NEWCOMERS 

Get the most out of our exclusive welcome offer

Get $280 cashback when you open your National Bank of Canada account

Open an account online

To claim your cashback, you must apply to open an account from this page.

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Take advantage of our welcome offer thanks to National Bank of Canada’s partnership with the CELPIP and CAEL tests

Are you thinking of immigrating to Canada? Open an account with us and get $280 cashback* for your CELPIP or CAEL English language proficiency test. It’s just our way of welcoming you to Canada. Our offer for newcomers1 doesn’t stop there. National Bank of Canada also offers the following benefits.

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Bank account

Open an account with no fixed monthly fee for up to 3 years.

Save up to $574.20**

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Mastercard® credit card

Get settled in Canada with help from a National Bank of Canada Mastercard credit card with no credit history.2,3

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International transfers

Send international transfers online to India, the United States, and 19 countries in the European Union. 

$5.95 per transfer4

Intermediary bank or beneficiary fees may apply.

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Exclusive assistance service

Get answers to all your questions regarding getting a Canadian work visa, health services, housing, and more.5

No fees for the first year

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Safety deposit box

Pay no fees on a small safety deposit box for the first year.

You’ll save $68.99

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Ordering cheques

Get your first order of cheques free.

You’ll save $56.83

Discover even more benefits

Get the offer for newcomers in 3 easy steps

Enjoy your bank account with no fixed monthly fee for up to 3 years and other benefits with our offer. Consult the eligibility criteria and follow the steps below. 

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Open an account online

Fill out a secure form from your home country in just 5 minutes up to 90 days before your arrival in Canada.

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Receive a confirmation email

Over the following days, you’ll receive an email confirming that you’ve opened an account.

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Make an in-branch appointment

When you arrive in Canada, plan an in-person appointment to finalize the opening of your account and securely transfer your funds.

Open an account online


Up to 3 years of no fixed month fees**

More than just a bank account

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See all the details of the offer

Download and read the details of the offer for newcomers in one of the following languages. 

 Français

 English

A distinguished customer experience 

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82% of our clients who are new to Canada say that they recommend National Bank of Canada.

Internal study on newcomers - 2020

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« I recommended National Bank because they are very welcoming to immigrants and have great customer service »

- Marine, arrived in Canada in 2015

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We got 4.85 stars for our service on PVTistes.net.

June 2023

Who’s the newcomer offer for?

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Permanent residents

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Temporary workers

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International students

Open an account online

Talk to us about your projects in Canada 

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Contact us by email

Write to us with all the details of your request. We’ll get back to you as quickly as possible.
 

Send us an email

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Chat with us

Get quick help when you contact us through Facebook Messenger.

Send us a message

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We’re hiring!

Are you a qualified worker immigrating to Canada? Join the National Bank of Canada team!

See our job openings

Les petits détails pour tout savoir 

  • Be a newcomer 18 years of age or older
  • Apply to open an account from your home country up to 90 days before you arrive in Canada, or within 5 years of your arrival
  • Be the only user of the account
  • The offer for newcomers is open to permanent residents, temporary workers and international students

*The promotional offer is valid until October 31, 2023.

Description: 

$280 cashback offer in partnership with CELPIP and CAEL test. The new clients must open their chequing account online for newcomers on this page. 

Clients must meet the eligibility criteria of the newcomers offer and must:

  •  Open a chequing account online by signing up for the offer for newcomers to receive $280 cashback

 Finally, the clients must meet the following conditions (effective since June 1, 2023):

  • Sign up for our online banking service and our eStatement service.

  • Set up one recurring direct deposit of your payroll or monthly recurring pension from your new chequing account  

You benefit from 120 days following the checking account opening to meet the offer conditions to obtain the cashback. 

Offer promo code: 021

Eligibility criteria: 

Clients who have opened a chequing account for newcomers through this page and have met the eligibility criteria of the newcomers offer:

  • Be a newcomer 18 years of age or older

  • Apply to open a chequing account from another country 3 months before arriving or within 5 years of arriving in Canada

  • Be the only user of the account

Exclusion:

  • Existing National Bank clients are not eligible

  • National Bank of Canada employees and its subsidiaries and entities

  • In branch account opening

**Baseline savings of $334.92 over three years

Save a minimum of $334.92 over three years if you meet the following conditions:

  • Open a bank account online before arriving with our secure form or visit a branch upon arrival.

  • Sign up for our offer for newcomers

Savings of $334.92 based on:

  • First year: no flat monthly fee (savings of $15.95/month for 12 months)

  • Second year: flat monthly fee of $7.98 instead of $15.95 (savings of $7.97/month for 12 months)

  • Third year: flat monthly fee of $11.96 instead of $15.95 (savings of $3.99/month for 12 months)

The full flat monthly fee of $15.95 will be applied to your banking package from the fourth year. To be eligible for savings, you must commit to keeping the account and package for a minimum of 36 months. You will receive no further discounts if the products are cancelled.

Maximum savings of $574.20 over three years

Your savings will be $574.20 over 3 years with your newcomer’s banking package on a fixed monthly fee ($15.95/month x 36 months) if you meet the following conditions.

  1. Visit a branch and open a bank account.
  2. Sign up for our offer for newcomers.
  3. During the first year after signing up for the offer for newcomers to Canada:
    • Apply for and activate an eligible National Bank Mastercard personal credit card
    • Sign up to receive eStatements
  4. During the second and third years after signing up for the offer for newcomers to Canada: 
    • Set up salary deposits to your National Bank account and have your pay deposited at least once a month; OR
    • Make at least two electronic bill payments from your National Bank account every month.

You’ll pay the full fixed monthly fee of $15.95/month for your banking package starting in the fourth year after you sign up for the offer for newcomers. To be eligible for this, you agree to maintain this account for a minimum of 36 months. You agree that there are no additional savings available from the moment you longer keep these products.

Note on savings

To enjoy the full savings, you must keep the products and services and carry out all required transactions for a minimum of 36 months unless otherwise indicated. If you fail to meet the conditions of the offer, your savings will be lower. Your savings will be lower if you do not order cheques or rent a safety deposit box.

If during a given month, you keep your bank account and banking package but do not keep all of the other products and services indicated or do not carry out all the required transactions (e.g. only one electronic bill payment per month instead of two), you will be charged National Bank's service fee for that month. The service fee will be $7.98 monthly for the second year and $11.96 for the third. You will still enjoy monthly savings of $7.97 during the second year and $3.99 during the third.

Finally, if you no longer hold a bank account or banking package for newcomers, you will no longer be eligible for savings.

You must first open a National Bank Direct Brokerage account. Certain conditions apply. 

Options commission is $0 + $1.25/contract. A minimum fee of $6.25/trade applies. The maximum fee is $19.95 when the transaction value is less than $2,000. An option contract gives the holder the right, but not the obligation, to buy or sell a given position in an underlying security at a given exercise price. Contracts are for 100 shares.

National Bank Direct Brokerage, as a division of a Canadian bank subsidiary, is the first broker in Canada to offer a commission-free online brokerage solution for Canadian and U.S. stocks.

  • Trades must have been made through our electronic solutions.
  • Management and other fees may apply to ETF investments. Please read the prospectus before making an investment. ETFs are not guaranteed, their values change frequently, and past performance may not be repeated. 

Regular pricing on equities trade applies if the $0 commission conditions on ETFs are not met.

For more details, consult our page for exclusive National Bank Direct Brokerage offers.

National Bank Direct Brokerage (NBDB) is a division of National Bank Financial Inc. (NBF) and a trademark of National Bank of Canada (NBC), used under licence by NBF. NBF is a member of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada and of the Canadian Investor Protection Fund and a wholly-owned subsidiary of NBC, which is a public company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: NA) NBDB provides order execution only services and makes no investment recommendations. Clients are solely responsible for the financial and tax consequences of their investment decisions.

TM National Bank Assistance Network is a trademark of National Bank of Canada, used under licence by authorized third parties.

® Mastercard is a registered trademark, and the circles design is a trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated. Authorized user: National Bank.

®THE EXCHANGE and Accel are registered trademarks of Fiserv Inc.

®CIRRUS is a registered trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated. Authorized user: National Bank. 

®Allpoint is a registered trademark of ATM National LLC.

PARAGON, CELPIP, CELPIT, CELTOP, CELL, LPI, CANADIAN ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY INDEX TEST, LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY INDEX, CANADIAN ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY INDEX PROGRAM, CAEL, CANADIAN ACADEMIC ENGLISH LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT and related logos are registered or unregistered trademarks and service marks owned or licensed by Paragon. Any unauthorized use of those trademarks is strictly prohibited, and nothing on a Website or in these General Terms of Services or any Service Terms will be construed as granting, by implication, estoppel, or otherwise, any licence or right to use any of those trademarks and service marks.

National Bank of Canada is not a licensed bank in France or other countries outside of Canada.

  1. Our banking offer is available to newcomers from their home countries up to 90 days before arriving in Canada or at any point during your first 5 years in Canada. See the above terms and conditions of the offer for no fixed monthly fee for 3 years. The offer may be modified, extended or withdrawn, without prior notice, at any time. The offer may not be combined or used with any other National Bank offer, promotion or benefit. Fees may apply for transactions not included in the banking offer for newcomers. For more information on transaction fees, see our Guide to Personal Banking Solutions [PDF].
  2. Financing is subject to credit approval by National Bank. Certain conditions apply. Eligible credit cards: MyCredit, MC1, Allure, Syncro, Platinum, ECHO Cashback, World and World Elite.
  3. Security may be required under certain circumstances. Financing is subject to credit approval by National Bank. Certain conditions apply.
  4. International Transfer by Mastercard® and Interac® are available at a cost of $5.95 per transaction, no matter which account you hold. The amount received by the beneficiary may differ from the amount sent considering that the intermediary bank or the beneficiary’s bank will apply their fees to the original transfer’s amount. This service allows you to transfer funds to the United States, India, Philippines and the following 19 European countries: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.
  5. Telephone assistance service offered by National Bank Assistance Network, valid for 12 months from your account opening date. The content of the packages and terms described are subject to change.
  6. National Bank ABMs or ABMs in THE EXCHANGEᴹᴰ network. Use all our ABM features in six languages (French, English, Spanish, Traditional Chinese, Punjabi, and Arabic).
  7. Locate CIRRUS, Maestro® and NYCE® ABMs and payment terminals with the logos on the back of your card. You can then use your debit card at these ABMs in the United States and around the world, including our network of partners Accel®, Cirrus® and Allpoint®. Administrative or exchange rate fees may apply.