What Is GIC Amount In Canada For International Students In 2023

What is a guaranteed investment fund (GIC)? This question comes to students’ minds when they first hear about GIC. 

So before we discuss what is GIC amount in Canada for international students, let’s learn something about GIC.

The essential prerequisite for students studying in Canada is to calculate their overall living cost for studying. 

It is a short-term investment for international students who take courses at Canadian universities.

The GIC is a one-year investment scheme. That’s why it is called a short-term investment. The international students need to submit the necessary documents and have to deposit one-year living expenses costs in any of the approved Canadian bank accounts in their respective names. 

International students need to apply for a GIC(Guaranteed Investment Certificate). All the international students who have taken the course under SDS (Student Direct Scheme) category GIC are mandatory.

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What Is GIC amount In Canada For International Students?

Students can deposit around $10,000 to $50,000 (approximately INR 6 lakhs – 29.79 lakhs) into their respective bank accounts for the GIC investment scheme. 

But, the GIC scheme recommends that international students deposit a minimum of $10,000 in their registered bank account. 

The remaining amount will be considered a non-redeemable amount. The student can withdraw a nominal amount along with that assured interest for a set period of time. 

They cannot withdraw this non-redeemable amount in the middle of the scheme, they can only get it by the end of the scheme.

Why Is GIC Mandatory In Canada?

Now When you know what is GIC amount in Canada for international students, let’s learn why GIC is mandatory in Canada.

1.  By providing a GIC certificate, you give assurance to the government that you have enough funds to meet your entire living expenses in Canada.
2. And also it speeds up the visa process. The candidate should deposit a minimum of $10,000 CAD in the registered bank account and get the GIC certificate. This GIC certificate acts as proof to speed up the visa process.             

Do you want to apply for a non-SDS visa for Canada, then you should read our blog, “Unveil Non-SDS Visa Success Rate In 2022.”

Eligibility To Apply Under SDS (Student Direct Stream):

Let’s now discuss eligibility to apply under SDS after learning about what is GIC amount in Canada for international students.

There are certain eligibility criteria for international students who apply for the GIC investment scheme. 

1. The first one is that students applying for GIC must be legal residents of one of the following countries.

• Antigua and Barbuda
• Brazil
• China
• Colombia
• Costa Rica
• India
• Morocco
• Pakistan
• Peru
• Philippines
• Senegal
• Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
• Trinidad and Tobago
• Vietnam

2. When you apply under the SDS category, you must have a GIC certificate.
3. You need to live outside of Canada.
4. Must have paid a one-year minimum guaranteed amount($10,000 CAD).
5. Have to bring a medical certificate(if needed).
6. Have to bring a police certificate(if needed).
7. Have to bring the most recent secondary school transcripts.
8. You have to attend one of the following tests.

• IELTS (International English Language Testing System) exam – In IELTS, you should pass reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills and should keep the score of a minimum grade of 6 in the IELTS exam.
• TEF (Test d’evaluation de français) exam -This TEF exam equals the Canadian Language Benchmark score. You have to get a minimum score of grade 7 in this exam.

These documents may vary for students applying from different places. You have to bring all the documents when you apply for the visa process under the SDS category.

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Students Who Are Not Eligible For Student Direct Stream

• Students not living in the countries mentioned above are not eligible to apply for a Student Direct Stream program. These students can apply for the regular study permit application process. These students have to wait more time until the process is complete.
• If the student doesn’t want the faster processing can also apply for a regular study permit application process. These students may or may not belong to one of the countries mentioned above.

Institution Of Finance That Offers GIC

You can get a GIC from a financial institute mentioned on the Canadian deposit insurance company website. Before applying for GIC, there are two points to notice.

1. The financial institute you choose offers GIC.
2. It provides a GIC  certificate under Student Direct Stream.

The below mentioned Financial institutes offer GUI under Student Direct Stream,

1. Bank of Beijing
2. Bank of China
3. Bank of Montreal (BMO)
4. Bank of Xian Co. Ltd.
5. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)
6. China Everbright Bank
7. DesjardinsFootnote1
8. Habib Canadian Bank
9. HSBC Bank Canada
10. ICICI Bank
11. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China
12. RBC Royal Bank
13. SBI Canada Bank
14. Scotiabank
15. Simplii Financial
16. TD Canada Trust

List Of The Banks Offering GIC Certificates To International Students

The students who apply for a GIC certificate must apply for a visa at least a month before. Several banks offer GIC certificates for international students. 

You have to give the necessary documents and deposit a minimum of $10,000 CAD in the registered bank account in your name. 

They will cross-check all the documents. This whole process might take one month to complete. The major banks that offer GIC certificates are,

• Scotiabank, Canada
• SBI, Canada
• The ICICI Bank, Canada

You can see the list of blacklisted colleges in Canada to avoid enrolling in a fake or blacklisted college.

Conclusion

In this blog, we have discussed what is GIC amount in Canada for international students.

We have also explained why GIC is mandatory in Canada and the eligibility to apply under the SDS scheme. 

After that, we explained about the students who are not eligible for the SDS scheme.

There is also a finance institutions list that offers GIC. There is also a list of banks that offers GIC for international students.

We hope we have cleared all your queries about what is GIC amount in Canada for international students. For more content like this, keep visiting CourseMentor™.

If you want a scholarship but don’t know how to get one. Then read our blog, “How to get Scholarship to Study Abroad For Indian Students?”

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