As of December 1st, 2025, Canadians can access bank accounts costing no more than $4 per month as part of a new (or modernized, as the FCAC is referring to it as) Commitment on Low-Cost and No-Cost Accounts from the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) announced in June 2025. This is an update from the 2014 Low-Cost and No-Cost Account Commitment.

Under the modernized Commitment, the FCAC aims to ensure Canadians can access low-cost accounts offering up to 50% more debit transactions per month. These include widely used transaction types, such as electronic fund transfers (e.g., Interac e-Transfers). More groups are eligible for accounts costing $0 per month, including newcomers to Canada in their first year, plus at least one of the following groups, to be selected by each signatory:

• Indigenous peoples;
• Canadians receiving social assistance payments from select provincial or territorial programs; and 
• recipients of the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) and/or their supporting family member. 

The FCAC expects signatories to meet all the requirements and will monitor their compliance with the Commitment.

There are 14 financial institutions offering accounts under this new Commitment, including Alterna Bank and Innovation Federal Credit Union.  

Please contact Sabena Sandhu or Pragya Anand if you have any questions.