Canadians can access bank accounts costing no more than $4 per month at 14 federally regulated financial institutions, including the Big Six banks, the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) announced Monday.
Additionally, no-fee accounts are available to students, those under 18, guaranteed income supplement recipients and beneficiaries of a registered disability savings account.
The new offering follows an agreement the federal government and the FCAC negotiated with the banks, and was announced in the 2024 fall economic statement.
Under the agreement, those eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) certificate and social assistance recipients from select provincial or territorial programs may also qualify for no-fee accounts.
The following federally regulated financial institutions are part of the program
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- Alterna Bank
- Bank of China (Canada)
- BMO
- CIBC
- Hana Bank Canada
- ICICI Bank
- Industrial Commercial Bank of China
- Innovation Federal Credit Union
- Laurentian Bank
- National Bank
- Royal Bank of Canada
- Scotiabank
- Tangerine Bank
- TD Bank
TD Bank started offering low-cost and no-fee accounts days ahead of the deadline, while RBC introduced them back in August.
These financial institutions must prominently display information about low-cost and no-fee accounts in-branch and online, and train staff about these account options. The FCAC will monitor their compliance, it said in a release.
The FCAC has published an online account comparison tool to help Canadians find no-cost and low-fee accounts they may be eligible for.