First Home Savings Account (FHSA) Issuers
First Home Savings Account Issuers are those companies that will allow their customers to open a FHSA with them.
It is anticipated that all the banks (and their associated investment firms), trust company, insurance companies, credit unions, and investment firms in Canada will provide FHSAs to their customers at some point in the future.
In Canada the main banks are: the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC), Toronto Dominion Bank (TD), Bank of Montreal (BMO), CIBC, Scotia Bank, and National Bank.
In Canada the main insurance companies are: Sunlife and Manulife.
There are many investment firms such as: Interactive Brokers, Questtrade, Wealthsimple, and Raymond James that will likely also offer FHSAs to their customers.
As of Summer 2023, very few have started offering their customers FHSAs. We have compiled a list of those who have started offering this to their customers.
General Information
We anticipate that opening a FHSA at any of the issuers will be similar to opening a Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) is done.
However, each provider will have it's own set of offers, rules and forms to fill out to apply to open a FHSA account.
Additionally, not all issuers may offer the same set of allowable investments. For example, some issuers may not allow investments in US stocks or options.
Some issuers will manage the investments for you in addition to letting you manage your own investments in a self-directed account.
Also be aware of fees to open/close FHSA accounts and fees tied to the investments. These will be different at each provider.
Cost to Open a FHSA
We anticipate that opening a FHSA at any of the issuers will be free as happened with the Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA).
Tip
Open a self-directed FHSA if you feel comfortable managing your own investments. &bnsp;A self-directed account should be cheaper than a managed account.
Fees
We anticipate that issuers will make their money from fees on buying, selling, and holding investments (e.g. mutual funds fees, buying and selling stocks and options) and possibly even advisor fees. These fees will be different based on the investment and issuer.
We haven't heard anything about costs to close or transfer accounts at this time, but we expect that issuers probably will have them.
The fees on investments can eat up a lot of the value of an account over time so please choose your investments wisely!
Tip
Invest in no fee or low-fee investments, e.g. GICs, high-interest savings accounts, so that you have more money to grow tax-free!
FHSA Issuers Table
This is a table of the FHSA issuers in Canada that we are aware of.
This table is as of August 1, 2023
| Provider | Has FHSA? | if Not, When? | Self-Directed? | Managed? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scotiabank | Yes | na | unknown | Offered since 2023-08-23 | |
| Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) | Yes | na | Yes | Yes | Self-directed is via their RBC Direct Investing; Managed is via RBC InvestEase |
| Wealthsimple | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Fidelity Investments Canada | yes | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| National Bank | Yes | na | unknown | unknown | |
| QuestTrade | Yes | na | unknown | unknown | |
| Equitable Bank | Yes | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Toronto Dominion Bank (TD) | No | Late summer 2023 | unknown | unknown | |
| Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) | No | November 2023 | unknown | unknown | |
| Scotia ITrade | No | November 2023 | unknown | ||
| Bank of Montreal (BMO) | No | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Desjardins | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| HSBC | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Interactive Brokers | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Manulife | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| QTrade | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Raymond James | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Sunlife Canada | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Tangerine Bank | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown | |
| Vancity Credit Union | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown |
Tip
Check the fees associated with an FHSA of an issuer before opening an account. It could save you lots of money!
FAQs
These are the FAQs about FHSA Issuers.
What financial institutions have tax-free First Home Savings Accounts available?
Only a few financial institutions currently offers FHSAs. Please see our list above for the latest on which institutions currently offer FHSAs.
It is anticipated that Canada's major financial institutions will all have accounts available in 2023.
Disclaimer
Disclaimer: The information on this website is for informational purposes only. Please get professional advice before opening any account or making any transactions.