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Online money management, mobile banking and digital payments are normal in the financial world, but there are still situations when you may need to resort to old fashioned means of handling money. Enter: cheques. But don’t be intimidated. Cheques are simpler to fill out than they look. Here’s how to write a cheque, how to read a cheque, cheque examples and the answer to the question: What do cheque numbers mean?
Writing a cheque is easier than you think. Here’s a step-by-step explanation of how to fill out a cheque.
1. Write the date in the top right corner, next to a box or line that says “Date.” Always write the same date as the date that you signed the cheque.
2. Write the recipient on the line next to “Pay to the order of.” If it’s a person, write their first and last name. If it’s a company, make sure you have the company name that’s used for payments, and only using acronyms if asked to. You can also write cash here, and that means anyone can take the cheque to the bank and take the cash from your account.
3. Write the amount in numerals. Next to the dollar sign ($) write the amount of money you want taken out of your account in numerals. If the amount is less than $1, you still need to write $0. Include the cents you want withdrawn, even if the amount is zero. Do not use the cents sign (¢), and be sure to include 2 decimals. For example, if you want to write a cheque for fifty cents, you should write $0.50, not $.50, $.5 or 50¢.
4. Write the amount in words. Although not legally required, you should spell out the dollar amount in words on the line beneath the recipient, including the cents as a fraction like 25/100 or 89/100. This helps clarify the amount you want withdrawn.
The fraction is sometimes pre-printed on cheques with a blank numerator, so all you have to do is write the cents in the blank. For amounts less than $1, write zero dollars before writing the cents. If the word dollars is already printed on the cheque, you don’t have to write it yourself. Otherwise, you should.
It’s a good idea to draw a horizontal line connecting the dollars you wrote (in words) to the cents as this makes it impossible for anyone to use that otherwise blank space to change your dollar amount.
5. Sign the cheque. In the bottom right corner there is a space for your signature. If you don’t, it won’t be valid.
6. Fill out the memo section (optional). Here, you can write what the cheque is for like rent payment, reimbursement for business expenses or security deposit. This part isn’t required, but it can remind the recipient what the purpose of the cheque is for record-keeping purposes.
A fully completed cheque should look something like the one below. Remember the memo field is optional. But make sure you remember to sign the cheque!
Tear off the cheque and keep a record for yourself. If you’re using an old school carbon-copy cheque book, tear off the top copy of the cheque to give to your recipient. The second, lighter copy is yours to keep.
If your chequebook doesn’t come with carbon copies, make sure you fill out a cheque register with the details of the transaction. Your cheque book may come with a blank register at the front or back of it or may even include stubs attached to each cheque that remain in the book after the cheques are torn out. If this isn’t the case, you can buy a register separately.
Make sure you write clearly! Avoid writing in bright or unusual colours – use dark ink, like black or blue, instead. This helps ensure that the information on the cheque is visible even if the writing has begun to fade or the paper has been scanned in as a digital image.
If you wrote the wrong amount on a cheque or are giving someone a cheque just to verify your bank account information, it’s important to make sure that no one can cash the cheque and take money out of your account. This can be done by writing VOID across the cheque. Be sure to write in clear, large letters, covering all the primary fields of the cheque.
If you want to move money from one account to another, you can write a cheque to yourself by putting your own name in the “Pay to the order of” field. Before depositing the cheque, you’ll have to endorse it by putting your signature in the appropriate field on the backside of the cheque.
Although there’s a possibility that your cheque may be rejected by the bank, most of the time this can be avoided by (1) crossing out the error with a single, horizontal line, (2) writing the correct information above it and (3) initialing the change to indicate your approval.
Some mistakes, like writing out the wrong amount on the line, might be considered more consequential than others, and an initialed correction probably won’t be enough. In such cases, you’re probably better off voiding the cheque and writing a new one.
Cheques are generally safer than cash because only the payee can cash the cheque. But when you write a cheque out to cash, anyone can receive the funds — whether you want them to or not. For this reason, it’s usually not advisable to write a cheque out to cash.
But if you find yourself in a pinch and need to write a cheque out to cash, here’s how you do it:
Generally, electronic payments are considered more secure than cheques. But in the situations where you have to use a cheque, you can follow these simple guidelines to help ensure your money stays secure:
With the advent of digital banking, it’s easy to make online payments and avoid the process of writing a cheque altogether. This is an easy, quick and paperless way to pay bills and transfer funds. In fact, about 88% of Canadians bank online. You can use our guide to digital banking to find the best online bank account provider for your needs.
The numbers on a cheque are like a roadmap to your account. These cheque numbers allows the recipient to “find” your money and withdraw the amount specified on the cheque. Technically, though, all the recipient does is deposit the cheque at his or her bank — the rest is done electronically through Canada’s clearinghouse and settlement systems. Here are the parts of a cheque in Canada.
This number reflects the sequence of cheques in your cheque book. The first cheque will be 001, the second will be 002 etc.
What is a transit number? The cheque transit number is used to identify your bank branch, or the specific location where you opened the account. Online banks that don’t have any physical branches may provide all their customers with the same bank transit number to avoid confusion.
No. A routing number is a 9-digit bank code used in the US to identify a specific branch. US bank routing numbers are similar to transit numbers used by Canadian banks. However, bank routing numbers are not the same as bank transit numbers and cannot be used interchangeably. That means if you are looking to find a routing number for a specific bank, such as RBC or TD, you will not find one, unless the bank account is held at an American RBC bank or an American TD bank. If you’re curious about how to find a routing number, just look at a US cheque or go online to your US bank account where you can find routing numbers and account numbers.
Also known as the bank number, the institution number identifies your financial institution. Each bank has a different institution number.
The account number on a cheque is 7 to 12 digits long and identifies the specific bank account into which funds are to be deposited.
Cheques come in handy when you you need to set up direct deposit or make a payment. Here’s what you need to know about finding the bank account number on a cheque.
On a cheque, the bank account number appears at the bottom after a long string of numbers consisting of a 3-digit cheque number, 5-digit transit number, 3-digit institution (bank) number and the account number.
Canadian bank account numbers are 7 to 12 digits long, depending on the bank. For comparison, US account numbers are usually 10 to 12 digits long, while UK account numbers are usually 8 digits long.
Account numbers for all of the Big 5 Banks in Canada are 7 digits long. When transferring funds, you’ll typically have to provide your transit (branch), institution (bank) number and account number, which can add up to 15 or more digits in total. Here are the institution numbers and account number lengths for major banks in Canada.
| Bank | Institution (bank) number | Account number length |
|---|---|---|
| BMO | 001 | 7 digits |
| Scotiabank | 002 | 7 digits |
| RBC | 003 | 7 digits |
| TD Bank | 004 | 7 digits |
| National Bank | 006 | 7 digits |
| CIBC | 010 | 7 digits |
| Tangerine | 614 | 10 digits |
| EQ Bank | 623 | 9 digits |
While higher interest rates on earnings and cash back rewards top the list of the most in-demand features of bank accounts, Canadians still want access to paper or digital cheques.
According to data from the recent Finder: Consumer Sentiment Survey Q1, where more than 1,845 Canadians were asked about their banking preferences, 3.31% were looking for a bank account that offered paper or digital cheques.
The easiest way to make payments is usually online or using a mobile app. But if you need to go old school, writing a cheque is simple. And, if you don’t have a cheque book handy, your bank may be able to print one off for you. And if you need a void cheque, most banks let you print a void cheque online in no time at all.
Are you looking for more information on chequing accounts and features? Read our list of the best chequing accounts in Canada.
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