Is credit card abuse a felony in Texas?
Yes, and this is the part that surprises people most: under Penal Code §32.31, credit or debit card abuse is a state jail felony regardless of how much was spent. There is no value ladder. A single unauthorized use of someone else's card for a few dollars is the same grade as one for thousands. It rises to a third degree felony where the offense was committed against an elderly individual, meaning someone 65 or older. Theft, by contrast, would be a Class C misdemeanor at the same small amount.
- No dollar threshold. State jail felony, 180 days to 2 years, whatever the amount.
- Eleven separate ways to commit it in §32.31(b), and most of them do not require any purchase to have gone through.
- Mere possession can be the offense. Possessing someone else's card without their consent, with intent to use it, is listed in its own subdivision.
- A "card" includes the number. The statute covers the number or description of the device even where the physical card is never produced.
- Elderly complainant makes it a third degree felony, 2 to 10 years.
- There is a statutory presumption that a person using a revoked, cancelled or expired card knew its status.
- The same facts often support theft and forgery charges too, and those run on different ladders with different exposure.
Most people charged under this section expect a theft case sized to what was spent. Texas does not work that way here. The legislature treated the card itself as the thing being abused rather than the money, so a $40 transaction and a $4,000 one carry the same grade. That single design choice is why these cases so often end up more serious than the facts feel. Peter M. Barrett has defended financial and white collar cases in Dallas County since 1994, across more than 150 jury trials, and the case review is free and confidential. This guide sets out what the statute covers.
The eleven ways to commit it
§32.31(b) lists eleven distinct offenses. The ones that arise most often:
- Presenting or using a card with intent to obtain a benefit fraudulently, knowing it was not issued to you and is not used with the cardholder's effective consent, or knowing it has expired, been revoked or cancelled.
- Using a fictitious card, or the pretended number or description of one, with intent to obtain a benefit.
- Receiving a benefit you know was obtained in violation of the section.
- Stealing a card, or receiving a stolen card with intent to use, sell or transfer it.
- Buying a card from someone who is not the issuer, or selling one if you are not the issuer.
- Possessing a card without the cardholder's effective consent and with intent to use it, even if it is never used.
- Possessing two or more incomplete cards not issued to you, with intent to complete them without the issuer's consent.
- Inducing a cardholder to use their own card to obtain property or services for your benefit which they are financially unable to pay for.
- Merchant-side offenses, where someone authorized to accept cards furnishes goods on a card obtained in violation of the section, or bills for goods never furnished.
Two features of that list drive most of the charging decisions. Several subdivisions are complete before any money moves, and one of them is satisfied by possession plus intent. That is why a card found in a wallet or a car during an unrelated stop can become a felony allegation.
What counts as a card
The definitions in §32.31(a) are broader than the plastic. A credit card is any identification card, plate, coupon, book, number or other device authorizing a person to obtain property or services on credit, and the term expressly includes the number or description of the device if the device itself is not produced at the time. The definition of a debit card works the same way for account debits, unmanned teller machines and customer convenience terminals.
So a card number typed into a website is a card for these purposes. There is no need for anyone to have handled anything physical.
Grading, and how it compares
| Offense | Level | Range |
|---|---|---|
| Credit or debit card abuse, §32.31, any amount | State jail felony | 180 days to 2 years |
| Committed against an elderly individual, 65 or older | 3rd degree felony | 2 to 10 years |
| Theft of under $100, for comparison | Class C misdemeanor | Fine up to $500 |
| Theft of $750 to under $2,500, for comparison | Class A misdemeanor | Up to 1 year |
| Forgery of a credit card or similar instrument, §32.21(d) | 3rd degree felony | 2 to 10 years |
Put side by side, the comparison is stark. Spending $200 of someone's cash is a Class B theft. Spending $200 on their card is a state jail felony. The theft guide sets out that ladder, and the gap between the two is often the most useful thing a defense lawyer can explain to a prosecutor about proportionality.
The presumption, and the consent question
§32.31(c) creates a presumption that a person who used a revoked, cancelled or expired card had knowledge of that status. A presumption is not proof, and it does not transfer the burden, but it does mean the defense should be ready to address knowledge rather than assume the State has to build it from nothing.
The element that fails most often in real cases is effective consent. These charges frequently come out of relationships: a partner, a relative, an adult child, a roommate, an employee who had been allowed to use a card before. Where there was a history of permitted use, or a dispute about whether permission was withdrawn and when, the question is not what the card was used for but whether its use was authorized at that moment. That is a factual question with messages, statements and spending history behind it.
The charges that come with it
- Theft under §31.03, on the value ladder, sometimes aggregated across transactions under §31.09.
- Forgery under §32.21, which is a third degree felony where the writing is or purports to be a credit card, check or similar commercial instrument.
- Fraudulent use or possession of identifying information under §32.51, which is graded by the number of items of identifying information and can escalate quickly. The identity theft guide covers it.
- Federal charges where the transactions crossed state lines electronically, which is nearly always true of card payments. The wire fraud guide explains why one scheme becomes many counts.
Where these cases are defended
- Effective consent. The central issue in most relationship and workplace cases. Prior permitted use, shared accounts and family arrangements are evidence, not excuses.
- Intent to obtain a benefit fraudulently. Using a card believing you were allowed to, or believing a balance would be repaid, is not the same as the intent the statute requires.
- Who actually used it. Card-not-present transactions prove an account was used, not who used it. Shared devices, saved card details and household access all matter, and the State's evidence is often weaker on identity than on the transaction.
- Possession cases. Where no transaction occurred, the whole case is intent to use. A card in a shared vehicle, a wallet handed over, or a card left behind by someone else are all consistent with no intent at all.
- The elderly enhancement. It adds eight years to the ceiling and turns on a single fact, so whether it applies is worth confirming rather than assuming.
- Restitution and the disposition. In financial cases what the conviction is called follows the client into every future background check, so the offense of conviction usually matters more than the sentence.
Common questions
How much do you have to spend for credit card abuse to be a felony in Texas?
Nothing in particular. Penal Code §32.31 has no value threshold: the offense is a state jail felony, 180 days to 2 years, whatever the amount involved. It becomes a third degree felony, 2 to 10 years, where it is committed against an elderly individual, meaning a person 65 or older.
Can you be charged if you never used the card?
Yes. Several subdivisions of §32.31(b) are complete without any transaction. Possessing a card without the cardholder's effective consent and with intent to use it is an offense in itself, as is stealing or receiving a stolen card with intent to use, sell or transfer it. In those cases the whole dispute is about intent.
What if my partner or family member let me use the card before?
That goes to effective consent, which is an element the State has to negate. A history of permitted use, a shared account or a family arrangement is evidence about whether this use was authorized. These cases often turn on whether permission was ever withdrawn and whether that was communicated, which messages and spending history can establish either way.
Is using just the card number enough?
Yes. The definitions in §32.31(a) expressly include the number or description of the device even where the card itself is never produced. An online or over-the-phone transaction using only the number falls within the statute exactly as a physical card would.
Why is this a felony when the same amount of theft would be a ticket?
Because the statute grades the conduct by the card rather than by the loss. Spending $200 of someone's cash is a Class B misdemeanor theft under §31.03. Spending $200 on their card is a state jail felony under §32.31. The mismatch is real, it is a frequent subject of negotiation, and it is one reason these cases should not be treated as minor.
Can a credit card abuse charge be reduced?
It can, and the routes are usually effective consent, intent, or identity in a card-not-present case. Where the State cannot show who used the account, or that permission was absent at the time, what remains may be a theft on the value ladder rather than a felony. Because the conviction name follows a person through every background check, reduction to a non-fraud offense is often worth more than a shorter sentence.
I have been accused of using a relative's card. What should I do?
Do not discuss it with the cardholder, the bank or an investigator before getting advice, and do not repay anything as an informal fix, because that is routinely treated as an admission. Preserve messages showing what you were allowed to do, and any record of shared accounts or prior permitted use. The consultation is free and confidential: (214) 526-0555, answered 24/7 for emergencies.
The law this article describes, at the source.
This page is general legal information about Texas law, not legal advice about your case. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Laws change, so confirm the current rule with a licensed Texas criminal defense attorney about your specific facts. Request a free, confidential case review.