Personal Loans in Tennessee: What Licensed Lenders May Charge

How the Tennessee charges work

The Industrial Loan and Thrift law sets interest and fees separately. The interest limit sits in section 45-5-301, subject to the general interest laws in Title 47, chapters 14 and 15. Until the 2025 amendment (Acts 2025, ch. 70), that section allowed 30% on loans of $100 to $5,000 and 24% on loans over $5,000; the 2025 Code shows one 36% limit for all loans of $100 or more. The fees sit in section 45-5-403, and they are what push the APR on your Truth in Lending disclosure above 36%.

For loans of $100 to $2,000, the lender may instead use an alternative schedule in section 45-5-403(b): an acquisition charge of up to 12.5% of the principal, a monthly installment account handling charge that rises with the loan size to $32 on loans over $1,750, terms of 3 to 25 months and a closing fee of up to 4% of the amount financed, capped at $50.

Refunds and paying early

If you repay a standard loan in full within three business days, the lender must refund all charges in cash. Under the alternative schedule, handling charges are refunded under section 45-5-402 if you pay early, and if you prepay within 90 days you get a pro rata share of the closing fee back, though the lender may keep up to $25. Ask for the payoff amount in writing before you send the final payment.

Because the 5% service charge may be taken out of the loan in advance, the cash you receive can be less than the amount you sign for: on a $2,000 loan, a $100 charge leaves $1,900. Net loan proceeds explains how to check the deposit against the amount financed.

Who needs a registration and who does not

Under section 45-5-103, no one may do business as an industrial loan and thrift company without a certificate of registration from the commissioner of financial institutions, and each office needs its own certificate. Applications and renewals go through NMLS, so you can look the company up on NMLS Consumer Access.

• Banks and credit unions answer to their own charters and banking regulators instead, and a bank may charge the rates its home state allows.
• Online lenders that partner with a bank may make loans through that bank, which can put the loan outside the Tennessee limits. Ask who the lender of record is.
• Payday and title loans follow separate Tennessee laws. Our sister site Lendmira covers them on its Tennessee lending laws page.

How Tennessee compares with its neighbors

On the National Consumer Law Center's comparison of a $2,000 two-year loan, Tennessee's 49% is among the higher limits in the region. Arkansas caps that loan at about 17% APR, Georgia at about 32%, North Carolina at about 35% and Kentucky at about 42%, while Virginia allows about 50% and Mississippi about 59%. Alabama and Missouri set no numeric cap. The state rules map shows every state side by side.

Check a lender and file a complaint

1. 1 Look up the registration on NMLS Consumer Access, by the company's name or NMLS number, before you apply.
2. 2 Keep the loan papers: the Truth in Lending disclosure, the agreement and any messages about fees.
3. 3 Complain to TDFI with its online consumer complaint form, or call (800) 778-4215 to ask for a paper form, if a lender charges more than the law allows.
4. 4 Send a complaint to the CFPB as well if the lender is a bank or a bank partner. How to verify a lender lists what to check.

Questions people ask