What is Interac e-Transfer and how does it work?

Interac e-Transfers help you send and receive money using your Canadian bank account from more than 75 countries¹, within minutes.

With Interac e-transfers, you need not give away your personal financial information, making it quick, cost-effective and discreet.

We will guide you through the how tos as well as the fees and limits associated with this transfer method. We will also be talking about Wise as an alternative to manage your Interac e-transfers.

Table of Contents
How to send money via Interac e-Transfers How to receive money via Interac e-Transfers What are the Interac e-transfer fees? What are the Interac e-transfer limits? Who can use it? How long do Interac e-transfers take? Is Interac e-Transfer safe? Meet Wise - the new way to send and receive e-transfers

Interac e-transfer is a fast and easy way to send and receive money through online banking directly from one Canadian bank to the other. It ensures a secure transaction - simply needing the phone number or email address linked with your bank account

Interac e-transfers work with over 250 financial institutions in Canada². If you have an account in any of those banks, you can send or receive money through online banking in minutes, with zero hassle.

How to send money via Interac e-Transfers

The steps to send money via Interac e-transfers² are as follows:

1. Open your internet banking portal.
2. Add or select contact.
3. Enter the desired payment sum and a security question.
4. Click “Send” to transfer the funds.
5. Send the recipient the response to the security query. This is how the recipient can access the transmitted money that will be deposited into their bank account.

However, the process looks different for different financial institutions. For more information, you could contact your bank representatives in person or through details mentioned on their website.

How to send money abroad with Interac e-Transfer

To send money internationally using Interac e-Transfers, you need to follow these steps:

1. Log into your online banking account.
2. Depending on the location, you might have to establish a security question that the recipient must respond to in order to receive their money.
3. You will next be provided with a Money Transfer Control Number (MTCN).
4. You will have to provide the recipient with the MTCN and the response to the security query, to enable them to access the funds you are sending through Interac.
5. The recipient must go to a nearby Western Union site to pick up their money (they must bring a valid ID, the MTCN, and the answer to your security question).
6. The recipient receives the money in cash, typically in their country's currency.

⚠️Most international bank transfers are handled by the SWIFT network. Several banks collaborate to make this happen. As a result, your bank along with these intermediary banks may impose fees. Since these costs are frequently hidden upfront, you might not realize how much more you have been charged until it's too late.

You can consider using an alternative provider , such as Wise, to avoid paying both Western Union's or the SWIFT network's fees. Wise employs a clever network of local bank accounts to reduce the cost of international transfers.

Please see Terms of Use for your region or visit Wise Fees & Pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

How to receive money via Interac e-Transfers

You can receive money via Interac e-Transfer in the following three ways:

1. Autodeposit

   Interac has an enhanced Autodeposit feature for consumers and businesses that allows you to conveniently receive money directly into your bank account. Remember you need a Canadian bank account for the same. You can find the steps to set up your Interac e-Transfer Autodeposit account on the Interac website.

2. Using the security question

   If Interac e-Transfer is used to send money to your email or mobile number and you have not signed up for Autodeposit, you must first respond to a security question given by the sender in order to deposit the money.

   It really is that simple! You will receive a confirmation code and be able to access your funds thereon. The sender will also receive an email or an SMS notification telling them that the transaction was successful.

3. Request Money option

   You can also request money with Interac from your friends, family or business associates. The process is pretty straightforward and you can do it by following three easy steps, listed on the website.

You can also use the "direct to account" option to receive money right inside your Canadian bank account and into your account with an alternative provider such as Wise, via Interac e-Transfer.

The process is common for most financial institutions but may have a few changes.

For RBC¹⁴:

You can obtain an Interac e-Transfer via email or SMS, directly to your RBC bank account. All you need to do is select the link in the Interac email or text message notification you receive, then follow the on-screen directions to transfer the funds.For a complete overview on Interac e-Transfers with RBC, you can take a look at this article.

For TD Canada¹⁵:

Direct to Account transactions will be immediately deposited into the applicable TD account number, without your interference. You might get a notification from Interac via email or SMS, at the sender's choice. You can read all about Interac e-Transfers with TD Bank here.

For LBC¹⁶:

To accept an Interac e-Transfer sent to your LBC account, you need to follow the instructions in the email or SMS telling you that you have received a request for fund transfer.

If you'd like to decline an Interac e-Transfer¹⁷:
You need to click on the link in the e-transfer notice, log into your banking account and follow the instructions and prompts.

⚠️Remember that declining an Interac e-transfer is irreversible.

What are the Interac e-transfer fees?

Convenience is important, but it shouldn’t burn a hole in your pocket, every time you choose to e-transfer funds. While there are many financial institutions to choose from, we will highlight the five most popular ones below:

Financial Institutions	Fees Charged Per Transaction
Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)⁵	$1.00 (for personal savings accounts) \ $1.50 (for business deposit accounts)
Toronto Dominion Bank (TD Canada)⁶	Personal: $0.50 upto $100; $1.00 over $100 \ Everyday A, B, C businesses: 2 free monthly transfers; $1.50 thereafter Other businesses: $1.50
BMO Harris Bank (BMO)⁷	$1.00 (for personal banking accounts) \ $1.50 for commercial banking accounts)
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)⁸	$1.50
Libro Credit Union⁹	$1.50 (except the Simplify Chequing, Premium Chequing, and Go Free Chequing accounts, which are free)
Laurentian Bank of Canada¹⁰	$1.00

For international payments however with Western Union and Mastercard, you’ll have to pay a sender fee along with an exchange rate markup fee. The standard sender fee for most banks is $9 +1% of the funds being remitted. It is usually higher than the mid-market rate.

When it comes to international transfers, Wise charges the mid-market rate as seen online, and a small upfront fee. This way, you can save yourself from potential hidden e-transfer costs.

Discover Wise

What are the Interac e-transfer limits?

Different banking institutions set their own daily, weekly and monthly limits for Interac e-transfers. You must verify the limits on your specific account with your own organization.

However, here are some popular institutions and the respective limits they offer for international money e-transfers using Interac:

Institution	Limits
Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)³	Daily limit: $3000; Weekly limit: $10000; Monthly limit: $30000
BMO Harris Bank (BMO)³	Daily limit: $2500-$3000; Weekly limit: $10000; Monthly limit: $20000
Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD-Canada)³	Daily limit: $3000 (also per transfer limit); Weekly limit: $10000; Monthly limit: $20000
Libro Credit Union¹⁸	Daily limit: $3000; Weekly limit: $10000; Monthly limit: $15000
Laurentian Bank of Canada (LBC)¹⁹	Daily limit: $3000; Weekly limit: $10000; Monthly limit: $20000

If you’d like to know more about Interac e-transfer fees and limits, you can read about them here.

Who can use it?

Interac e-transfer can only work between Canadian bank accounts. This means that if you are an individual with a Canadian bank or a business with a corporate bank account in any of the select financial institutions in Canada, you can use Interac e-transfers to send or receive funds within minutes.

Besides this, you as well as your recipient will need a Canadian phone number or an email address that links to the bank account you use with Interac.

Businesses of all sizes can use Interac e-transfers to make payments to their associates, contractors or third-party vendors. Independent consultants, small businesses, and even enterprise-level organizations are all included under this.

For individuals:

Pros	Cons
Super-fast transfer (within 30 minutes)	Smaller transfer limit (most banks cap it off at $3000 for daily transfer)³
Secure transactions	Only available to customers of certain Canadian bank accounts

For businesses:

Pros	Cons
Avoid wait times necessary for real-time payments	Only available to organizations with registered Canadian corporate bank accounts
Bulk disbursements allowed
Safely send up to $25000 per transaction⁴
Simple reconciliation of invoice, purchase order and payment details in one place

How long do Interac e-transfers take?

Interac e-transfers within Canada take around 15-30 minutes²⁰. For international Interac e-transfers made through Western Union, you can also do it within 30 minutes, depending upon your bank or credit union. If you are using Mastercard²¹ however, it can take between 1-2 business days. You can read more about e-transfer durations in this article.

Is Interac e-Transfer safe?

Those who use Interac e-transfers are safeguarded by multiple security layers. The security steps used by your bank or credit union include¹²:

• Encryption systems
• Security question and response
• Private usernames and passwords
• Safe registration procedure

You can read more about online safety with Interac here.

Meet Wise - the new way to send and receive e-transfers

With Wise, you can now send and receive Interac e-Transfers with ease. What’s more, you have the following benefits for local as well as international e-transfers:

• Minimal fees
• Mid market rate for international transfers
• Updates on your e-transfers

You can always keep track of how long your e-transfer might take. Thanks to our efforts to ensure transparency, you can stay updated on where your e-transfers are in the process, until they reach the intended recipient.

You can click on the payment method in our price calculator to see how much each transfer method would cost you with Wise:

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Sources:
1 - Making an International Transfer
2 - Interac Website
3 - My Rate Compass
4 - Interac for Businesses
5 - RBC Royal User Tips
6 - TD Bank Fees and Limits
7 - BMO Terms and Conditions
8 - CIBC
9 - Libro Credit Union Fees
10 - LBC
11- Interac International transfers
12 - Interac Security
13 - Send money with Wise
14 - RBC Guide
15 - TD Bank FAQ
16 - LBC Interac e transfers
17 - Interac help section
18 - Libro Credit Union - How to send an Interac e-Transfer
19 - LBC Interac Limits
20 - Interac e-Transfer duration
Sources checked on: 21 April 2023