid cards.

Since then, Fiscal Service has enabled more than eight other federal agencies — most recently the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) — to use the instant payment capability.

Through the Fiscal Service’s Digital Payout tool, FEMA is using the FedNow Service to deliver disaster recovery payments to citizens more quickly and efficiently. By using the FedNow Service’s instant payment network, FEMA can distribute funds to affected individuals instantly. This not only cuts delays caused by traditional check-mailing processes, but it helps the people impacted by natural disasters — like floods, hurricanes and wildfires — get the financial relief they need faster.

Looking forward, Fiscal Service anticipates more use cases and applications for instant payments to the benefit of federal agencies and the public they serve. It will continue to promote the availability of the FedNow Service to agency partners for greater adoption.

Is your agency interested in joining the Fiscal Service Digital Payout program? More information can be found in the Executive Order.

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Last Updated:

February 27, 2026