New Scotia Bank Account from within Canada?

[theoptimist]

So Im just researching which bank I should open an account with when I fly out to my school in 2 weeks...(currently enjoying Toronto ) So far for me it seems Scotia bank offers exactly what I want however I'd like to know if any international students have had any experience in opening and account with them aswell as the necessary requirements.

Thanks!!

P.s. Hope no one will confuse this with GIC etc as I did not apply for that before coming here.

 

[xecuter]

So Im just researching which bank I should open an account with when I fly out to my school in 2 weeks...(currently enjoying Toronto ) So far for me it seems Scotia bank offers exactly what I want however I'd like to know if any international students have had any experience in opening and account with them aswell as the necessary requirements.

Thanks!!

P.s. Hope no one will confuse this with GIC etc as I did not apply for that before coming here.

I would highly recommend you open a bank account with BMO Bank of Montreal.

All five big banks seem to offer the same student package for your daily bank account needs but what is most important is the bank that will be willing to issue a credit card for you to help establish and build your personal credit file in Canada.

As you may already know establishing a credit file is one of the most important things you will need to do in Canada as it will ease many things for you in the future i.e. renting, to mortgage to car loan...etc

My personal experience with BMO Bank of Montreal has been amazing. The first day I arrived, I opened a student account with them and I remember depositing a $25k draft and $5k in cash and was handed over my debit card instantly.

A couple of months later I applied for a credit card on their website and they issued me a $1k limit Mastercard that was unsecured. A few months later I requested an increase and was bumped up to $2k and now my card has a $15k limit.

Also the atmosphere inside the branch is very warm and you will feel like your branch staff are your small family.

Of course it is up to you but I just thought I would share my experience.

Good luck on your choice.

Cheers

 

[msladybug]

@Xecuter: I am thinking of opening an account b/w Scotiabank and BMO but based on your experience it seems like you trust BMO.
I have a draft of CAD$9,000 which I will deposit in a bank in Canada once I land there. What were the bank's requirements for to open a bank account with them? And what was the type of your bank account?

 

[theoptimist]

I would highly recommend you open a bank account with BMO Bank of Montreal.

All five big banks seem to offer the same student package for your daily bank account needs but what is most important is the bank that will be willing to issue a credit card for you to help establish and build your personal credit file in Canada.

As you may already know establishing a credit file is one of the most important things you will need to do in Canada as it will ease many things for you in the future i.e. renting, to mortgage to car loan...etc

My personal experience with BMO Bank of Montreal has been amazing. The first day I arrived, I opened a student account with them and I remember depositing a $25k draft and $5k in cash and was handed over my debit card instantly.

A couple of months later I applied for a credit card on their website and they issued me a $1k limit Mastercard that was unsecured. A few months later I requested an increase and was bumped up to $2k and now my card has a $15k limit.

Also the atmosphere inside the branch is very warm and you will feel like your branch staff are your small family.

Of course it is up to you but I just thought I would share my experience.

Good luck on your choice.

Cheers

Thanks for the great advice! But I wonder if I can get a credit card in a few months as I won't be depositing large sums of money in my account like you!...Do you think maybe I should opt for a secured card maybe between 100-$400 just to get my credit score rolling? I wont really be using it as I prefer debit cards and know the havoc mis-managing your credit card and betting a bad score can wreck on your future especially when you want to buy a car, house etc.

 

[sabby2612]

So Im just researching which bank I should open an account with when I fly out to my school in 2 weeks...(currently enjoying Toronto ) So far for me it seems Scotia bank offers exactly what I want however I'd like to know if any international students have had any experience in opening and account with them aswell as the necessary requirements.

Thanks!!

P.s. Hope no one will confuse this with GIC etc as I did not apply for that before coming here.

Scotia isn't a bad choice. They also give you a credit card with a limit of 500 CAD. Though these days, some banks like TD, RBC don't issue unsecured cards to students (they issue only secured cards with deposits against cards).

BOM isn't a bad choice either. But not really sure if even now they issue unsecured credit cards to International students.

The only drawback with Scotia I noticed is, not many branches or ATMs, TD is good in this case. So if there is a scotia ATM around your college/residence, then you can opt for scotia.

Welcome to Canada.

 

[Nandini09]

I went to Scotiabank today n they said dnt giv credit cards until n unless I have SIN.Is it so??

 

[xecuter]

@ Xecuter: I am thinking of opening an account b/w Scotiabank and BMO but based on your experience it seems like you trust BMO.
I have a draft of CAD$9,000 which I will deposit in a bank in Canada once I land there. What were the bank's requirements for to open a bank account with them? And what was the type of your bank account?

They will need two pieces of ID to verify your identity and open your bank account. That could be your passport as a primary ID and either your TRV or study permit as your secondary ID.

Just bear in mind that a draft will need around 30 days to clear and funds become available. So plan accordingly and ensure you have enough cash for a month.

I think all five big banks offer similar student packages. I remember my student account package with BMO was unlimited transactions and was all free of charge if you maintained a monthly balance of $2k. If your monthly balance drops below $2k there is a $10 monthly fee.

You can visit their website and look for their current student package.

I also know they have another type of account where you pay a monthly fee of only $4 regardless of your balance and you get 10 free transactions per month. (Deposits don't count-only debits).

I think they also have a pay as you go account where you get charged $1 per debit transaction.

I have nothing against other banks as I haven't dealt with any of them. I just thought I would share my experience with BMO.

Good luck

 

[xecuter]

Thanks for the great advice! But I wonder if I can get a credit card in a few months as I won't be depositing large sums of money in my account like you!...Do you think maybe I should opt for a secured card maybe between 100-$400 just to get my credit score rolling? I wont really be using it as I prefer debit cards and know the havoc mis-managing your credit card and betting a bad score can wreck on your future especially when you want to buy a car, house etc.

I don't think there will be a problem getting a secured credit card which is a great alternative to get going right away with building your credit.

You should be fine.

 

[Nandini09]

I don't think there will be a problem getting a secured credit card which is a great alternative to get going right away with building your credit.

You should be fine.

They say they can give a credit card only if I hav SIN.since I hav landed only yest..I cn get sin only aftr 6 months. What can be done for this?

 

[sabby2612]

@Nandini, now that's a surprise. Well, they usually ask only for passport (study permit) and college letter. that's it. I was wondering, by any chance, did you purchase GIC too?

And yes it's not a bad idea to even start with a secured card (where you deposit against your credit card) and start your credit history. 6 months, and yes you have plenty of options to have credit cards from other banks too!

 

[humdrumdum]

@Sabby: just wondering though, is a secured card like a prepaid credit card?

 

[sabby2612]

@ Sabby: just wondering though, is a secured card like a prepaid credit card?

exactly... so what I think and believe; unless no bank is ready to give you credit card as your credit history in the respective country is pretty new, you should go for this option just to build a credit history (credit score) and this should be the last option. But then I heard President's choice is quite generous in giving credit cards and that too with good limit.

So assuming, no bank is giving a credit card to say mr. X, only in that case mr. X should go for secured credit card (with deposit) and build credit score and wait for just 6 months, no bank would say no to you (not most of the banks, once you have credit history even of 6 months).

 

[humdrumdum]

@Sabby: Interesting, we have prepaid credit cards here in the Philippines but it isn't linked directly to a bank account, this is interesting to know Thank you for explaining!

exactly... so what I think and believe; unless no bank is ready to give you credit card as your credit history in the respective country is pretty new, you should go for this option just to build a credit history (credit score) and this should be the last option. But then I heard President's choice is quite generous in giving credit cards and that too with good limit.

So assuming, no bank is giving a credit card to say mr. X, only in that case mr. X should go for secured credit card (with deposit) and build credit score and wait for just 6 months, no bank would say no to you (not most of the banks, once you have credit history even of 6 months).

 

[theoptimist]

Thanks for the responses guys. I think I'm going to opt for the secured card first. Many people may be excited to go straight for an unsecured card but its easy to go crazy with those things and very important thing people must know is that it is very easy to damage your credit score but it can take several years to rebuild it! So rather start small and "graduate" onto bigger cards/limits when you are confident in your financial planning and habits. From what I've heard having a bad score here will put you at a great disadavantage in the future whether you're trying to get a new phone plan, buying a car, house or even trying to get a loan from the bank for personal use or maybe starting a small business!

Also, for those that don't understand secured cards, yes you will have to deposit an amount against your card (Scotia says 120% of credit limit). So if you deposit say $600 your credit limit is $500. HOWEVER, you do not have access to this money. It is a form of security and you will only get it back after some time when they are satisfied with how you are handeling yourself.