BMO InvestorLine Inc. RESP review

Supported grants and incentives

• Basic CESG: offered on the Canada.ca RESP promoters list.
• Additional CESG: offered on the Canada.ca RESP promoters list.
• Canada Learning Bond (CLB): offered on the Canada.ca RESP promoters list.
• B.C. Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG): marked N/A for BMO InvestorLine Inc. on the Canada.ca RESP promoters list.
• BMO InvestorLine's current RESP withdrawal forms reference QESI repayment, Releve 1 slips for Quebec residents, and Revenue Quebec, but the reviewed public opening materials did not clearly confirm current QESI support for new RESP openings.

Account types

• Individual RESP.
• Family RESP.
• BMO InvestorLine's brochure says RESPs are available only as Self-Directed accounts and not as adviceDirect accounts.

Fees

• No RESP administration fee when the account value is greater than or equal to $25,000.
• $50 annual administration fee for RESP accounts below $25,000.
• $9.95 per web-based stock trade according to the public commission schedule.
• $9.95 plus $1.25 per contract for listed options trades under the electronic pricing schedule.
• No commission applies to mutual fund buys, sells, or switches, but an early redemption fee of 1% can apply for funds held less than 90 days, subject to a minimum of $43 or $35 for electronic orders.
• $135 transfer-out fee according to the public commission and fee schedule.
• $2 monthly paper statement fee per account appears in the public fee schedule.
• BMO InvestorLine's fee schedule and client agreements indicate U.S.-dollar registered accounts exclude RESPs, so currency conversion and foreign-exchange treatment should be checked before using U.S.-listed securities or receiving U.S.-dollar distributions in the RESP.
• Other product-specific costs can still apply, including fixed-income pricing spreads, foreign exchange, and any fund-company fees.

Transfer process

• BMO InvestorLine uses its Authorization to Transfer Account form and asks for a recent statement from the delivering institution.
• Completed transfer forms can be dropped off at a BMO branch or mailed to BMO InvestorLine in Toronto.
• BMO InvestorLine says a transfer can take 10 to 45 business days depending on the delivering institution, transfer type, and positions being moved.
• The transfer form says the client's Social Insurance Number and name must match the information at both the delivering and receiving institutions.
• The transfer form says status can be checked through MyHoldings after sign-in or by phone.
• BMO InvestorLine says transfers from another BMO division are not automatic and can still take 5 to 21 business days.

Withdrawal process

• BMO InvestorLine uses one RESP withdrawal form for Educational Assistance Payments (EAPs) and Post-Secondary Education (PSE) capital withdrawals, and a separate form for non-PSE capital withdrawals, RRSP rollovers, and accumulated income payments (AIPs).
• The EAP/PSE form allows payment to a BMO InvestorLine non-registered account, a BMO bank account, an external bank account, or by cheque.
• BMO InvestorLine's educational withdrawal form shows the standard first-13-week limits of $8,000 for full-time study and $4,000 for part-time study unless a higher amount is approved under RESP rules.
• The current educational withdrawal form says receipts are required if an EAP request exceeds $29,459 in a calendar year.
• The form says valid proof of enrolment can include registrar-certified enrolment letters, course confirmations, receipted invoices, or secure student-website documents; offer letters, acceptance letters, and unpaid invoices are not enough by themselves.
• The form says reasonable-expense receipts can include education costs, living expenses, and special-needs supports, and that receipts cannot be reused for multiple EAP requests.
• BMO InvestorLine's client agreements say the subscriber must confirm in writing whether the beneficiary is a resident or non-resident of Canada before the first EAP is paid.
• For non-educational requests, BMO InvestorLine's non-PSE/AIP form says a portion or the remainder of CESG, CLB, and/or QESI will be repaid to the government and that sufficient cash must be available for the grant repayment.
• The current non-PSE/AIP form says AIP, RRSP rollover, or gift-to-educational-institution requests can require the RESP to terminate by the end of February in the following calendar year after the initial transaction.

Neutral comparison notes

• This is a self-directed brokerage RESP rather than the adviser-led BMO Investments Inc. RESP already reviewed on the site.
• Compared with BMO Investments Inc., the Canada.ca promoter row for BMO InvestorLine does not show BCTESG support.
• BMO InvestorLine publishes a clearer public brokerage fee schedule than some branch-led RESP providers, but total cost still depends on account size, trading activity, product mix, and any fund-company charges.
• The withdrawal forms are more specific than the high-level FAQ, especially for proof of enrolment, indexed EAP receipt thresholds, non-resident withholding, and grant repayment.
• Families planning to hold U.S.-listed securities should compare the RESP's currency handling with providers that explicitly support U.S.-dollar RESP sub-accounts, if that feature matters.
• Families comparing BMO-branded RESP options should separate BMO InvestorLine Inc., BMO Investments Inc., and BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. because Canada.ca lists them as different promoters with different grant-support rows.

Investment options noted on official pages

• Stocks.
• ETFs.
• Options.
• GICs.
• Fixed income.
• Mutual funds.
• BMO InvestorLine's materials describe the account as order-execution-only and self-directed, so families are responsible for choosing and monitoring investments rather than receiving portfolio recommendations through the Self-Directed service.

Sources to use