Canadian Bank Account

[butchdiamond]

Does anybody know if it's possible for a non-Canadian to open a Canadian bank account and put money into it before arriving in the country? Is there any particular bank that you would reccommend for a basic current account?

Thanks

[Sjoerd Bakker]

I deal with anumber of banks and just from checking with Bank of Montreal site www.bmo.com it says that to open an account you must be a resident of Canada.
I assume from this that all banks , running by the same federal rules . require residency.
However, I wonder why you should need an account here. If you have money in a bank in the country where you live you should also have a modern bank card for that account and it should have the ability to give you access to your money from any bank machine anywhere on the planet ( within restrictions from bank to bank machine of course)
Hence you already have your entire bank deposits at your disposal if you come to Canada.
Should you decide that you will live here then it can later be possible to get an account and transfer your money.

[docsherlock]

Yes, it is possible.
suggest you contact Royal Bank of Canada - you can do this on the internet.

SW

[butchdiamond]

Thanks Sjoerd. When they say "resident" does that mean permenant or temporary?

Originally Posted by Sjoerd Bakker

However, I wonder why you should need an account here. If you have money in a bank in the country where you live you should also have a modern bank card for that account and it should have the ability to give you access to your money from any bank machine anywhere on the planet...

I am applying for a work visa for Canada for late next year and I have been told that I have to have a Canadian account to get paid when I work there. I can wait until I arrive to set an account up but, of course, I won't be a permenant resident - I'm only staying for 6 to 12 months. Do you think this will be a problem?

[MikeS]

(Sorry just read your last post that you're there for a few months and need for work!)

If you're from the UK, get a Nationwide Current A/c. It doesn't charge to take out cash abroad from ATMs. I just transfered money every few weeks into mine using internet banking. I also had a RBS a/c so I had the choice of Visa or Maestro, some ATMs only accepted one of the cards. Oh, and having a £500 overdraft facility too as it helps when you go over.

That way, when someone copies your card and steals some cash (they did), as long as you keep the balance fairly low, you won't lose much. I had to wait till I got home before I could make a claim but I got the cash back no problems.

[butchdiamond]

Originally Posted by Docsherlock

Yes, it is possible.
suggest you contact Royal Bank of Canada - you can do this on the internet.

SW

Thanks, I'll give that a try.

[butchdiamond]

Originally Posted by MikeS

If you're from the UK, get a Nationwide Current A/c. It doesn't charge to take out cash abroad from ATMs. I just transfered money every few weeks into mine using internet banking. I also had a RBS a/c so I had the choice of Visa or Maestro, some ATMs only accepted one of the cards. Oh, and having a £500 overdraft facility too as it helps when you go over.

That way, when someone copies your card and steals some cash (they did), as long as you keep the balance fairly low, you won't lose much. I had to wait till I got home before I could make a claim but I got the cash back no problems.

Thanks Mike, but I need the account for money to go in, not come out - I'm going to be working there for a while and need a local account to get paid. Thanks for the tip though.

(Sorry Mike, I've just noticed you noticing me!)

[dirtydeeds]

Like the Doc said, you should be able to start an account.
Along with Bank of Montreal and Royal Bank of Canada, also try
TD Canada Trust
Capital City Savings
ING
Scotia Bank
Hong Kong Bank of Canada

There are probably a couple more, but those seem to be common in the west.

You can contact all online, probably set up an account as well, minus your signature.

[olebiker]

I don't think ING would be what you want. You need another Canadian bank account to transfer money to and from this bank. I think RBC that has already been suggested is your best bet.

[butchdiamond]

I've been in contact with a couple of Canadian banks and they seem to say that I can open an account without being a Canadian citizen, but I need to go into a branch personally with I.D. and proof of local address (temp or perm) etc to set everything up. So it looks like itll have to wait until I arrive, which isn't for a while yet.

Thanks folks.

[Fenian]

try TD-Canada Trust or Scotia Bank or Bank of Hong Kong. All seem to have foreign subsiduries. Seriously though, you only need your Bank card from your bank and you cann access your bank from your country. I travels in places like Thailand and Japan and such and all I did was take my bank card from Canada, and use the Bank machines in those countries. I think you will be able to do the same here if you have a card that has the right info on it. I think we generally use INTERAC and PLUS systems. You can see if your card has it on the back.
If you are still having concerns msg me, and I can ask a friend that is a branch manager to confirm.
gary