Many Canadian banks let you deposit cheques online instantly via mobile app by signing the cheque, taking a photo of it with your smartphone and entering a few details—all without visiting a local branch. Cheques may take days to clear, but some banks offer mobile cheque deposits with instant funds availability in Canada.
Most of these banks let you access mobile cheque funds immediately or, at the very least, within the same day. You typically don’t need to pay a fee for mobile cheque deposits.
| Bank | Mobile deposit funds availability | Get started |
|---|---|---|
BMO | Under $1,500: Available instantly $1,500 or more: May be held for up to 8 business days | |
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RBC | Instant if deposited before 6PM on business days. Some cheques may be held for up to 5 business days. | |
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Scotiabank | Instantly available, although Scotiabank may place a discretionary hold for up to 5 business days. | |
EQ Bank | Up to $1,500: Available 5 business days later Over $1,500: Available 8 business days later | |
Tangerine | Instant but could be held for up to 5 business days. | |
Simplii Financial | Usually available instantly, but Simplii may place a discretionary hold for up to 5 business days. | |
TD | Instantly available. At TD’s discretion, a hold may be placed on funds for up to 6 business days. | |
CIBC | Instantly available. At CIBC’s discretion, a hold may be placed on funds for up to 4 business days. | |
National Bank of Canada | Some funds are available instantly. Amounts up to $1,500 may be held for up to 5 business days, and amounts over $1,500 may be held for up to 8 business days. | |
There are typically 7 steps for how to cash a cheque instantly:
At that point, all or a portion of the cheque will typically have been deposited into your account instantly and available for immediate access. The whole process to complete a mobile cheque deposit typically takes only around two minutes.
You can read our full guide to how to deposit a cheque online for more details about each step and for a step-by-step picture guide outlining the whole process.
While most banks and credit unions in Canada let you deposit cheques by mobile app, not all do. Here are just a few financial institutions don’t offer cheque services or require cheque deposits the traditional way—via teller or ATM.
Yes, it is possible to cash cheques online instantly, if by “cash” you mean deposit. If you want physical cash in hand, you have two options:
There may be a third option available depending on your bank, where you can deposit the cheque directly through your bank’s ATM machine and then immediately withdraw the cash.
Between all of these options, it’s definitely possible to cash cheques online instantly in Canada—whether you’re looking for cash in hand or to have it deposited in your account.
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) has federally mandated that all banks must provide access to the first $100 of any cheque you deposit immediately if you deposited the cheque in person or within one business day if deposited the cheque through a mobile app or ATM.
Mobile cheque deposits typically appear in your account immediately, and in many cases, you can access funds right away. But banks may sometimes hold deposits for one to five (or more) business days to make sure cheques clear and don’t bounce.
If a bank advertises “instant” cheque deposits, its definition of “instant” is likely to vary. Some banks consider instant availability as funds cleared within that same business day, while others consider instant availability as making your funds available within minutes of depositing.
Depending on the bank and the cheque amount, most cheques clear within one day up to several business days. Depositing a cheque at a physical branch is typically the fastest way to clear funds. Depositing via ATM or mobile app will take longer.
For federally regulated financial institutions like banks, Canadian dollar cheques drawn from Canadian bank accounts can’t be held for longer than eight days. Provincially and territorially regulated financial institutions like credit unions may have different policies.
Cheques aren’t the only way to move money between bank accounts. Faster—and more modern transfer methods—include Interac e-Transfers and using a dedicated money transfer service like Wise, Western Union.
Beyond the Big 6 Banks in Canada, there are many online-only banks that provide immediate funds availability in Canada, including Simplii Financial, EQ Bank and Tangerine.
That said, both online banks and banks with physical branches in Canada usually offer mobile banking apps that enable online cheque deposits with instant (or nearly instant) access to funds. You can also typically sign up for an account in mere minutes using a bank’s mobile app. Check out account options above.
In Canada, mobile cheque deposits may be available right away but can take up to five business days or more to process, verify and clear. In some cases, only a portion of the cheque may clear immediately, and the rest clears the next business day.
The speed can also depend on the amount that’s deposited. For example, by law the first $100 must be available immediately if you deposit a cheque in person at a branch or by the next business day for other cheque deposit methods like ATMs and mobile apps.
Mobile cheque deposit may also be your only way to deposit a cheque with a digital bank. Some banks also allow you to mail cheques, but that would likely take longer than a mobile cheque deposit, thanks to the speed of snail mail.
The timing of when the cheque was deposited can create delays. Some banks like RBC may allow a cheque to clear the same day if deposited before 6PM on business days. If you attempt to deposit the cheque after that time, you’ll likely have to wait until the next day for it to clear.
Another likely explanation for a delay could be a lack of verification. If you’ve deposited a large amount—or an amount you don’t normally deposit—the bank may need time to verify the security of the transaction and ensure that the sending account has enough funds to clear the cheque.
Other common delay causes can include:
Yes, many banks in Canada offer ATM cheque deposits, where customers can deposit their cheques entirely through their bank’s ATM just like they would deposit cash through the ATM, without having to visit a teller. Banks that offer ATM cheque deposits include Scotiabank, RBC, TD and Tangerine (at Scotiabank ATMs).
Yes, it is possible to deposit a a cheque online without a bank account in Canada, but your options will be mostly limited to cheque-cashing services, like Money Mart and Speedy Cash, who typically charge a fee for the service. Some retailers, like grocery stores, will occasionally cash a cheque for its customers for a small fee as well.
Many banks in Canada also use their mobile cheque deposit process to support deposits of other types of money transfer methods, like bank drafts, money orders or certified cheques. The process is typically the same as required to deposit a standard cheque instantly through the bank’s mobile app. The only caveat for these other types of deposits is that the bank that issues the deposit usually needs to be Canadian-based as well.
If you’re with a bank or credit union that doesn’t support mobile cheque deposit, there are other ways to deposit a cheque to get instant access to the funds.
For example, you could visit your local bank branch to cash the cheque and ask the teller to give you all or any part of the cheque in cash immediately. Or you can have the entire amount deposited into your account for immediately access through your debit card or for e-transfer.
Alternatively, like we mentioned above, some ATMs in Canada support cheque deposits entirely through the ATM. Once the cheque is deposited you can immediate withdraw the amount in cash if necessary.
If you’re with an online bank that doesn’t have physical branches or ATMs that support cheque deposits, then you’re best option will likely be to open a free account with a bank that supports instant mobile cheque deposits (which can usually be done online in only a few minutes), deposit the cheque into that account and then e-transfer the funds into your original account.
Mobile cheque deposits seem to be the norm for most Canadians. The results of our most recent Finder: Consumer Sentiment Survey showed that only one out of every ten Canadians primarily rely on visiting a bank branch to manage their banking needs, likely including depositing cheques.
Instead, the vast majority of Canadians are split between primarily using their mobile banking app (48.95%) and primarily using their bank’s online portal (40.86%). That said, mobile banking still squeaks out on top as the most popular option.
Most modern banks allow mobile cheque deposits through banking apps, but not all are instant. For more account options, compare the best chequing accounts and the best high-interest savings accounts.
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