Online Account Opening

There’s no fee to open an account itself. However, becoming a member of our credit union involves a one-time $5 withdrawal from your first deposit, which goes towards your membership shares. This small investment isn’t a service charge rather; it makes you a co-owner of Vancity and gives you a say in important matters, such as voting in Board elections.

Your $5 membership share remains with your account for as long as you’re a member. If you ever decide to close your account and end your membership, your $5 membership share will be returned to you, provided it aligns with our membership rules.

To open an account online, find the chequing account or High Interest Savings Account (HISA) that’s right for you and simply select “Open an account”. You’ll be asked to complete a secure online application. It should take you about 5 to 10 minutes to complete.

Choose from one of our chequing accounts:

Essential Chequing Account
See account details

Essential Plus Chequing Account
See account details

Pay As You Go Account
See account details

Total Chequing Account
See account details

Or open a High Interest Savings Account (HISA)

Jumpstart™ High-Interest Savings Account
See account details

TFSA Jumpstart™ High-Interest Savings Account
See account details

RRSP Jumpstart™ High Interest Savings Account
See account details

You can open up to two accounts during the Online Account Opening process.

Please note that when you open your first TFSA or RRSP Jumpstart^TM High Interest Savings Account, Vancity currently sets up a Pay As You Go chequing account that can be used to fund your registered account. You can move money from that chequing account to your registered account through digital banking, by contacting Member Services, or by visiting a branch. There is no monthly fee for this chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Both accounts count toward the two-account limit.

Please review applicable account fees and make sure you stay within your available CRA contribution room.

Complete your online application here using your web browser on a mobile phone, desktop, and/or tablet.

While we recommend using the latest version of a web browser, the minimum version requirements to open an account online include:

• Google Chrome, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge – version 100 or above
• Safari – version 15 or above

Using one of the recommended versions of the web browsers listed above will ensure that you’re getting the best experience.

Opening an account online is quick and easy. Complete the application in 5 to 10 minutes, and you may be approved on the spot. In some cases, applications may require additional review, which can take up to two business days.

To open an account online at Vancity, you need to:

• Be a resident of British Columbia
• Be 19 years of age or older
• Have a Social Insurance Number
• Have either a BC driver’s licence, BC services card, Certificate of Indian Status, or similar BC ID, and a mobile device for identity verification
• Be opening an account for yourself, not for a third-party

Acceptable ID includes

• BC driver’s licence, BC services card, or similar government issued BC photo ID.
• Certificate of Indian Status
• Ontario driver’s licence
• Alberta driver’s licence
• Permanent Resident Card
• Canadian Passport

Please note that we validate your phone number as part of the ID verification process.

You’ll know your account was successfully opened online when you receive a confirmation email from us that says your application has been approved and an email to activate your digital banking.

Approved applicants will receive a Congratulations email that outlines the account they have recently opened online and next steps.

Approved members are provided several next steps including:

• Instructions on how to fund the account
• A Member Card Number and directions on how to use it to access digital banking
• Instructions to download Vancity’s mobile app (available for both iPhone and Android).

Members can fund their accounts in several convenient ways; you can deposit funds by:

• Interac® e-Transfer
• Mobile cheque deposit through the Vancity app
• ATM deposit (once you receive your member card)
• In-branch deposit

For registered accounts, the most common approach is:

1. Deposit funds into your Vancity chequing account using any of the above methods.
2. Complete an additional transfer from your chequing account into your registered Jumpstart^TM High-Interest Savings Account via Digital Banking (Desktop or Mobile App), In Branch or by calling Member Services. There is no monthly fee for this chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Please review applicable account fees here.

Please note: All deposits to registered accounts are subject to contribution limits set by the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA). You are responsible for knowing and monitoring your individual contribution limits and ensuring that all deposits remain within your available CRA contribution limits.

The application process is completely online, and there is no need to send us anything.

Yes – if you choose to open an account online, your data will be secure.

We take the protection of your personal information very seriously. To ensure your information stays safe, we use a combination of administrative, physical, and technical safeguards. This includes multi-factor authentication, encryption, obfuscation, and restricted access controls for both employees and authorized service providers. We also have agreements in place with third-party service providers, designed to ensure the personal information we provide to them remains protected and is used only for the purposes we specify.

Yes, eligible members can open a TFSA or RRSP Jumpstart^TM High-Interest Savings Account online. Open a RRSP Online here or open a TFSA online here.

Contribution limits are not verified by Vancity during the online account opening process. We recommend reviewing your available contribution room with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) to ensure your deposits stay within your personal limit.

If you’re unsure of your available contribution room, you can check your CRA My Account or speak with a tax professional for guidance.

Yes. You can transfer funds from another financial institution into your TFSA or RRSP Jumpstart^TM High Interest Savings Account. However, funds cannot be deposited directly into the registered product. The funds must first be transferred into your chequing account, and then you can contribute to your registered account through a branch or via digital banking. There is no monthly fee for this chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Please review applicable account fees here.

Promotional rates for new deposits may be offered periodically. After the promotional period ends, the regular rate for registered Jumpstart^TM accounts will apply. You can view the regular rate here.

No, you cannot. When you open your first registered Jumpstart^TM High Interest Savings Account (HISA), a Pay As You Go chequing account will automatically be created so you can make deposits. This will count toward the limit of two accounts per application.

However, the application takes only about five minutes to complete. Once submitted, you can open another registered account as a Vancity member through digital banking on desktop, the mobile app, or by visiting a branch.

There is no monthly fee for this Pay As You Go chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Please review applicable account fees here.

Please be advised that in order to open a TFSA, the member must be a Canadian resident who is 18 years of age or older with a valid SIN number. For RRSP accounts, the member must be a Canadian resident who is 71 years old or under and have filed income tax returns before and reported “earned income”.

If your application is placed under review, the review process may take up to two business days. After this, you will receive a notification via email, letting you know whether your application has been approved or not. If it’s approved, you’ll also receive a link to continue completing your process online. If it’s not approved, we invite you to visit your main Vancity branch.

Funds cannot be deposited directly into a registered account. When you open your first TFSA or RRSP Jumpstart^TM High Interest Savings Account, Vancity currently sets up a chequing account that can be used to fund your registered account. You can move money from that chequing account to your registered account through digital banking, by contacting Member Services, or by visiting a branch. There is no monthly fee for this chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Please review applicable account fees and make sure you stay within your available CRA contribution room.

Yes. After opening your first registered Jumpstart^TM High Interest Savings Account (HISA) online, you will become a Vancity member. Once you’re a member, you can open additional registered accounts through digital banking on desktop, the mobile app, or by visiting a branch.

You can move money from that chequing account to your registered account through digital banking, by contacting Member Services, or by visiting a branch. There is no monthly fee for this chequing account, although transaction fees may apply. Please review applicable account fees and make sure you stay within your available CRA contribution room.

No. Funding a registered account is optional at the time of opening. An account can be opened without an initial deposit; however, it is not considered “registered” until funds are added and therefore will not be reported to the CRA

When a technical error occurs with the online application, the applicant will be prompted with an error screen. If an applicant encounters an error, they can try again or book an account opening appointment at the branch or over the phone.

There are several reasons an online application may be declined or placed ‘In Review”. These reasons include fraud and credit concerns, identity verification issues, or system errors. For security reasons, we are unable to disclose specific reasons as to why your application was declined or placed in review.

No, you cannot save your application and continue it later. For security reasons, the application will time out after 20 minutes. When a timeout error occurs, you will be notified with a time’s up screen, and all progress will be lost. As a result, the applicant will have to start a new application.

To close your account, contact us by calling our Member Services Centre or visit us at one of our branches.