Louisiana allows crypto ATM refunds if operator was unlicensed

Act 482, which takes effect Aug. 1, lets users cancel virtual-currency kiosk transactions made on or after that date and demand full refunds when the kiosk owner or operator did not hold a required Louisiana virtual-currency business license at the time of the transaction.

Under the law, an operator must acknowledge a refund request within 10 business days and clearly disclose all requirements for obtaining the refund. The 10-business-day requirement covers only the acknowledgement and not the timing of payment. A covered refund must be completed within 90 calendar days of the initial request. If an operator’s clearly disclosed policy requires additional documents and the user supplies them later, the 90-day period restarts from the date of that submission.

For claims based on suspected fraud, an operator may require a police report or proof that the user filed a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, along with identification. A police report or evidence of an IC3 complaint meets the statute’s standard for suspected fraud.

Operators must provide live customer support through a toll-free number during kiosk operating hours. That number must be displayed on the machine and printed on the transaction receipt.

Eligibility for refunds depends on the operator’s license status at the time of the transaction. Louisiana law treats owning, operating, soliciting, marketing, advertising or otherwise facilitating a kiosk in the state as virtual-currency business activity that requires licensure.

As of July 31, the Louisiana Office of Financial Institutions listed 36 active virtual-currency business licensees. The act keeps an existing rule that requires operators to hold a transaction for 72 hours or allow a customer to cancel within 72 hours for a full refund. The new provision makes operators financially responsible for eligible refunds when they were unlicensed at the time of purchase, even if they obtain licensure later.

The FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center recorded 144 complaints in Louisiana involving cryptocurrency kiosks in 2025, with $2,874,450 in adjusted losses; the agency warns those figures can include multiple transaction types within the same scams and may not reflect losses attributable solely to kiosks.

Operators will need to update receipts, on-machine disclosures and customer-support processes to comply with the law. Consumers seeking refunds should keep transaction records, note the kiosk operator shown at the time of purchase and retain any documents required for fraud claims to avoid restarting the 90-day timeline.