Bank Statement Translations?

[silo66]

Hello,

For my financial documents, I got an official letter from my bank which has my current balance on it along with an official document showing authorized signature samples (called a signature circular).

They couldn't provide me with a document that shows my average of the past 6 months so instead I got a document that shows the breakdown, the ins and outs that occurred within the last 6 months. Except for the letter showing my current balance, none of these documents are in English. My question is, should I get these document translated by a certified translator as well? Or can I provide my own translation since the numbers are self-explanatory. Or do I need to provide a translation at all?

Additionally I might be able to get these statements from their website in English but they won't be stamped. What do you think is the best option here?

 

[silo66]

Got it. I think I will use online prints in English since the numbers match the official letter I got from the bank.

Another question is since the statements from the past 6 months are not an official requirement (at least it's not on my documents checklist), do I need to black out individual transactions and only include the balance on the last day of each month? Like I said, I'm only providing them because my bank letter doesn't have the past 6 months' average on it. I've seen in a few other threads that transactions are private and should not be shown.

 

[Asivad Anac]

Got it. I think I will use online prints in English since the numbers match the official letter I got from the bank.

Another question is since the statements from the past 6 months are not an official requirement (at least it's not on my documents checklist), do I need to black out individual transactions and only include the balance on the last day of each month? Like I said, I'm only providing them because my bank letter doesn't have the past 6 months' average on it. I've seen in a few other threads that transactions are private and should not be shown.

The rationale behind asking 6 months average balance is because CIC recognizes the sanctity of your private transactions - they are not keen on seeing 6 months of bank statements. Explain to your bank that you need to provide average balance figures ONLY to prove that there hasn't been unreasonably large credit transactions into your bank account in the last 6 months - that's all CIC needs (and why they refused my application as well because of the suspicion that the funds were borrowed in nature).


If your bank can still not do this, ask them to mention closing/opening balances of each of the last 6 months in their letter. That would suffice - you wouldn't need to attach 6 month bank statements at all. If there are any unreasonably large credits into your account (because of gift, inheritance, loan repayment, whatever), the onus is completely on you to prove conclusively that these do not indicate the presence of borrowed funds. You do NOT need to submit 6 month bank statements - that is just 1 way of proving that you don't have borrowed funds.

Hope this clarifies. All the best!

 

[silo66]

The rationale behind asking 6 months average balance is because CIC recognizes the sanctity of your private transactions - they are not keen on seeing 6 months of bank statements. Explain to your bank that you need to provide average balance figures ONLY to prove that there hasn't been unreasonably large credit transactions into your bank account in the last 6 months - that's all CIC needs (and why they refused my application as well because of the suspicion that the funds were borrowed in nature).


If your bank can still not do this, ask them to mention closing/opening balances of each of the last 6 months in their letter. That would suffice - you wouldn't need to attach 6 month bank statements at all. If there are any unreasonably large credits into your account (because of gift, inheritance, loan repayment, whatever), the onus is completely on you to prove conclusively that these do not indicate the presence of borrowed funds. You do NOT need to submit 6 month bank statements - that is just 1 way of proving that you don't have borrowed funds.

Hope this clarifies. All the best!

Thank you very much for the detailed response Asivad. The thing is there HAS been a large transaction from my family this past week which is a gift that will cover the expenses of the immigration process. In fact, the foreign currency account the money was transferred to was just opened last week. I'm already providing a detailed letter that this is a gift not to be paid back (with account & transaction information etc.). As a result, my 6 month average will be well below the required amount by the CIC even if I manage to get a document that has my 6 month average on it which is why I'm on the fence as to what I should do. I shall ask the bank again today if they can provide more details in the letter. :/

 

[Asivad Anac]

Thank you very much for the detailed response Asivad. The thing is there HAS been a large transaction from my family this past week which is a gift that will cover the expenses of the immigration process. In fact, the foreign currency account the money was transferred to was just opened last week. I'm already providing a detailed letter that this is a gift not to be paid back (with account & transaction information etc.). As a result, my 6 month average will be well below the required amount by the CIC even if I manage to get a document that has my 6 month average on it which is why I'm on the fence as to what I should do. I shall ask the bank again today if they can provide more details in the letter. :/

I completely understand this - been there done that.

In your case, attaching the 6 month bank statement would make zero difference to your chances. Get your bank to mention the opening/closing balances starting from March '15 onward in the letter - they shouldn't refuse such a simple request from a customer. That letter, the gift letter (which mentions all possible transaction details pertaining to the gift), last week's bank transaction clearly showing this credit (and a reference number which matches the one mentioned in the gift letter) along with an LOE which connects all the dots together will ensure a smooth passage.

All the best!

 

[silo66]

I completely understand this - been there done that.

In your case, attaching the 6 month bank statement would make zero difference to your chances. Get your bank to mention the opening/closing balances starting from March '15 onward in the letter - they shouldn't refuse such a simple request from a customer. That letter, the gift letter (which mentions all possible transaction details pertaining to the gift), last week's bank transaction clearly showing this credit (and a reference number which matches the one mentioned in the gift letter) along with an LOE which connects all the dots together will ensure a smooth passage.

All the best!

Sigh. I just got back from the bank and asked them for a document either including my 6 month's average or one that lists my balance at the beginning of each month. They're adamant that no such document exists and they cannot provide anything for me.

I guess I'm going to have to submit my account activity with the transactions blacked out, provide a detailed letter of explanation, and hope for the best.

 

[Asivad Anac]

Sigh. I just got back from the bank and asked them for a document either including my 6 month's average or one that lists my balance at the beginning of each month. They're adamant that no such document exists and they cannot provide anything for me.

I guess I'm going to have to submit my account activity with the transactions blacked out, provide a detailed letter of explanation, and hope for the best.

Black out everything except for each month's opening and closing balance line items. And explain the sudden influx of gift funds. That's the best you can do and would hopefully suffice.

 

[silo66]

Black out everything except for each month's opening and closing balance line items. And explain the sudden influx of gift funds. That's the best you can do and would hopefully suffice.

Thank you, that's what I'll do. I'll post an update here as to how things go. Fingers crossed.

 

[silo66]

I got my COPR as of yesterday so I wanted to update this thread in case anyone else faces a similar situation as mine.

Like I said, I couldn't get the 6 month average from my bank, and not only that, my main source of funds was a gift from my family that had been in my account only for about 2 months.

Here's what I ended up submitting in my application for financial proof:
- A bank letter in English with a detailed summary of all my accounts
- A letter from my family explaining the gift funds need not be returned
- A receipt for the transaction
- A letter of explanation explaining the influx of gift funds

I did not submit any extra bank statements and I was not asked for any additional financial documents during the process. With that said, I've read here about similar submissions getting rejected so I may've just gotten lucky. In the end, the main thing I found out reading through these threads during this process is that each application's unique so take everything you read with a grain of salt. And keep a positive outlook.