International Students

You are on: Get Organized

Get Organized

What an exciting time! You’ve arrived in Canada and are about to start your studies. While these first few days and weeks must seem overwhelming, tackling a few tasks each day will help you get settled quickly. Here are some tips that will help you get organized.

Find off-campus housing

Canadian universities and colleges usually have lots of housing options for students. If you’re looking for something off-campus one of the most important things you will need to consider is transportation. If you are not planning to buy a car in the near future, you may want to look at locations that are close to public transport. You can search rental listings in your local paper. You’ll also find helpful sites online, such as RentCanada and Viewit.ca where you can even look at pictures of apartments for rent.

 

Glossary - Rent

The amount of money, usually paid monthly, that a tenant pays a landlord in exchange for living accommodations.

 

Sometimes, you are required to sign a lease when you rent an apartment. A lease is a formal contract between you (the renter) and the owner, or a representative of the owner, of the property. Before you sign the lease, read it thoroughly and make sure you understand it. If your language skills prevent you from understanding the lease, you may want to have someone else there to translate.

 

Glossary - Lease

An agreement under which a person pays a monthly amount for the right to use a specific asset, such as a car, for a specified length of time.

 

Save money on public transit

With most public transit systems in Canada, it is cheaper to purchase several tickets or tokens at once, rather than to pay cash every time. If monthly and/or weekend travel passes are available, they may also help you save on the cost of travel. Learn more about various transit systems in Canada by visiting the links below.

• Calgary Transit
• ETS (Edmonton)
• Metro Transit (Halifax)
• OC Transpo (Ottawa)
• STM (Montreal)
• TTC (Toronto)
• TransLink (Vancouver)
• Winnipeg Transit

You are on: Prepare for School

Prepare for School

There are a lot of ways you can prepare for your new student life, beginning with attending your school’s orientation session. This is recommended in most Canadian post-secondary schools and for good reason: you’ll learn about what to expect from your courses, how to find the services that you need as well as about all the clubs, organizations, programs and services your school has to offer. It’s also a great opportunity to meet other students from abroad.

Here are some more useful tips:

Use your library for free Internet and other services

Your admission to a Canadian post-secondary school usually comes with free access to its libraries. Not only will this allow you to borrow books and other materials, most school libraries also offer free Internet access as well as workshops and guides to studying, researching and becoming a better student.

Check out International Student Associations and networks

These offer a great introduction to student life, allowing you to make new friends who share a similar background and benefit from more experienced foreign students.

Consider getting a part time job on campus

You are on: Arrange Finances

Arrange Finances

Now that you're in Canada, the first thing you'll want to do is open a banking account, if you haven't already. As a newcomer, we recommend you open your account in person at a bank branch.

Here are a few more things you might want to consider when it comes time to set up your finances:

Set up your bank account

An RBC advisor will help you through the account opening process. For your convenience, choose a branch that’s close to where you live or work. Under federal laws, you are required to bring two pieces of identification with you to open an account. Click here for a list of valid identification. When you open an RBC Royal Bank bank account, you’ll be given a personal Client Card for convenient and secure access to your money. You can activate this client Card immediately by choosing a numeric, confidential Personal Identification Number (PIN) that acts as your “electronic signature” whenever you use your Client Card.

 

Glossary - Client Card

This is provided to you when you open an account. It allows you to access your accounts while in your bank branch, at an ATM or store, or through online banking, often in combination with your Personal Identification Number (PIN) or RBC Online Banking password. Also known as a bank card or debit card.

 

 

Glossary - Personal Identification Number (PIN)

A password, usually four digits, created by the user to access his or her account, in combination with a Client Card, when making an ATM or point-of-sale transaction.

 

One of the most convenient ways to manage your funds is through Online Banking. You can use Online Banking to check your account balances, transfer funds between different accounts, pay bills and even send money overseas, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through RBC International Remittance^®.

Choosing from different account types

In Canada we have many different account options including:

• A banking or transaction account: This allows you to deposit and withdraw money from anywhere, any time you want.
• A savings account: This is for cash that you keep accessible but don’t need for day-to-day expenses.
• A G.I.C. (Guaranteed Investment Certificate): This is an individual investment with a guaranteed rate of return. GICs generally provide higher interest rate returns than savings accounts but access to your funds may be limited to the GIC maturity date.
 

Glossary - Guaranteed Investment Certificate (GIC)
A type of deposit investment that guarantees the investment principal and usually pays a predetermined rate of interest for a specified amount of time (the term).
 

Getting a Canadian credit card

One of the easiest and most effective ways to start building a credit history is to get a Canadian credit card such as an RBC Royal Bank credit card. As you use your credit card and make monthly payments, you will create a credit history. When you need more credit later on, your good credit history will help you achieve a more favourable credit score. Your credit history will help you qualify for a mortgage, a car loan or even a loan to start a business in the future.

 

Glossary - Credit history

A list of facts, gathered from financial institutions, retailers and other lenders, about how you have handled credit in the past. Most of this information stays in your file for seven years. This information forms a profile of your credit-worthiness, called your credit rating. Your credit rating is used to help banks and other companies to decide whether they will allow you to borrow money, and how much.

 

 

Glossary - Credit card

A plastic card that enables you to purchase items or services from a range of stores and establishments and pay for them at a later date. A minimum amount must be repaid each month. If you pay the full balance by the due date, no interest is charged.

 

 

Glossary - Mortgage

A loan secured by real property, typically a home.

 

 

Glossary - Loan

An agreement under which a borrower receives cash from a lender (often a bank) for a predetermined length of time at a given interest rate, generally with a stated repayment schedule. The principal must be paid back at a specified future date. Interim payments may consist of interest only or a blend of interest and principal. With a fixed-rate loan, the interest rate stays the same for the term of the loan. With a variable-rate loan, the interest rate changes with market rates.

 

Outside of building a Canadian credit history, a Canadian credit card will offer you the following benefits:

• It’s a convenient way to shop and pay for services.
• A credit card is essential for certain purchases, such as setting up contracts for a mobile phone, renting a car or shopping online. It enables you to make everyday purchases without carrying large amounts of cash.
• You’ll make purchases in Canadian funds and avoid exchange-rate costs.
• You can often use it as a form of identification.

Here are some good credit card practices that will help you build a strong credit history:

• Use your credit card only to make purchases you know you can afford to pay when the statement comes in.
• Pay off your credit card balance in full each month.
• If you choose not to pay off your balance in full, try to pay more than the minimum payment due.
• Ensure that your payment is received by the bank on or before the payment due date indicated on the statement.
• Limit the number of credit cards you use, so it’s easier to keep track of the money you owe.
• Memorize and protect your PIN at all times.

Check out our Banking Tutorial: Build your Credit History

Protecting your valuables with a safe deposit box

Need a safe place for your valuables? A safe deposit box is a convenient way to keep important documents and valuables secure yet accessible when you need them. Identification papers and jewelry are among the most common items people store in safe deposit boxes, which come in various sizes.

Visit an RBC Branch today

Create a budget to help manage day-to-day expenses

Creating a budget will help you manage your finances wisely. A budget can help you meet your short-term expenses and obligations with some money left over to enjoy student life on campus. Call 1-800-769-2511 and we’ll be happy to speak to you in the language of your choice.

 

Glossary - Budget

A document you create that lists all your fixed expenses (such as rent/mortgage, utilities, food), as well as discretionary spending, usually on a monthly basis.

 

Budget Calculator

You are on: Apply for Services

Apply for Services

While you can wait until you're more settled to apply for some government programs and services, here are a few that you might want to look into right away.

Applying for a S.I.N. Card

ll Canadian citizens, newcomers and temporary residents who want access to government programs or who want to work in Canada are required to have a Social Insurance Number (SIN) — a unique number that identifies each individual There is no fee to apply. You will need this number to file an income tax return and to receive government benefits and allowances. You will also need this number to access essential services like opening a bank account, as well as when you need to have a credit check done.

Applying for a SIN is easy to do through Service Canada with the following documentation:

• Landing papers or Permanent Resident Card
• Work or study permit for temporary residents
• Passport

Your new SIN number will be given to you immediately and your SIN card will be sent to you in the mail.

Health Insurance

Private health insurance is recommended in Canada, as health care costs can be very expensive. Before you purchase a plan privately, check first with your school as most post-secondary institutions have a mandatory health insurance plan.