Step 1Service Canada
Social Insurance Number
You need a SIN to work in Canada and to get government programs and benefits. Applying is free. Service Canada no longer issues plastic SIN cards.
Last checked October 20, 2026
Free to read · sponsorship-funded
Land with a list, not a rumour.
Get Settled compares the bank packages, credit cards, phone plans, and government steps newcomers in Canada actually have to sort out. Every listing names the page we read and the day we read it.
46 sourced listings. Last review of this edition: October 19, 2026. This is not financial advice.
Guides
All guides- Your first 30 days in Canada: a checklistFive things to sort out in the first month: a SIN, a provincial health card, a bank account, a phone, and a place to live.
- Opening a bank account as a newcomer: a neutral comparisonFederal rules let you open a personal bank account even without a job or a deposit today, as long as you can prove who you are.
- Building credit as a newcomerYour credit history from another country usually doesn't follow you to Canada. How reports, newcomer cards, and secured cards work.
- Getting your first Canadian phone planPrepaid plans usually skip a credit check. Postpaid plans usually do not. What the CRTC Wireless Code requires of every mobile plan.
- Sending money home: Wise, Remitly and bank wires comparedA remittance is money sent to someone in another country. Compare the fee, the exchange rate, and how the money is delivered.
Seven things to sort out
Everyday money
Bank accounts
Newcomer chequing packages from Canadian banks, plus the federal rule on your right to open an account. Monthly-fee waivers are real and time-limited. Bonuses usually need direct deposit or a set number of transactions.
8 listings
Building a file
Credit cards
Cards banks market to newcomers without a Canadian credit history, and two secured cards that use a deposit. Approval is never guaranteed on an unsecured card. Interest applies if you carry a balance.
8 listings
A Canadian number
Phone plans
Carrier pages aimed at newcomers, plus prepaid brands that say they skip a credit check. Plan prices move weekly. Where a dollar figure is missing, the carrier did not publish one on the page we checked.
6 listings
Free help
Settlement services
Government-funded settlement programs and the organizations that deliver them. Most IRCC-funded services are free if you are eligible. Quebec runs its own integration services, and the federal finder does not list Quebec providers.
8 listings
Work and licences
Jobs and credentials
The federal job board, the foreign credential recognition process, and why an education assessment is not the same thing as a licence to practise.
5 listings
Before you sign
Housing
How renting works in Canada, and the provincial offices that enforce tenant law. Deposits, notice periods, and rent-increase caps are provincial. Read the page for the province you will actually live in.
4 listings
The paperwork
First 30 days
The government steps people usually cannot postpone: a social insurance number, a health card, tax residency, and a permanent resident card if you are a PR. Health coverage is provincial, so use the listing for the province you live in.
7 listings
The first month, in order
A SIN, a health card for your province, a bank account, and a number people can call. Housing and work sit beside those, not instead of them.
Step 2Government of Ontario
OHIP and the Ontario health card
Ontario has no waiting period for OHIP if you qualify. You apply in person at ServiceOntario. Coverage is for medically necessary doctor and hospital care, not for every prescription or dental visit.
Last checked October 20, 2026
Step 3Government of British Columbia
B.C. Medical Services Plan
New residents wait the rest of the month they become a B.C. resident, plus two more months. Enrolment in MSP is mandatory, and applying is free.
Last checked October 20, 2026
Step 4Government of Alberta
Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan
Apply within 3 months of establishing residency. If you do, you might be covered from the date you established residency. The 3 months is not a wait.
Last checked October 20, 2026
Step 5Régie de l'assurance maladie du Québec
Quebec health insurance registration
If you arrive from another country, coverage usually starts after a maximum of 3 months. The wait does not apply to children under 18.
Last checked October 20, 2026
Step 6Canada Revenue Agency
Taxes and benefits for newcomers
The CRA treats you as a newcomer in the first year you are a resident for income tax. For most people that starts the day you begin living in Canada. Benefits can start before your first tax return.
Last checked October 19, 2026
Step 7Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Permanent resident card
The PR card is the document that shows you are a permanent resident and that you need in order to fly back to Canada. The first card is free if you send your photo and address within 180 days of becoming a PR.
Last checked October 19, 2026
Newcomer bank packages, side by side
Fee waivers are the part you can usually count on. Cash bonuses expire and almost always need a direct deposit. Open a row for the conditions.
| Listing | Fee offer | Who can ask | What we could verify | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BMO NewStartBMO | No monthly plan fee for 2 years | PR or foreign worker, first 5 years | No-fee global transfers; pre-arrival account | Provider page |
| CIBC Smart Account for NewcomersCIBC | No monthly fee for 2 years | Age 25 or older | $500 only if direct deposit and activity rules are met | Provider page |
| Desjardins newcomer welcome offerDesjardins | Unlimited plan free for 2 years if eligible | In Canada 3 years or less; age rules apply | Two years of legal phone help | Provider page |
| National Bank newcomer accountNational Bank of Canada | No fixed monthly fee in year 1 | Within 5 years of arrival, including students and refugees | Partial fee discount in years 2 and 3 | Provider page |
| RBC Newcomer AdvantageRBC Royal Bank | No monthly fee for 1 year | Arrived within 5 years | Unlimited debit; other-bank ATM fee waived by RBC | Provider page |
| Scotiabank StartRightScotiabank | Preferred Package fee waived for 1 year ($16.95/month) | PR under 5 years, student, or foreign worker | No-fee international transfers | Provider page |
| TD New to Canada Banking PackageTD Canada Trust | No monthly fee for 1 year | PR or temporary resident, 5 years or less | $500 cash offer ends November 2, 2026 | Provider page |
| Your right to open a bank accountFinancial Consumer Agency of Canada | A basic account cannot require an opening deposit | Original ID that meets the two-document rule | The legal floor under every newcomer package | Provider page |
The same question, in your province
Health coverage, tenant law, and which settlement agency answers the phone all change at the provincial border. These pages keep the national offers and add the local ones we could verify.
- Bank accounts in Alberta
- Bank accounts in British Columbia
- Bank accounts in Manitoba
- Bank accounts in New Brunswick
- Bank accounts in Newfoundland and Labrador
- Bank accounts in Nova Scotia
- Bank accounts in Northwest Territories
- Bank accounts in Nunavut
- Bank accounts in Ontario
- Bank accounts in Prince Edward Island
- Bank accounts in Quebec
- Bank accounts in Saskatchewan
- Bank accounts in Yukon
A short note when the rules change
Bank bonuses and phone prices move. The note is for corrections and new official pages, not a drip of credit-card ads. Delivery is not connected yet. The form below is the placeholder we will point at an email service later.