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Proof of funds is one of the quieter requirements of Express Entry, but it catches a lot of applicants off guard. It is IRCC's way of checking that you can support yourself, and any dependants, after you arrive in Canada and before you start earning Canadian income. You may also see it called "sufficient funds" or "settlement funds." It is the same thing.
Proof of funds is required for the Federal Skilled Worker (FSW) and Federal Skilled Trades (FST) programs. It is not required for the Canadian Experience Class (CEC).
Even under FSW or FST, you do not need to show funds if you have a valid job offer in Canada and you are currently authorised to work in Canada. Both conditions must be true together.
For the Provincial Nominee Program, the answer varies. Some provinces and streams require proof of funds, some do not. Check the specific stream you are applying to.
The required amount scales with family size, and it counts every member of your family, including dependants who are not accompanying you to Canada. IRCC publishes a table of minimums and updates it roughly once a year based on Statistics Canada's low income cut-off (LICO).
We deliberately do not list figures here because they shift. Always check the current table on IRCC's proof of funds page before you submit anything.
The money must be readily available. That means liquid, in your own name or jointly with a spouse who is immigrating with you, and shown through official bank letters.
Counts:
Does not count:
IRCC generally wants to see that the money has sat in your accounts for some time, or is otherwise traceable to a legitimate source. Officers can ask for balance history over the previous six months to confirm the funds are not borrowed. If you received a large gift or transfer recently, be ready to explain where it came from.
Each letter must be printed on the bank's official letterhead and include:
Funds must be expressed in Canadian dollars. If your money is held in another currency, IRCC converts it using the Bank of Canada exchange rate on the date of assessment.
At profile creation, you simply declare the amount you have available. You only upload the bank documentation after you receive an Invitation to Apply (ITA), as part of your permanent residence application. Many candidates expect to need paperwork at the profile stage and are relieved to learn they do not.
Proof of funds is money you have to go and gather, not a fact about who you are, so our report treats it as a step rather than a test you failed. Every Canadian route we carry that has a settlement-funds requirement shows it as an action still open to you, and hands you "Gather proof of settlement funds" as a required checklist step linking IRCC's own table, so the figure you work towards is the current one rather than a number copied into an article. On the federal skilled worker route the report also applies IRCC's exemption from your work history rather than asking you about it again: where your jobs show you are currently working in Canada, or you hold a Canadian job offer, that requirement is met without any funds at all. And it follows the Canadian Experience Class exactly as IRCC does: no funds requirement, so no step.
The same step turns up well beyond Express Entry, which is the part that is hard to see one programme page at a time: on the Atlantic program and the two community immigration programs, on the Nova Scotia and Manitoba skilled worker streams, and on the study permit and working holiday routes. Answering once puts all of them in a single list, so you can see whether the money question follows you across the routes you are weighing up or only lands on one of them.
What it does not do: it does not ask for your bank balance, it does not work out the dollar figure for your family size (that is IRCC's table, and it moves), and it never tells you that you qualify.
If you're still sizing up Express Entry overall, start with the free Express Entry eligibility checker and the free CRS calculator to see where you stand today. When you want the funds question answered for every Canadian route at once rather than for Express Entry alone, answer the free questionnaire: the questions are free, the eligibility summary at the end is free, and payment unlocks the full report with the checklist behind each route.
Answer our free questionnaire and see your eligibility summary instantly. You only pay to unlock your full personalized immigration report.