Submitting a request is simple and fast:

Step 1. Decide how to transfer your account

We'll ask you to choose between the following options when you request a transfer:

Transfer all my assets in-kind
Your stocks and ETFs will be transferred directly to us. If you transfer into a self-directed account, your assets remain will unchanged. If you transfer into a managed account, your assets will be liquidated once they land at Wealthsimple and reinvested into a managed portfolio.

Transfer some of my assets in-kind

A portion of your stocks and ETFs will be transferred directly to us. This is available for self-directed accounts only. You must reach out to our Client Success team to set up this type of transfer with your institution.  

Transfer all my assets as cash
Your assets will be converted to cash by your institution before transfer. Please note that your institution may not be able to liquidate some assets, such as GICs. If you have mutual funds, your institution may charge additional non-refundable fees to liquidate.

Transfer some of the cash in my account
Select the amount of cash you want to transfer. If you attempt to transfer more than the current cash balance of your account, the transaction may be declined.

Mixed transfer (both in-kind and as cash)
You will choose which assets your institution will transfer in-kind and as cash to us. You must call our Client Success team to set up this type of transfer with your institution.

Step 2. Request a transfer in your Wealthsimple profile

Review our supported transfer methods below. Please note that there are no tax implications for transferring non-taxable accounts (like your RRSP or TFSA). If you're transferring a non-registered personal account and need to sell your investments as part of the transfer, this will trigger a taxable event and you may need to report the capital gain or loss on your next tax filing.

In-kind or ‘as is’ transfers

Your Institution will transfer your stocks and ETFs to us.

If you're transferring to a Self-directed account, your shares will not be sold by your institution. 

If you're transferring to a Managed account, your shares will be sold once the account lands in Wealthsimple. The sold funds will be reinvested into a Wealthsimple portfolio.

Partial in-kind or ‘as is’ transfers 

Your institution will transfer a portion of your stocks and ETFs to us. This is available for self-directed accounts only. You must reach out to our Client Success team to set up this type of transfer with your institution.  

Full in-cash transfers

Your institution will sell all your shares and move the money to us. Please note:

• Your institution may not be able to sell some assets, such as GICs.
• If you have mutual funds, your institution may charge additional non-refundable fees to sell.

Partial cash transfers

Your institution will transfer the amount of cash you requested to us. 

Partial USD Cash transfers are not supported at the moment.

After your institutional transfer is complete, we'll automatically deposit USD assets and cash in your USD account if you have one open.

If you don’t have a USD account, we'll automatically deposit your USD assets and cash into your CAD account. We convert USD cash into CAD upon receipt and charge a 0.4% conversion fee.

Dual-listed securities

A dual listed security is a stock that's traded on both a Canadian and an American stock exchange, like the TSX or the NASDAQ. Wealthsimple does not support dual-listed securities. If you hold a security on a U.S. exchange that is dual-listed on a Canadian exchange, we'll automatically replace the stock’s currency symbol with the one that we support.

You can verify which exchange your asset is held on at Wealthsimple by searching for the ticker symbol in your Wealthsimple app.

Yes. If you plan to transfer a joint account (including Spousal RRSP, RESP, etc.), please ensure that both owners are existing Wealthsimple clients with opened accounts.

Additionally, both owners need to sign the transfer form before our back-office can send off your transfer request.

LIRAs and LIFs have jurisdictions, or a specified region the account was created in. If you’re transferring this type of account, please confirm that the jurisdiction on Wealthsimple’s side matches the jurisdiction of the account at your relinquishing institution.

If you're unsure which jurisdiction your account was created in, you can check your account statement or reach out to your financial institution for help.

Unlike Wealthsimple, most institutions typically charge a  $50 – $150 administrative fee to transfer your account. We'll automatically reimburse the transfer-out fees charged by your brokerage when you move at least $15,000 to us. Conditions apply. Learn more about our transfer fee reimbursement policy.

With that in mind, your institution might charge other fees that we won’t be able to cover, and you can contact your institution to confirm their comprehensive list of fees they will charge on your transfer. Please direct all questions about transfer fees to your originating financial institution as transfer fee costs vary. 

Verify that your Wealthsimple account information matches your bank's
Double-check the account number, full name, SIN, residential address and date of birth. Ask your bank to update your details if the information doesn’t match. Alternatively, send us an email and we can amend the transfer form for you.

Create the most accurate digital signature you can
If you notice that the signature on your transfer form is drastically different from your regular signature, then it is possible that your financial institution may reject our request.

Be aware of transfer fees from your institution

Your institution may charge a transfer-out fee and this will be deducted from your account value. Transfers of at least $15,000 are eligible for a transfer-out fee reimbursement. Conditions apply. Learn more about our transfer fee reimbursement policy.

Make sure you’re transferring into the same type of account

When transferring investment accounts, it is important that the account you have with your bank matches the investment account you have at Wealthsimple. For example: if you're transferring a RRSP, make sure you open a RRSP at Wealthsimple. Additionally, for LIRA/LIF transfers, please ensure that the jurisdictions between your Wealthsimple account and external institution's account match.

We’ll automatically reimburse the transfer-out fees charged by your institution when you transfer at least $15,000 to us.

If you transfer more than once from the same account at the same institution, you'll only be reimbursed once. See our transfer fee reimbursement policy for more details.

Once the transfer request is submitted, you can let your institution know about the incoming request. Typically, we’ve found that contacting your institution 5 days after you’ve set the transfer up can help expedite your transfer’s processing time.

Check in on the status of your transfer by following these steps:

1. Sign in to the Wealthsimple app on your mobile device.
2. Tap on the account your transfer is going into.
3. At the top of the account details, tap on the status.
4. Here, you’ll see an update on your transfer.

Here's a list of what the different statuses mean: 

In-progress

Your transfer requires no action from you at the moment.

Transferring

We’ve received confirmation that your assets are on their way! Heads up - cash and securities might arrive at separate times, and your bank will show that funds have left your account before they show up here.

Completed

At this point, the transfer request has been officially marked as completed. You should receive a confirmation email and if your transfer is above $15,000, you'll automatically receive a transfer-out fee reimbursement. Conditions apply. Learn more about our transfer fee reimbursement policy.

Upload your statement

After submitting your request, we received confirmation that some details on your transfer request might not match. We’ll need your help by submitting a full PDF statement of your account to get your transfer back on track. 

Action required

We need your help completing this transfer. Our team will reach out to you via email with further instructions in the next few days.

Below are the average transfer completion timeline for the most popular institutions:

This is a normal step for your bank to show that funds have left before they show up here. Please note that sometimes, cash and securities might arrive at slightly separate times or days.  

Depending on your institution, the completion time will vary depending on the different transfer method they use. Transfers from institutions that send out cheques will typically take a couple of weeks longer than electronic transfers. Hang tight, we’ll send an email confirmation once the transfer is confirmed complete and our team will notify you if anything else is needed.

Transfer methods for most popular institutions 

We have a team dedicated to following up with institutions on all transfers since institutions may not always notify us if there’s an issue. Please check your transfer status in the section above for the next steps.

If the status says Action required, follow the instructions. Otherwise, please consider contacting your institution and asking them for a status update on the transfer, or to expedite your transfer. You can also check the average transfer timelines for the most popular financial institutions. 

There are 2 steps to cancelling your transfer: 

1. Contact our Client Success team to let them know that you want to cancel your transfer.
2. Then, contact your institution and confirm that they cancelled the request on their end.

We’re sorry to see you go. The standard way to transfer out of Wealthsimple is to set up the request at the institution you’re leaving to. They’ll send Wealthsimple the request, and we’ll send them the funds. Contact the other institution for any other questions as each institution has their own process. For more details, please see this article.