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GICs in Canada: Rates, Types, Calculators and Guides

Updated

A Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC) is a fixed-term deposit: you lend a bank, trust company or credit union a set amount for a set term, and it returns the principal plus a promised rate of interest. The pages below each answer one question about GICs. The complete GIC guide is the place to start if you are new to them.

Start here

  • GIC guide for Canada: how GICs work, the main types, where to buy one and how GICs fit next to other savings.
  • Best GIC rates in Canada: posted 1-, 2- and 5-year rates at named banks and online institutions, plus minimum deposits by institution.
  • GIC calculator: maturity value and interest earned for any amount, rate, term and compounding frequency, with a worked $10,000 example.

Choosing a GIC

  • Cashable vs non-redeemable GICs: what early access costs in rate, and what happens if you need the money before maturity.
  • Market-linked GICs: how minimum and maximum returns, participation rates and missing dividends shape the return.
  • How to build a GIC ladder: splitting a sum across staggered terms for yearly access and a blended rate.
  • Business GICs: GICs for corporate cash, CDIC coverage by business structure and the passive-income tax rules.

Tax and safety

  • How GIC interest is taxed: the annual accrual rule, T5 slips and holding GICs in a TFSA, RRSP or RRIF.
  • Are GICs safe?: CDIC and provincial credit union coverage, and the ways a GIC can still leave you behind (inflation, early redemption, uninsured amounts).
  • GICs inside a TFSA: how a TFSA GIC works and how it compares with a non-registered one (TFSA hub).

GICs compared with other options

  • GIC vs HISA: locked-in rate against a variable rate with daily access.
  • GIC vs bonds: guaranteed principal against a tradeable bond or bond ETF.
  • Term deposit vs GIC: what the two labels mean in Canada and where they differ.