Interac e-Transfer for business
Interac e-Transfer lets a customer send money from their Canadian bank account to yours using an email address or mobile number. It is a familiar alternative to cards for small businesses. It is quick and usually inexpensive per payment, but it is domestic only and a deposited transfer is generally hard to undo.
Key points
- Interac e-Transfer works between Canadian bank accounts; payers outside Canada need another rail.
- Once deposited, a transfer generally cannot be reversed by the sender, which shifts fraud and error risk.
- Business fees vary by bank and account plan, so check your own agreement rather than relying on averages.
- In an illustration, a flat per-transfer fee beats a percentage card fee once payments pass about $46.
How it works for a business
The payer logs in to their own online banking, chooses to send an e-Transfer, and enters your business email address or phone number along with the amount and an optional message. Depending on how your account is set up, the money either deposits automatically or waits for you to accept it, sometimes with a security question.
Because both sides are Canadian bank accounts, the funds land in Canadian dollars and are usually usable the same day. There is no processor statement to reconcile, but there is also no card-style dispute process sitting behind each payment.
Business versions of the service, offered through banks, may add features such as requesting money, bulk sending or richer remittance details. What is available depends on your bank and plan.
Domestic only
Interac e-Transfer is built for payers who hold accounts at Canadian financial institutions. A customer in another country, or a Canadian customer paying from a foreign account, will need a different rail such as a card, a wire or an on-chain payment.
That matters when you compare costs. If part of your volume comes from abroad, an e-Transfer-only plan is really an e-Transfer-plus-something plan, and the something often carries a foreign exchange spread. Our guide to cross-border payments from Canada covers those options.
Suppose $50,000 a month in $120 payments, 15% from outside Canada, with the cross-border share paid by card. Using the site's default assumptions (illustrative, not market data), the e-Transfer setup costs about $984 a month (1.97%) against about $1,815 (3.63%) for card on everything. A large part of the e-Transfer total comes from the $7,500 of foreign payments that still go to card.
Irreversible once deposited
A deposited e-Transfer is generally final from the sender's side. Unlike a card payment, there is no network-level chargeback. That cuts out a class of disputes, but it moves other risks onto you and your customer.
- Payments sent to the wrong address usually have to be resolved between the people involved, with their banks' help, rather than through an automatic reversal.
- Overpayment and refund requests need care: a fraudster may send a payment and then ask for part of it back by another route. The crypto payment scams guide describes similar overpayment patterns.
- Customer protection is thinner than with cards, which some buyers notice on larger purchases. A clear refund policy helps.
- Fraud reporting goes to your bank first; the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre also collects reports.
Irreversibility is the common thread between e-Transfers, wires and on-chain payments. Chargebacks vs irreversible payments compares the trade-offs.
What it costs
Business e-Transfer fees vary by bank and account plan. Some plans include a number of transfers; others charge per transfer received or sent. Read your account agreement and fee schedule, or ask your bank, for the figure that applies to you.
To show how a flat fee behaves, the table below uses an assumed $1.50 per transfer and an assumed card rate of 2.6% + $0.30. Both are illustrative defaults, not quotes. On those assumptions, the e-Transfer becomes cheaper than the card once a domestic payment exceeds about $46.15.
| Payment size | Card at 2.6% + $0.30 | e-Transfer at $1.50 |
|---|---|---|
| $40 | $1.34 | $1.50 |
| $120 | $3.42 | $1.50 |
| $5,000 | $130.30 | $1.50 |
Keeping records and reconciling
With no processor in the middle, matching each e-Transfer to an invoice is your job. A short routine keeps it manageable.
- Put a unique invoice number on every invoice and ask payers to include it in the transfer message.
- Use one dedicated business email address or number for receiving transfers so payments do not scatter across inboxes.
- Export your bank transactions regularly and match the sender name, amount and message to open invoices.
- Flag unmatched or duplicate payments for follow-up before issuing any refund.
- Keep the transfer confirmation and invoice together in your records for tax and audit purposes.
When it fits, and when it does not
e-Transfer tends to fit domestic invoices, deposits and repeat customers who already bank online, especially for mid-sized amounts where a percentage card fee would bite. It is a common choice for freelancers and trades invoicing Canadian clients.
It fits less well for high-volume online checkout, foreign customers, recurring billing that needs automatic pulls (EFT/PAD is built for that), or sales where buyers expect card-style dispute rights. For the wider picture, see payment rails in Canada, and run your own mix in the merchant scenario builder.
Questions people ask
How much does Interac e-Transfer cost a business?
It varies by bank and account plan. Check your account agreement or ask your bank; the $1.50 figure used on this page is an illustrative assumption, not a quote.
Can a customer cancel an e-Transfer after I receive it?
Once a transfer has been deposited it is generally final from the sender's side. Problems are usually resolved between the parties with their banks' involvement rather than by an automatic reversal.
Can international customers pay me by e-Transfer?
Generally no. It is designed for accounts at Canadian financial institutions, so foreign payers need another rail such as card, wire or an on-chain payment.
Sources
Reviewed October 30, 2026. Educational information only; not financial, legal, tax or investment advice. This site does not process payments or hold funds.