If Someone Sends Funds to a Previously-Used Address, Will I Still Receive it?

[Alphakilo]

This is a question that is a bit confusing for me, and I thought to ask it here. We know how essential it is not to reuse addresses for the sake of privacy and security. The advice is to generate a new address for new transactions. But then here is the confusing aspect: if my wallet automatically generates a new address for each transaction, will the Bitcoin previously sent to me on a different address be transferred to the new address just generated? For example, if someone is going to send me funds to a previously-used address, will I still receive them? Where will they end up?

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[Findingnemo]

Addresses never expire, and you will receive funds.

If you are talking about exchanges, then it depends on what exchange's policy because different exchanges have different policies, for example in Local bitcoin's wallet when I was using the funds would be received and credited to your balance only for 12 months from the date you received it's first transaction and any transaction made after will not be credited to your account whereas exchanges like Binance offers only one address that eliminates this confusion.

[Zaguru12]

You can receive bitcoin on one address for as long as you like. Ideally bitcoin are not stored on your addresses but rather on the blockchain which can only be accessed or spend by the corresponding private key. Your wallet actually generates new address whenever an existing one new one has received some coins but it is still you that can pick any of the addresses you like the person to send the coins too. At the end all the bitcoin in those different addresses derived from a particular private key will sum to give you the total bitcoin on that particular wallet. No need to send bitcoin already received on old address to a new address on that same wallet there is no privacy there.

Also you can chose to separate the bitcoins from each addresses when sending them out by using the the coin control feature if the wallet supports it. For a example you don’t want to mix a coin sent into address one and two with address three, you can use coin control when spending from the addresses you want them to mix with

[$weetne$$]

For example, if someone is going to send me funds to a previously-used address, will I still receive them? Where will they end up?

Yes you'll still receive the Bitcoin because Bitcoin address never expires, they will end up in your wallet as all the address are generated from your wallet public key. All your address are link to your wallet therefore you don't have to be scared of losing them. Only on custodial platform that you can lose your Bitcoin when it's sent to a previously changed address. Some custodial wallets or exchange won't assist you to recover the Bitcoin but on all non custodial wallet you can receive you Bitcoin with any address.

[Charles-Tim]

For example, if someone is going to send me funds to a previously-used address, will I still receive them? Where will they end up?

Yes you'll still receive the Bitcoin because Bitcoin address never expires, they will end up in your wallet as all the address are generated Only on non-custodial platform that you can lose your Bitcoin when it's sent to a previously changed address.

If you are referring to noncustodial wallet, you will still receive the coin if the coin is sent to one of the used change addresses. Be it change address or receiving address, you can use and reuse the address if you do not care about privacy.

[DaveF]

Just to tag on, there are some ONLINE CUSTODIAL services THAT YOU SHOULD NOT BE USING that only allow 1 transaction per address.
If you (or anyone) send anything else to that address then they keep it. Full stop.

Just a heads up on that. Not your keys, not your coins.

Never ever give out addresses that you do not have the private keys to. Paying 100 extra TX fess because all coins come into your control before you send them elsewhere is better then loosing that 1 TX because oops, that address is no longer valid.

Same with you sending out of exchanges to someplace else. Exchange -> you -> wherever. Or you can wind up having this happen to you: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=5476264.0

-Dave

[crwth]

Usually, the automated new wallets are for the following things:

• Enhanced Security
• Increeased Privacy

I could only think of a few reasons why you would use previously used addresses:

• Preventing errors (no sending to wrong addresses)
• Organizing the addresses with how you are receiving them and assign applications (savings, business, etc)

As long as you follow all the members who have posted before me, you could be safe in terms of reusing your address. Make sure you are in control.