Tag Archives: RRSP

Which of the Big 5 Brokerages Offer a US Dollar Side, Journal, Ledger or Sub-Account for an RRSP?

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The Big 5 Canadian banks are BMO, CIBC, RBC, ScotiaBank, and TD. Each of these has an associated discount brokerage. Only some of these brokerages, however, allow you to keep US stocks in a US dollar part of your RRSP account. This is a recap of which ones have this option, which is variously called a US dollar side, journal, ledger or sub-account.

What Use is a US Dollar Side to an RRSP Self Directed Brokerage Account?

Recently I set up a US dollar sub-account in my BMO InvestorLine RRSP account. This lets me buy and sell stocks in US dollars and receive distributions, dividends and profits without paying any foreign currency conversion fees.

I knew I couldn’t do this for our CIBC Investor’s Edge RRSP. They don’t offer this option.

Then today I was reading an article by the Canadian Capitalist posted in a roundup by Michael James on Money. I was surprised to read that at TD Waterhouse you can’t just set up this kind of US ledger in your RRSP.

That led me to do some quick checking into this issue. Here’s what I found out:

Which Brokerages Have US Dollar RRSP Accounts or Sub-Accounts

Brokerage US Dollar Sub-Account Available?
BMO InvestorLine Yes
CIBC Investor’s Edge No
RBC Direct Investing Yes
ScotiaBank iTrade No
TD Waterhouse Direct Investing No but with ***

*** According to the Canadian Capitalist article TD Direct Investing does offer a sort-of compromise. It lets you buy and sell stocks in US dollars and keep the monies in US dollars between buys. It does not, however, let you receive distributions and dividends in US dollars.

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Do you use a self-directed brokerage for your RRSP? Can you keep all of your profits, distributions and dividends in US dollars till you’re ready to spend them? Please share your experiences with a comment.

Update on Transferring RRSP Cash to an ING Direct RRSP Using a T2033 Form

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On June 24, I requested a transfer of the cash in my Canada Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) to my RRSP at ING Direct, now Tangerine.ca. Here’s an update.

To start the transfer, I filled out a T2033 form online at the Tangerine website. As required, I mailed them a signed copy of the form. I popped it into the big red box on June 25. Then I started to wait.

As I mentioned in the post I wrote back in June, ING Direct Tangerine is great at handling this kind of transfer. They even pay interest from the day you apply to move the money, provided they receive it from the other financial institution within 60 days.

Sometime in the last 5 days, the money arrived in my ING Direct Tangerine RRSP.

The Transfer Process to ING Direct Tangerine Works Smoothly but Not Swiftly

As I mentioned above, I requested the cash transfer from one RRSP to the other on June 24 electronically and June 25 by mail. On or about July 21 the money arrived.

So the transfer took between 3-4 weeks depending on when you start counting and when you stop. I expect, for example, that it took up to 5 business days for Canada Post to deliver the original of my T2033 to ING Direct Tangerine.

I’ve made transfers between other financial institutions, including BMO, BMO InvestorLine, ING Direct, the Canada Retirement Savings Plan, CIBC, and CIBC Investor’s Edge in the past. Each of the transfers took at least 3 weeks and some took longer. So this timing was not a surprise.

The ING Direct RRSP Transfer Quirk

One thing did surprise me about the transfer. I’ve been watching my ING RSP Investment Savings Account (RISA) balance a few times a week to see if the money had arrived. When it seemed to have landed, I opened the Account History view to see the details.

To my surprise, instead of listing the Date the money actually arrived, the transaction history lists the date that I requested the transfer. In other words, the event “Deposit Transfer from Other Institution (T2033) is back dated to June 24. Even the bonus interest is back dated to June 30. So I don’t know the exact day the deposit was made.

What’s Next?

Now I suppose I have to start thinking about where to move the money next.

  • CIBC Investor’s Edge? I pay the lowest trading commission there.
  • BMO InvestorLine? They let me hold US stocks in a US sub-account within my RRSP and pay the dividends directly in US dollars.
  • RBC Direct Investing? I haven’t tried them yet but I’m curious about how they work and what benefits they offer. [I’m using them now for a spousal RRSP.]

UPDATE: Please be aware that as of January 2015, Tangerine has started charging a fee if you transfer your RRSP or TFSA from Tangerine to another bank, credit union, brokerage or financial institution.
I would no longer transfer RRSP money to Tangerine unless I planned to keep it there for the long term.

Any suggestions?

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Please share your experiences with transferring RRSPs with a comment.

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