GIC early cash rules at Canadian banks
Cashing a GIC before the end of the term is not the same as moving an RRSP to another bank. Some GICs cannot be cashed early. Some pay no interest for a set number of days. One RBC product prints a $25 administration fee. This page is what each bank's own page printed on 20 October 2026. A US certificate of deposit is on [CD early withdrawal penalties](/guides/cd-early-withdrawal-penalties). An RRSP or TFSA transfer-out fee is on [RRSP and TFSA transfer fees](/guides/canada-registered-plan-transfer-fees).
Last updated: October 20, 2026
Last checked: Oct 2026
Where the page prints a dollar or a no-interest rule
Opened 20 October 2026. A service charge and a lost interest rate are different. If the page says there is a penalty and does not print the dollar, this guide does not invent one. The line on your own statement is the one that counts. Upload it on the upload page. The PDF stays on your device. Expenvo lists the lines. It does not sign in to the bank.
| GIC | What the page prints | What the same page also says |
|---|---|---|
| RBC redeemable and non-redeemable | No interest if a redeemable GIC is cashed in the first 29 days | Non-redeemable: no early access. Redeemable: interest is calculated daily if the GIC was held at least 30 days. The same disclosures say there is no fee to buy a GIC. A transfer out to another financial institution is $150, for registered and non-registered GICs. The non-registered transfer-out fee came into effect on 1 August 2022. That $150 is the transfer, not the early-cash interest rule. Registered plan transfers are on the RRSP page linked above. |
| RBC Prime-Linked Cashable GIC | $25.00 administration fee in the first 29 days | The special conditions define the administration fee as twenty-five dollars. If the deposit is redeemed in whole or in part during the first 29 days, no interest is payable on the amount withdrawn, and the fee may be deducted from the proceeds. A partial withdrawal must be at least $1,000, and at least $5,000 of principal must remain. If less than $5,000 would remain, the whole deposit is redeemed. |
| TD 3-Year Premium Rate Cashable | No interest if redeemed before 91 days | The page labels two columns. Non-registered and TFSA: minimum investment, withdrawal, and remaining balance of $1,000. Registered RSP: those minimums are $500. The interest rate on an earlier cash-out is the pre-encashment schedule from the day the GIC was issued. This is not the 1-year cashable row. |
| TD 1-Year Cashable | No penalty after 30 days | The page says you can cash this GIC after 30 days, in full or in part, without penalty. A 100-day cashable row on the same page is different: after 30 days, interest is paid at a prescribed early cashing rate, not described as without penalty. |
| TD Non-Cashable | Cannot be cashed before maturity | The page says the funds are locked in for the term. It does not print a dollar for an exception. |
| Scotiabank GICs | No service charge. Interest penalties may apply where a withdrawal is permitted | The investment fees table prints that sentence for Scotia GICs. The cashable terms say a cashable GIC redeemed within 30 days of the issue date pays no interest. Minimum withdrawal $500, and at least $500 must remain. A non-redeemable GIC is not redeemable before maturity except on the owner's death, and interest earned to that date is paid. |
Pages that do not print an early-cash dollar
EQ Bank's GIC page says EQ Bank GICs are non-redeemable, the minimum is $100, and there are no fees. Non-redeemable means the page is not offering an early cash-out price.
National Bank's redeemable GIC page says you can cash the investment at any time while protecting principal and interest. The minimum is $500 for an RRSP or TFSA and $1,000 for a non-registered plan. The page does not print a service charge. Protecting interest on that product is not a promise that every National Bank GIC works the same way.
BMO's GIC page says a cashable GIC can be redeemed before the term ends, and a non-cashable GIC cannot be redeemed early without paying a penalty. The page does not print the penalty dollar. This guide does not fill that gap from another site.
Questions
- Is RBC's $150 the cost of cashing a GIC early?
- No. The GIC disclosures call the $150 a transfer-out fee to another financial institution, for registered and non-registered GICs. Cashing a redeemable GIC early is the interest rule: no interest in the first 29 days, then daily interest. The Prime-Linked Cashable GIC adds a $25 administration fee in those first 29 days.
- Can every TD GIC be cashed early?
- No. The non-cashable page says it cannot be cashed before maturity. The 1-year cashable page says there is no penalty after 30 days. The 3-year premium rate cashable page says redemptions before 91 days pay no interest.
- Does Scotiabank charge a service fee to cash a GIC?
- The fees-at-a-glance table says there are no service charges on Scotia GICs, and that interest rate penalties may apply to a withdrawal before maturity where that withdrawal is permitted. A cashable GIC redeemed within 30 days pays no interest.
Sources
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