BMO Institution Number (001), Transit Number and SWIFT Code

Bank of Montreal uses institution number 001, and the SWIFT code BMO lists for money coming from overseas is BOFMCAM2. The transit, by contrast, is your own branch’s number: BMO’s wire list asks for your branch’s transit, and Payments Canada calls it the branch transit. Here you’ll find the numbers in a table, BMO’s list for a wire sender, the void cheque steps and where BMO’s branches are listed.

BMO numbers at a glance

BMO doesn’t state how many digits its transit numbers have; Payments Canada’s routing format uses a 5-digit branch transit. In the cheque layout the transit leads and the institution number follows a dash, and in the electronic layout a zero comes first, then institution, then transit. Side-by-side examples of both, with the background, are in the routing numbers guide.

Receiving a wire at BMO: SWIFT code and details

BMO’s page on receiving money from abroad sets out what to pass to the sender:

Your account number; your BMO branch's phone number, address and transit number; the bank's name (Bank of Montreal); BMO's institution number; and BMO's SWIFT BIC for money coming from overseas.

BMO gives this code for money coming from overseas. For wires coming from the U.S., BMO also lists a correspondent bank, BMO Bank N.A., for the sender to include.

BMO’s page carries the codes for that correspondent; they aren’t reprinted here. The codes other Canadian banks use are on SWIFT codes for Canadian banks, BMO’s wire fees and limits on the wire transfers table, and the sender’s process on sending money to Canada.

Where to find your BMO transit and account number

In BMO’s direct deposit guide, your account details come as a void cheque: in Online Banking it is in the Account Details box of the chosen account, and in the BMO Mobile app it is a download under Account Details. Payments Canada says banking details usually sit in the line printed across the bottom of a cheque (see where the numbers are on a cheque). The steps are in the next section. BMO’s branch locator labels each result with a “Branch Transit #”.

BMO void cheque and direct deposit form

Online Banking: choose the account, then Void Cheque in the Account Details box. BMO Mobile app: Account Details, then scroll down to Void cheque and select Download.

BMO’s direct deposit guide is a one-page visual walk-through of those steps, and it points to CRA direct deposit for government payments. Payments Canada notes that a payer asks for a void cheque to check the details you’ve given. The general steps are on how to void a cheque, the employer’s side on setting up direct deposit, and federal benefits on CRA direct deposit.

BMO hours, phone and help

BMO’s branch locator lists each branch with its “Branch Transit #”. For a lost card there’s BMO’s card help; for a complaint, bank complaints; for closures, bank holidays.

BMO’s accounts and fees are on the BMO banking overview, and other banks’ codes on institution numbers.