Could you use a pre paid credit card?
I think calling paypal business line would be the best option..

I'm a little bit nervous using these because they also come with hidden fees, which i wouldn't know about for months

You'd be best off calling card companies and PayPal still, they'd have the info or at least a good direction to start with.

I do so since the very beginning and haven't found any problems/restrictions with it so far ;)

I dony have a bank account and use a green dot reloadable credit card and it wotks just fine. Only thing is that when someone pays you it stays on your paypal account I have not uet figured out if there is a way to put it back ont o the card.

The problem with using just paypal is that they can close it at any time and keep your money if they think you've violated their terms and conditions. (Every now and then a furry artist gets their account closed because someone reports to Paypal that the account is being used for adult art.)

Money in a bank account is safe no matter what happens.

except when they bank steals it xD i am using bank of america and they are awful with introducing new surprise fees

ever consider a credit union?

I do not currently think there is a reliable way to access paypal fund without a bank account[mine shut down and outside of upgrading to a business account, I have to send money to local friends or family to access it at all and it's a HUGE inconvenience, at this point I'd rather connect the bank account to be honest), and once you unlink the two there will be services you will stop getting because you cannot be verified and paypal will continuously push/request/urge you to verify constantly until you do so again.

Like everyone says, just call a rep and talk to them, it's the most legit source and they'll know how to best answer your questions and point you in the right direction at the very least. Especially if it's this important! I also suggest attempting to apply with a local credit union, I prefer them bar non and have been part of once since I was 18ish! You tend to get better/more personal service and none/few of those fees!

I would be wary of relying solely on Paypal; their terms of service give them the freedom to close your account at any time, without warning, without having to inform you of the reason why, freezing the contained funds for six months. I know this because this is what they did to me.

Why do you want to close your bank account?

functionally, it costs about $30-70 a month, because they are always shuffling my money between my accounts without warning, and charging me random fees. I realize there are ways to avoid these fees, but it's so much of a hassle to keep up with them, and I HATE them

Ouch. That sucks! Are there more reasonably-priced bank accounts available? Do you have credit unions where you are?

There are, but they dont want to take me because I am self employed

Double suck >.<

Well, your plan might be the best way. Just keep in mind the risk though :)

You should seek another bank. PayPal is a private organization and they can do whatever they want with your account and money. I've had friends who got completely shut out of PayPal before. They won't appeal, they have no obligation to do it. They also keep any funds in the account.

my regular bank account gets stripped of 30-70 dollars every month, which is a huge hit to me. Paypal hasn't given me any trouble like this. The bank account is significantly worse. If this is the type of stuff I'm going to be dealing with just trying to use a traditional bank, I might just consider getting a safe

'just because it hasn't happened to me' isn't a good argument in this case. The first time is also going to be the last time. They DO NOT negotiate if they find out you draw porn. Or rather specifically, everyone is naive is they think paypal doesn't know what they are up to. You just don't want to be there when someone gets you flagged for some reason. They absolutely will not work with you, they will cut you so hard.

Yes, 10/10 I cannot support this reply enough.

You really do NOT want to be on that end of the spectrum OP, paypal is incredibly aggressive and they won't give diddly squits whatever reasons you throw at them.

In terms of checking accounts, any bank should take you regardless of employment. Shoot me a message if you want to get into more detail but I was straight up unemployed when I opened my last two accounts with Suntrust (since I just moved to North Carolina and neither of my other two banks were anywhere near me). Employment only has bearing on credit cards.

*side note, while there is a fee for suntrust, I know that I get an average deposit of $500/mo at least per month so that removes the fee. The other way around it that's most feasible is 10 transactions on the card in the whole month. So.... getting groceries, gas, buying stuff online, depositing money into the account, etc etc are all included in that.

If you use Amazon, you might consider looking into the Amazon credit card which gives you cash back on amazon purchases, restaurants, gas stations and more. You'd just have to pay through amazon or call in or set up autopay from your checking account with whatever bank you get. The card is a regular credit card so you should be able to add it to your paypal.

I would HIGHLY recommend not just using paypal though; there have been too many nightmare scenarios from friends or close acquaintances regarding losing their money or having their account frozen for months and being unable to get their money.

I'm currently trying to run my this way, but I also don't use the business side of PayPal. I just send the link to the personal pay on the rare chance I do get commissioned

I wouldn't advise working it like that for the reasons folks have already said. Paypal can close off access to your funds at any time for any reason.

I saw you mention working with a major bank like Bank of America and would agree with the person that mentioned looking into a credit union. Credit Unions are owned by the people who bank with them and as such tend to have better rates on loans, less fees of any kind, and are generally friendly and fun/easy to work with.

I would suggest moving more towards changing whom you bank with rather than going without a bank at all.

as I mentioned before, I tried to apply at two different credit unions and was denied because I am self-employed. Most people don't seem to realize, but the regular bank can and has blocked my access to my money on more than one occasion, and I have not had this problem with PayPal.

Still super sketchy, just because you haven't had the problem with PayPal ... yet ... doesn't mean it can't happen to you.

I missed the reply comment about being denied I guess, sorry xD That's definitely kind of strange but I haven't tried to open a bank account in many years, I've had mine since I was 2. I totally realize that a regular bank can block access to your money but, generally, as long as you are doing what you are supposed to, that doesn't happen. You are automatically violating the rules of PayPal by taking money for adult related commissions, so that puts you in dangerous territory right off the bat.

Other than a credit union, since those two were uncooperative, are there any other banks you can try? US Bank? Even Chase? Bank of America has one of the absolute worst track records of all major banking institutions so perhaps you can get better service elsewhere?

I'd just strongly urge you to do anything but put complete faith in a company that has no federal backing or recourse for your money if something were to happen.

I'd recommend switching to a different bank rather than not having a bank account. I'd strongly recommend looking into credit unions; in general, they have much better customer service and fewer fees.

The credit unions near me denied me because I am self employed

Hrm, something's weird there because I'm self employed and opened one at a credit union without issue.

You have to make sure you have no transactions pending from PayPal before you close it!
If you close your account before everything goes through your bank, PayPal won't let you get rid of the bank from your account because it's waiting for money, and you'll have to wait until PayPal is done retrying a couple times because the bank didn't give the money it said it would.
I just use PayPal to pay for things and send money, so I always have a zero balance. Because I thought the transaction was done, I closed my bank account to open a new one somewhere else, then this happened, and I got a negative PayPal balance afterwards, a week or two later.

you can open a paypal without a bank account, or alot of information.
people can send you cash and you can use it on goods ebay,gift cards, ect

Source: tried it myself

Try US bank
I have an account with them and I have no monthly fees whatsoever. All I have to do is have a credit card with them (Don't even have to use it and are not charged a monthly/yearly fee for having it) And with it I get a couple of accounts that I can use for checking and savings. Overall I have had no complaints whatsoever with them!