Paying a Canadian supplier in CAD or US dollars: institution and transit numbers instead of IBAN, Canada's own restrictions, and holidays in each province.
Estimate the minimum fee
The final fee and rate are fixed in the payment order
Minimum amount: 10,000 USD or equivalent
This is a minimum, not an offer or a rate lock. The final figure depends on the country, amount and the banks involved and is fixed in the payment order.
Request a quoteCanada has introduced its own restrictions on Russian companies and goods, and they are broader in scope than those of many countries. Canadian banks check a payment’s link to Russia strictly. So we start any request for Canada by asking whether the delivery itself is lawful, and only then look for a route. If the beneficiary, the goods or the service is prohibited, we tell you so before you transfer your roubles. We charge nothing for declining.
If everything is in order, we select from our pool an agent that can send money to the specific Canadian bank and fix the exchange rate and the fee in the payment order. You transfer the roubles after that. If you need a guarantee, until execution they wait in a special escrow account at a Russian bank: this scheme is on request and for an additional fee. Our work is paid for by the agent: the client does not pay VEDmost separately.
Usually these are goods and services not covered by the prohibitions: food, medicines and medical devices, software licenses, engineering and consulting services. The supplier also has its say on each product. A Canadian exporter is responsible for complying with its country’s rules and may withdraw from the deal even after an advance. The procedure for such a case is worth setting out in the contract in advance.
Canadian companies invoice both in Canadian dollars (CAD) and in US dollars. The difference is not only the exchange rate. US dollars to Canada usually go through a correspondent bank in the USA, so US rules also apply to the payment. Canadian dollars go through without this link. So the currency changes the route: sometimes there is a route in CAD and none in USD. You cannot change the currency without the supplier’s consent: first agree with the supplier and correct the invoice.
Canada has no IBAN format. The bank is identified by a three-digit institution number, the branch by a five-digit transit number, followed by the account number. Plus the bank’s SWIFT code. An error in the transit number sends the money to another branch, and the payment comes back with time lost. Take the details from a letter from the supplier’s bank or from its official letterhead, not from a sales manager’s email signature. Sometimes the supplier sends the institution and transit numbers as a single nine-digit string starting with zero: this is the format for domestic electronic transfers, and the same two numbers can be read from it.
Canadian companies’ documents show a nine-digit Business Number, and invoices often show a GST or HST registration number. This tax is usually not charged on exports from Canada: if it has ended up in the invoice, ask the supplier. Companies from Quebec write their documents in French and use the form Ltée instead of Ltd.
Besides the national dates, Canada Day on July 1 and Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October, each province has its own holidays. The beneficiary’s bank does not credit a transfer on a holiday in its province. Check where the branch is located if the payment is tied to a date.
Five steps, the same for every country. Country specifics are described above.
Beneficiary's country, amount, currency, the invoice and the contract or bill, your company's and the beneficiary's details. We review the request before any documents are signed.
We select a network company and a route and prepare the documents. You sign an agency agreement with that company, which sets the execution period, and a payment order: amount, exchange rate and fee. All of this before you transfer your roubles.
You transfer roubles to the network company from your account at a Russian bank. If you need a guarantee, they wait for execution in a special escrow account, for an additional fee.
The agent sends the currency to the beneficiary under this payment order. A sub-agent is engaged only with your consent. The route does not change without a payment order.
We send you the payment confirmation, and a SWIFT confirmation on request. Then the completion certificate, the agent's report and the currency control package. The deal is not closed until the currency has been sent to the beneficiary.
If you need a guarantee, the payment goes through a special escrow account at a Russian bank: the roubles wait there until the agent sends the currency to the beneficiary and are released only upon execution. This scheme carries an additional fee, shown in the quote before the agreement.
The agent executes the payment within 3 business days: the period is written into the agency agreement.
If the beneficiary's bank accepts payment only from a specific payer, the agent engages a sub-agent. Only with your consent. Your agency agreement does not change.
For large volumes, on request, we assign an agent backed by a large exporter's surety; some companies in our network have one. It can be combined with escrow.
Tell us the rate you pay now or send your current agent’s documents. We’ll calculate the all-in cost with the FX markup and charges and look for a lower rate in our network. If there isn’t one, we’ll say so. The comparison is free.
We check each payment separately: the beneficiary, the goods, the currency and the bank. Canada maintains its own list of restrictions on deals with Russian companies. If no lawful route can be put together, we will tell you before you transfer your roubles.
In the invoice currency. US dollars to Canada usually go through a correspondent bank in the USA, Canadian dollars by their own path. The route depends on the choice of currency.
The bank's SWIFT code, the three-digit institution number, the five-digit branch transit number and the account number. Attach them exactly as the beneficiary's bank issued them.
No. Attach a translation into Russian or English for currency control. The company form there may be written in French: Inc. or Ltée.
Sales tax is usually not charged when goods are exported from Canada. If it has ended up in the invoice, check with the supplier before payment.
Describe the payment. We'll reply with a proposed route and terms. We name the agent in advance, and the rate and fee go into the payment order before your roubles are debited.