Should we exchange U.S dollars to Canada $ in U.S before departure?

[jerry2121]

Hi Seniors, Should we exchange our U.S cash to Canadian dollars before flying to canada for landing or should we present the U.S dollar as it is to Canada immig officers when asked and eventually exchange it at the Pearson Airport canada? Which is better for newcome with PR? thanks!

 

[pv]

i did it in USA only.
Why you want to make exchange in Canada Airport, any specific reason

Immigiration may like to see in C$ only

 

[rocky272727]

Hi Seniors, Should we exchange our U.S cash to Canadian dollars before flying to canada for landing or should we present the U.S dollar as it is to Canada immig officers when asked and eventually exchange it at the Pearson Airport canada? Which is better for newcome with PR? thanks!

USD cash will be accepted its hard currency

 

[jes_ON]

Pearson is one of the WORST place to exchange large sums of money (bad rate). You can exchange a small amount before you come (or at the airport) for immediate incidentals, but for a large sum, you can wait until you deposit it into a bank account (no need to bring cash, for that matter, you can do transfers as/when needed).

As for proof of funds, it can be CAD or USD, no difference, and again, you don't actually have to carry the funds with you - just the documentation.

 

[jerry2121]

Pearson is one of the WORST place to exchange large sums of money (bad rate). You can exchange a small amount before you come (or at the airport) for immediate incidentals, but for a large sum, you can wait until you deposit it into a bank account (no need to bring cash, for that matter, you can do transfers as/when needed).

As for proof of funds, it can be CAD or USD, no difference, and again, you don't actually have to carry the funds with you - just the documentation.

Thank you all for ur input! I'm considering opening account with ScotiaBank here in the U.S if possible to enable transfers...

 

[smilepmendoza]

I dont know if this might be helpful but the value of US Dollars is really low this time. So exchange you local currency to Canadian dollars instead. My bestfriend who is now in Canada exchanged her $US100 to Canadian and she only got $CAN97 in exchange.

 

[jes_ON]

Thank you all for ur input! I'm considering opening account with ScotiaBank here in the U.S if possible to enable transfers...

I'm not a big fan of Scotiabank, even tho I am with them I plan to switch, probably to RBC, as soon as I know I'm staying longer (get that PR). The reason I started with Scotiabank - I have a Bank of America account in the US, and they have an agreement where you can use a BOA card at a Scotia ATM and vice-versa to withdraw local currency, no extra fees. (That was actually pretty handy when I first moved here. Now the money has to go the other direction, so it's not much help.) Other than that, there's no relationship between the two that facilitate transfers.

RBC has a presence in both countries, and if you had an account in both countries, you used to be able to transfer between accounts - I don't think that's true any longer, and there is no easy (inexpensive, online) way to transfer money between the two countries - go figure. I have resorted to a an online currency exchange service (xetrade) and other than the time lag for transfers, have been pretty happy with it. I know I get better rates than a bank would give, it accommodates both large and small sum transfers...

 

[jerry2121]

How do u operate the Xetrade online? Do you have to register with them to get the exchange rate? I'm asking because in the future I may prefare to use them to exchange my currency to U.S dollars when travelling to homeland.
Also, Would you suggest I open account with RBC or scotia as a newcomer?
Thanks!

 

[jes_ON]

for xetrade, all the info you need is online. Yes, you need to register first. http://www.xe.com/fx/
Note that it's only for electronic transactions, you won't get hard currency from them.

I can't tell you which bank you will prefer. Scotiabank might very well treat you well once you have PR. But not until then, not if you're here on a temporary work permit - as far as they're concerned, they have no way to tell whether or not you're a criminal, and treat you as suspect. (At least, in my town...). I honestly don't know if RBC is "better", just know I'm fed up with Scotia.

 

[jerry2121]

for xetrade, all the info you need is online. Yes, you need to register first. http://www.xe.com/fx/
Note that it's only for electronic transactions, you won't get hard currency from them.

I can't tell you which bank you will prefer. Scotiabank might very well treat you well once you have PR. But not until then, not if you're here on a temporary work permit - as far as they're concerned, they have no way to tell whether or not you're a criminal, and treat you as suspect. (At least, in my town...). I honestly don't know if RBC is "better", just know I'm fed up with Scotia.

tnx! At least through electronic transactions, u can always get money from your bank when its transfered right? It will be worth a try..