TFSA GIC: holding a GIC in a TFSA
Which issuers hold a GIC in a TFSA, what the 2026 contribution limit is, and what a TFSA GIC keeps that the same rate held non-registered does not.
Illustrative marginal rates, not a calculation of your own. Combined federal and provincial marginal rates vary by province and by income.
Which banks hold a GIC in a TFSA?
26 of the 28 issuers this site tracks say on their own sites that they will. Their posted non-redeemable rates are below, ranked by the 5-year term.
| # | Institution | 1Y | 2Y | 3Y | 5Y |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | WealthONE Bank of CanadaCDIC · $1,000 min | 3.70% | 3.95% | 4.05% | 4.30% |
| 02 | Oaken FinancialCDIC · $1,000 min | 3.55% | 3.90% | 4.00% | 4.25% |
| 03 | Achieva FinancialDGCM · $1,000 min | 3.65% | 3.75% | 3.95% | 4.10% |
| 04 | Saven FinancialFSRA · $1,000 min | 3.70% | 3.85% | 3.95% | 4.10% |
| 05 | EQ BankCDIC | 3.40% | 3.65% | 3.80% | 4.00% |
| 06 | TangerineCDIC | 3.30% | 3.65% | 3.75% | 4.00% |
| 07 | Meridian Credit UnionFSRA · $100 min | 3.10% | 3.50% | 3.70% | 4.00% |
| 08 | Northern Credit UnionFSRA · $1,000 min | 2.90% | 3.35% | 3.50% | 4.00% |
| 09 | Kindred Credit UnionFSRA · $500 min | 3.10% | 3.30% | 3.75% | 4.00% |
| 10 | DUCA Credit UnionFSRA · $500 min | 3.10% | 3.45% | 3.60% | 3.85% |
| 11 | Coast Capital SavingsCDIC · $500 min | 2.90% | 3.50% | 3.50% | 3.80% |
| 12 | Tru Cooperative BankCDIC · $500 min | 3.21% | 3.51% | 3.61% | 3.71% |
| 13 | Beem Credit UnionCUDIC · $500 min | 3.15% | 3.30% | 3.45% | 3.65% |
| 14 | VancityCUDIC · $500 min | 3.00% | 3.10% | 3.55% | 3.60% |
| 15 | FirstOntario Credit UnionFSRA · $1,000 min | 3.00% | 3.20% | 3.35% | 3.50% |
| 16 | National Bank of CanadaCDIC · $500 min | 2.85% | 3.25% | 3.15% | 3.35% |
| 17 | ATB FinancialGovernment of Alberta · $1,000 min | 3.00% | 3.00% | 3.00% | 3.35% |
| 18 | Alterna SavingsFSRA · $500 min | 2.65% | 2.85% | 3.10% | 3.30% |
| 19 | Tandia Financial Credit UnionFSRA · $500 min | 2.65% | 2.85% | 3.10% | 3.30% |
| 20 | Libro Credit UnionFSRA · $1,000 min | 3.05% | 3.15% | 3.25% | 3.20% |
| 21 | TD BankCDIC | 2.70% | 2.80% | 2.85% | 3.10% |
| 22 | BMOCDIC · $1,000 min | 2.70% | 2.75% | 2.85% | 3.10% |
| 23 | Servus Credit UnionCUDGC · $1,000 min | 2.70% | 2.75% | 2.85% | 3.10% |
| 24 | RBC Royal BankCDIC | 2.45% | 2.55% | 2.55% | 2.75% |
| 25 | ScotiabankCDIC | 2.45% | 2.50% | 2.60% | 2.75% |
| 26 | CIBCCDIC · $1,000 min | 2.45% | 2.55% | 2.60% | 2.75% |
These are the posted non-registered rates, checked against each issuer's own page each month. Most issuers pay the same rate inside a plan. Check the issuer's own page before you apply.
Who is left out of this table, and where each issuer's eligibility was read
Not in this table: MCAN Wealth (sells registered GICs through deposit brokers only, not directly); Simplii Financial (its site does not say).
Eligibility was read from each issuer's own site on Sep 6, 2026: WealthONE Bank of Canada, Oaken Financial, Achieva Financial, Saven Financial, EQ Bank, Tangerine, Meridian Credit Union, Northern Credit Union, Kindred Credit Union, DUCA Credit Union, Coast Capital Savings, Tru Cooperative Bank, Beem Credit Union, Vancity, FirstOntario Credit Union, National Bank of Canada, ATB Financial, Alterna Savings, Tandia Financial Credit Union, Libro Credit Union, TD Bank, BMO, Servus Credit Union, RBC Royal Bank, Scotiabank, CIBC.
What is a TFSA GIC?
A GIC bought inside a tax-free savings account. Same issuer, same posted rate, same deposit insurance, and no tax on the interest.
Outside a registered plan, GIC interest accrues to you every year and is taxable in that year, even on a five-year term that pays nothing until it matures. GICs are listed by the CRA among the investments a TFSA may hold, so the rule allows it. What varies is whether your issuer offers it.
How does a TFSA GIC work with contribution room?
The contribution uses room. The interest does not.
The CRA sets the annual TFSA dollar limit at $7,000 for 2026, and it has set one every year since 2009. Someone who was 18 or older and resident in Canada throughout, and who has never contributed, has $109,000 of room today. That total is the sum of the CRA's published annual limits rather than a figure the CRA prints, so confirm your own room in your CRA account before you act on it.
Interest earned inside the account is not a contribution and creates no new room. In the CRA's words, "Any earnings you make from your TFSA do not decrease your contribution room. Likewise, any losses you have do not increase your contribution room." A $25,000 GIC that matures at $30,858 has used $25,000 of room, and the interest sits in the account without touching it.
Sources: CRA, MP, DB, RRSP, DPSP, ALDA, TFSA limits and CRA, Before you contribute to a TFSA.
What happens when a TFSA GIC matures?
It pays into the TFSA, untaxed and unreported, and the issuer usually renews it for you unless you say otherwise.
Do three things before the maturity date. Check what the renewal rate is, because a posted renewal rate is rarely the rate that won you the account. Decide whether the money stays in the plan, since taking it out is a withdrawal with consequences for your room. And if you are moving to a better rate at another issuer, ask for a transfer between TFSAs rather than withdrawing and re-contributing, which keeps the room intact.
Our rate alert exists for this: a reminder 30 days before your own GIC matures, with that month's table.
The withdrawal timing trap
Withdrawn room comes back on 1 January of the following year, not immediately.
The CRA is explicit: "When you withdraw from your TFSA, you will regain the same amount as new available contribution room on January 1 of the following year." So a GIC that matures in November, is withdrawn, and is put back in December is not a wash. It is a fresh contribution against room you no longer have, and the over-contribution penalty applies to every month the excess sits there.
Waiting until January costs nothing and removes the problem entirely. A GIC makes this mistake easier than a savings account does, because a maturity date is a natural moment to move money.
TFSA GIC rates against the same GIC held non-registered
Interest kept on $25,000 at the best rates on this page, 3.70% for one year and 4.30% for five, both from WealthONE Bank of Canada. Inside a TFSA you keep all of it. Outside one, you keep what is left after tax at your marginal rate.
| Interest kept on $25,000 | 1 year at 3.70% | 5 years at 4.30% |
|---|---|---|
| In a TFSANo tax on the interest | $925 | $5,858 |
| Non-registered, 20% marginal rate | $740 | $4,686 |
| Non-registered, 30% marginal rate | $647 | $4,100 |
| Non-registered, 45% marginal rate | $509 | $3,222 |
The marginal rates are illustrative. Your own combined federal and provincial rate depends on your province and your income.
How the after-tax figures are worked out
Each figure is the interest a $25,000 GIC earns at that rate over the term, compounded annually. The non-registered rows keep that interest less tax at the marginal rate shown. Outside a plan the tax is due each year as the interest accrues, even though a non-redeemable GIC pays nothing until it matures, so it is paid from other money along the way.
Compare the same terms outside a plan on the 1-year and 5-year pages, or see the retirement version on GICs in an RRSP, where the tax is deferred rather than removed.
Common questions about TFSA GICs
Can I buy a GIC in my TFSA?
Yes, at 26 of the 28 issuers this site tracks. A GIC is a qualified investment for a TFSA, but the account has to be open at the institution holding the GIC, so in practice it is the issuer rather than the rule that decides.
Can I transfer a GIC to a TFSA?
A GIC held outside a registered plan can be contributed in kind to a self-directed TFSA without being sold first, where the issuer supports it, and it uses contribution room equal to the value transferred. A branch term deposit usually cannot move that way, so the practical answer is to wait for maturity and buy the next one inside the plan.
How does a TFSA GIC work if I need the money early?
It does not come out early. A non-redeemable GIC inside a TFSA is locked to maturity exactly as it is outside one, because the account changes the tax and not the term. After it matures, a withdrawal returns that contribution room on 1 January of the following year rather than at once.
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