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Express Entry Proof of Funds Calculator

Settlement funds by family size.

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Questions

How much money do I need for Express Entry?

It depends only on family size, and the amounts are 50% of Statistics Canada's low-income cut-off. On IRCC's current table a single applicant needs $15,263 and a family of four needs $28,362, rising to $40,392 for seven people and $4,112 for each person beyond that. IRCC revises the whole table annually, usually in the summer, and updates it without warning — so budget above the line rather than at it, and check the date shown on this page against canada.ca before you submit.

Who does not need to show proof of funds?

Two groups. Anyone applying under the Canadian Experience Class is exempt entirely, and so is anyone who is authorised to work in Canada and has a valid job offer, even under the Federal Skilled Worker or Federal Skilled Trades programs. Both still upload a letter explaining the exemption in place of the document, because the system asks every applicant for one. Keep your funds listed in your profile regardless: IRCC can find you eligible under more than one program and you do not choose which you are invited under.

Who counts as a family member?

You, your spouse or common-law partner, your dependent children, and your partner's dependent children. They count even if they are not coming to Canada with you, and even if they are already Canadian citizens or permanent residents. That last rule surprises people every year: a permanent resident sponsoring nobody, married to a Canadian citizen, still calculates on a family of two.

What does IRCC accept as proof?

Official letters on letterhead from every bank or financial institution where you hold an account, showing their contact details, your name, your outstanding debts, and for each account the account number, the date it was opened, the current balance and the average balance over the past six months. The money must be legally accessible to you when you arrive: equity in property does not qualify, and money borrowed from another person does not qualify. It must be available both when you apply and when your permanent resident visa is issued.

How it works, and more about proof of funds

Where the numbers come from, and why they move

Settlement funds are not a fee and not a deposit. They are proof that you can support yourself and your family after you land, and IRCC sets the threshold at 50% of Statistics Canada’s low-income cut-off for your family size. Because the low-income cut-off is recalculated annually, so is this table — normally in the summer, and without a transition period.

That timing is the risk. A profile created with last year’s figure can quietly fall below the requirement the day the table changes, and IRCC has previously given candidates a matter of weeks to update their profile before the old number stopped being accepted. Budget above the line rather than at it, and check the date shown on this page against canada.ca before you submit anything.

Family size counts people who are not coming

Your family size includes you, your spouse or common-law partner, your dependent children, and your partner’s dependent children. All of them count even if they are not coming to Canada with you, and even if they are already Canadian citizens or permanent residents.

This surprises somebody every year. A candidate married to a Canadian citizen, applying alone, calculates on a family of two — and if they have two children, a family of four, whether or not any of them will ever board the plane. The logic is that you must be able to support your dependants wherever they are.

Who is exempt

Two groups do not have to show any funds at all:

  • Anyone applying under the Canadian Experience Class.
  • Anyone authorised to work in Canada who holds a valid job offer — this works even under the Federal Skilled Worker and Federal Skilled Trades programs.

Both still upload a letter explaining the exemption, because the system asks every applicant for a proof-of-funds document. And both should keep a real figure in their profile anyway: IRCC can find you eligible under more than one program, you do not choose which one you are invited under, and an exemption that applied to the program you expected does not help under the program you actually get.

Note the second exemption carefully, because it is the last thing a job offer does for you in Express Entry. The offer has been worth no CRS points since March 2025 — see the CRS calculator — but it still removes this requirement.

What IRCC accepts as proof

Official letters, on letterhead, from every bank or financial institution where you hold an account. Each letter must show the institution’s contact details, your name, your outstanding debts including credit cards and loans, and for every account: the account number, the date it was opened, the current balance, and the average balance over the past six months.

That last item is the one that quietly disqualifies people. A balance that appeared last week reads very differently from one that has been sitting there for six months, and the letter is required to show both. The money must also be legally accessible to you on arrival, which rules out equity in property and money borrowed from another person, and it must be available twice — when you apply, and again when your permanent resident visa is issued.

If your partner is coming with you, money in a joint account counts. Money in an account in your partner’s name alone may count, but you have to prove you can access it.

This is separate from the fees

Settlement funds are money that has to exist; they are never paid to anyone. The government fees are a different budget line entirely, and so are the language test, the credential assessment and the medical exams. Add those up on the immigration fee calculator and keep them out of the funds figure — spending your settlement funds on your application fees is a way to fail this requirement at exactly the wrong moment.

Sources. Amounts and documentary requirements from IRCC’s Express Entry proof of funds page, which dates the current table to 7 July 2025. All figures on this page were read from IRCC in August 2026. This is not immigration advice and this site is not affiliated with the Government of Canada.