When I started index investing in Canada, I was fortunate like many others to find the model portfolio of Dan Bartoloti on Canadian Couch Potato.
I was able to choose the portfolio that helped me start while learning instead of worrying that I didn’t know enough.
That investment portfolio is TD e-Series (mutual fund) placed in a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP).
Regularly investing while continuously learning made me more confident to choose and invest in exchange-traded fund (ETF) which I’ve been doing in my TFSA.
Why not do the same to my RRSP?
So, after filing my income tax return, I decided to transfer my TD e-Series to Questrade, an online discount brokerage.
Steps on How to Transfer TD e-Series to Questrade
I wasn’t able to find a post on how to do it online but the chat on Questrade and discussion on Reddit led me to the right path.
#1: Have your personal information at hand like employment, net worth etc. Scan an ID (eg. driver’s license) back to back.
#2: Open up a registered account on Questrade. I chose RRSP because my TD e-Series was invested through RRSP in TD Canada Trust. Transferring an investment from one RRSP to another RRSP wouldn’t be consider a withdrawal, allowing me to defer taxes for any capital gains.
#3: Fund the account on Questrade. The process of transferring starts here. Get ready with your TD Institution Information.
Institution: TD Canada Trust
Your account# (TD)
Address, City, Province, Postal Code, and Country
Institution phone #: I choose the TD branch where I opened my RRSP account
Contact phone #: I leave it blank
Contact name: I leave it blank
Transfer type: All in cash (the convenient way to to Transfer TD e-Series funds to Questrade)
Approximate value: Log in to TD account and look for the current market value of the fund
What are the differences of types of transfers?
Definitions are from Questrade’s website.
All in cash: Your financial institution liquidates all of your securities and transfers the funds to your Questrade account.
All in kind: Your financial institution transfers all of your cash and securities exactly as they are from your current account to your Questrade account.
Partial transfer: Your financial institution transfers only your requested securities and/or amount of cash to your Questrade account.
#4: Wait for the confirmation of the transfer through email. It takes 10-20 days to transfer TD e-Series to Questrade.
#5: Buy ETFs based on your preferred asset allocation. Use the Canadian Couch Potato’s model portfolio as a guide.
What are the Fees
My TD chequing account was charged with $78.95 for the the transfer. While I spent nothing on Questrade.
I’m not sure what’s the standard fee for redeeming mutual funds then moving it to another brokerage, but I rather pay for the fee now, than keep on delaying the transfer.
And this is what Questrade has to say about the fees.
Please be advised that we do not charge any fees to transfer accounts into Questrade. The other institution may charge you and you would have to confirm with them. We will however, rebate the fee up to $150 if the account being transferred is $25,000 or more.
Though, I’m not qualified for the rebate, my feedback would remain. I commend their customer service which reminds me to answer the customer survey, let them know that they are doing a good job.
How to Fund Questrade
To start investing more, you can fund your Questrade account through any Canadian chequing account.
Simply log in to your bank account and add Questrade to the list of payee as if paying a credit card account. Treat your investment like a monthly mandatory expense. Pay yourself first.
So if you have TFSA and RRSP accounts on Questrade, you’ll have to pay separately for each account.
What’s in My RRSP
While most of the time iShares and Vanguard are the recommended ETFs, I opted for BMO ETFs since the fees (eg. MER = management expense ratio) are getting lower while giving good return on investment through dividends and price appreciation.
My Canadian ETFs and stocks are invested in TFSA. For ETFs, I use BMO ETF Tools (comparison, screener, and proposal generator) to get more details before I settle for an investment.
While my RRSP has the following ETFs:
ZSP (BMO S&P 500 Index ETF): MER = 0.09%, Management Fee = 0.08%
ZEA (BMO MSCI EAFE Index ETF): MER = 0.22%, Management Fee = 0.20%
ZAG (BMO Aggregate Bond Index ETF): MER = 0.10%, Management Fee = 0.09%
HMMJ (Horizons Marijuana Life Sciences Index ETF): MER = 0.10%, Management Fee = 0.75%
I wanted for a long time to invest in cannabis and HMMJ does the job while also adding diversification not only in sector but also geographically (Canada, United States, and Europe).
Top 3 Holdings of HMMJ:
CGC – Canopy Growth Corp.
ACB – Aurora Cannabis Inc.
APH – Aphria Inc.
Not long ago, I also bought Organigram (OGI) which I have no intention of selling for now since it’s only a small investment. But I will have to sell OGI because it is also one of HMMJ’s holdings. Double exposure.
It maybe a small loss or a huge gain or merely a breakeven. Whatever happens to weed stocks or ETFs, I’m ready for it.
Update: The Next Calendar Year
As part of preparing for the filling of income tax return in Canada, I downloaded my RRSP tax receipt on Questrade in February.
Sure enough, I will only declare the amount I deposited on the account after the in-cash transfer from TD.
All things worked according to what I hoped for. Cheers!
Final Thoughts
If you want to transfer TD e-Series to Questrade or other brokerage do so after March if it’s in an RRSP to avoid having any trouble during the filing of income tax return.
Lastly, don’t be intimidated by online transferring.
It will always be the case if you choose an online discount brokerage like Questrade. If you are ready to become a do-it-yourself investor, choose stocks, exchange-traded fund, or mutual fund after doing the necessary researches. Notice the emphasis in after.
What model portfolio did you start with? Are you ready to become a DIY investor?
It takes 20-30 days to transfer TD eseries to Questrade. How long would this money be out of the market? The whole time?
Why did you choose ZEA and ZSP and not VCN and XAW?
That’s a good question. At that time, I compared their charts and found that BMO ETFs were a bit higher and less volatile. So instead of owning different ETFs from iShares and Vanguard, I decided to go for BMO. Who knows what I’ll buy next time; what matter is to keep on learning and investing.