Commitment on Low-Cost and No-Cost Accounts

Effective date: December 1, 2025

Purpose

The objective of this Commitment is to ensure Canadians have access to modern basic banking services at a nominal cost through low-cost bank accounts and that certain groups have these same services at no cost. The Commitment represents the minimum service level for low-cost and no-cost banking services.

Accessibility

• Signatories agree to prominently display information about the availability of low-cost and no-cost accounts in-branch and on-line with information on how to access the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) Account Comparison Tool to compare bank accounts.
• Low-cost and no-cost accounts will be clearly listed with other account offerings and reference will be made to the Low-Cost Account Commitment in the account descriptions so that consumers are aware of the account offerings, which are linked to the Commitment.
• Staff will be trained and be aware of low-cost and no-cost accounts.
• Signatories acknowledge that information provided to consumers on low-cost and no-cost accounts must be accurate and use language that is clear, simple and not misleading.

This Commitment should be applied in conjunction with all applicable legislation, regulations and relevant FCAC guidance (e.g., Appropriate Products and Services for Banks and Authorized Foreign Banks, Access to basic banking services: refusal to open a retail deposit account on the basis that it will be used for illegal or fraudulent purposes, etc.)

Monthly fee

• All Canadians are eligible for a low-cost chequing account (“low-cost account”) at the cost of no more than $4.00 per month.
• The groups below may be eligible for the waiving of the $4.00 monthly fee noted above (“no-cost account”) subject to document validation presented by the consumer when opening an account or as may be required to re-validate continued eligibility on a periodic basis. Signatories agree to make available a no-cost account to the mandatory groups listed below and agree to make available a no-cost account to 1 of the 3 additional optional groups eligible for a no-cost account listed below^{Footnote i} :

• Mandatory groups eligible for a no-cost account:
  • seniors receiving the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS)
  • Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) beneficiaries
  • youth (Canadians aged 18 and under)
  • students
  • newcomers to Canada^{Footnote ii}  (for 1st year in Canada)

• Optional groups eligible for a no-cost account:
  • Indigenous peoples^{Footnote iii} 
  • Canadians receiving social assistance payments from select provincial or territorial programs^{Footnote iv} 
  • recipients of the Disability Tax Credit (DTC)^{Footnote v} 

• Signatories will indicate to consumers of low-cost and no-cost accounts the availability of interest-bearing savings account options should they exist at their financial institutions at no cost and that they can be linked to the low-cost and no-cost chequing accounts.

Minimum features of low-cost and no-cost chequing accounts

• A minimum of 12 debit transactions per month. Signatories will identify the types of debit transactions covered, which would include one or more of the following types of debit transactions:
  • debit card purchases
  • bill payments
  • pre-authorized debits
  • cheques drawn on the account
  • cash withdrawals
  • electronic fund transfers (eg. Interac e-transfer)
  • in-branch transactions

• plus a minimum of either:
  • 6 additional debit transactions per month already included above, or
  • 6 additional debit transactions per month not included above. For example, this could include:
    • select point of sale transactions (such as transit)
    • debit purchases made online
    • account transfers 

for a total of a minimum 18 debit transactions per month.

For low-cost and no-cost chequing accounts

• free digital monthly statements ^{Footnote vi} 
• cheque writing privileges ^{Footnote vi} 
• no minimum balance
• no account switching fees with the same signatory
• no extra charge for deposits, debit card, pre-authorized payment forms
• no extra charge for monthly printed statements, and cheque image return or on-line cheque image viewing^{Footnote vi}  
• allow for joint accounts if the situation is warranted (e.g., married/common-law couple etc.)^{Footnote vi}  
• other services are available for a reasonable fee

Indeterminate

The Commitment is indeterminate and as low-cost and no-cost banking needs change, signatories will expand services to meet the needs of consumers.

Implementation

Signatories will bring the Commitment into force no later than December 1, 2025.