Quick Answer: A GIC (Guaranteed Investment Certificate) is not mandatory for most minor students applying to study in Canada, but it is the single strongest piece of proof of funds an immigration officer will accept, and families from India, Egypt, South Korea, and Bangladesh use it heavily because it removes doubt about where the money came from.

As of September 1, 2025, IRCC’s living cost benchmark is CAD 22,895 per year for a single applicant outside Quebec, on top of full first year tuition and travel, according to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

Minor children under 17 arriving without a parent must have a Canadian custodian and a notarized Custodianship Declaration (IMM 5646); custodianship becomes discretionary, not mandatory, between age 17 and the provincial age of majority.

This guide is built for parents in India, Egypt, South Korea, and Bangladesh planning a child’s move to a Canadian private or boarding school, where a GIC plus a clean paper trail of funds matters more than the total amount in the bank.

The tradeoff: a GIC only releases funds to the student in monthly installments after arrival, so families still need separate money on hand for tuition deposits, flights, and the first weeks before installments begin.

Key Highlights of GIC Requirement for Minor Students in Canada

● IRCC’s living cost proof of funds rose to CAD 22,895 for a single applicant outside Quebec effective September 1, 2025, up from CAD 20,635.

● The Student Direct Stream (SDS), which had a fixed CAD 10,000 to CAD 20,635 GIC requirement, was discontinued on November 8, 2024, so no fixed GIC minimum applies in the regular stream today.

● Custodianship is mandatory, with no exceptions, for any minor under 17 travelling without a parent or legal guardian, per IRCC’s guidelines on minor children.

● Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, and Saskatchewan set the age of majority at 18; British Columbia and the Atlantic and northern regions set it at 19.

● Form IMM 5646 is a two-page document: page one signed and notarized by the Canadian custodian, page two signed and notarized by the parents in the home country.

● A GIC releases funds to the student in monthly installments after arrival in Canada, so it does not cover tuition deposits or move-in costs due before the first installment lands.

GIC Requirement for Minor Students in Canada in 2026: Guide for Parents

If you are a parent in India, Egypt, South Korea, or Bangladesh planning to send your child to a private or boarding school in Canada, you have likely run into three unfamiliar terms in the same week: GIC, custodianship, and proof of funds. This guide explains what each one actually requires in 2026, what a GIC does and does not cover for a minor applicant, and how the custodianship rules change depending on your child’s age.

The short version: a GIC is not a legal requirement for most minor study permit applications, but it is the cleanest way to prove your child has guaranteed living funds waiting in Canada, and immigration officers treat it as a strong, low risk signal. Combined with the custodianship paperwork every minor under 17 needs, it forms the financial backbone of a well prepared application.

What a GIC Actually Is

A Guaranteed Investment Certificate is a savings product offered by Canadian banks. A parent deposits a lump sum before the child arrives, the bank issues a certificate confirming the deposit, and the funds are released to the student in monthly installments once they land in Canada. It exists to solve one specific problem for immigration officers: how do you verify that a family’s money will actually reach the student, rather than sitting untouched in a foreign account that gets closed the day after a visa is approved.

Since the Student Direct Stream (SDS) was discontinued on November 8, 2024, there is no longer a single fixed GIC amount tied to a fast track visa category. Regular stream applicants, including most minor students, can still purchase a GIC as one form of proof of funds, but it now sits alongside bank statements, sponsor letters, and education loan documents as one accepted option rather than a mandatory gate.

How Much Proof of Funds Does a Minor Student Actually Need

The living cost threshold applies to any study permit applicant, minor or adult. As of September 1, 2025, IRCC requires a single applicant outside Quebec to demonstrate CAD 22,895 in living expenses for the first year, separate from tuition and travel costs. Quebec sets its own, slightly higher figure.

Requirement	Amount (2026)	Notes
Living costs, single applicant, outside Quebec	CAD 22,895 per year	Effective since September 1, 2025; excludes tuition and travel
Living costs, Quebec-bound applicants	CAD 24,617 per year	Set separately from the rest of Canada
First-year tuition	Varies by school	Shown directly on the Letter of Acceptance
GIC amount if purchased voluntarily	Commonly CAD 20,635 to CAD 22,895	Not a fixed legal minimum since SDS ended; matches the living cost benchmark by convention

For K-12 students at a private school like USCA Academy, this proof of funds requirement applies once your child needs a study permit, which is generally the case for programs longer than six months where the child is not simply accompanying a parent who already holds Canadian work or study authorization. Families exploring boarding school options in Canada should plan for both the tuition figure on their Letter of Acceptance and this separate living cost benchmark.

Custodianship: The Requirement Families Often Miss

Custodianship is a separate legal requirement from proof of funds, and it trips up more families than the money question does. According to IRCC’s official guidelines on minor children, any minor under 17 who arrives in Canada without an accompanying parent or legal guardian must have a Canadian citizen or permanent resident appointed as their custodian.

Age Range	Custodianship Status	What This Means
Under 17	Mandatory, no exceptions	A Canadian custodian must be appointed and IMM 5646 completed before the study permit is approved
17 to age of majority	Discretionary	Visa officers may still request custodianship on a case by case basis, particularly for boarding students
At or above age of majority	Not required	The age of majority is 18 in most provinces including Ontario, and 19 in British Columbia and the Atlantic provinces

The custodianship form itself, IMM 5646, is a two-page notarized document. Page one is signed by the custodian in Canada and notarized there. Page two is signed by the parents in the home country and notarized locally, whether that is in Mumbai, Cairo, Seoul, or Dhaka. A mismatch between the two pages, or a missing notarization on either side, is one of the most common reasons this document gets sent back for correction.

Who can act as a custodian

A custodian must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, of the age of majority, with no criminal record that would affect their suitability. It can be a relative already living in Canada, a family friend, or in many cases the boarding school itself, if the school has an established custodianship program for international students. USCA Academy’s boarding program at its Mississauga campus supports families through exactly this step, since day to day custodianship for boarding students is one of the most common reasons families choose a boarding placement over a homestay.

Country Specific Notes for India, Egypt, South Korea, and Bangladesh

The core IRCC rules apply the same way regardless of the applicant’s country of origin, but the practical banking experience differs enough that it is worth addressing directly.

For families in India

Indian families are the most familiar with the GIC process, since India was historically one of the largest source countries for the discontinued SDS program. Most major Canadian banks, including ICICI Canada and Scotiabank, have established partnerships that let a GIC be purchased and funded from an Indian bank account before travel. Our guide on studying in Canada from India covers the document checklist in more depth.

For families in Egypt

Egyptian families more commonly rely on bank statements and sponsor letters alongside a GIC, since direct GIC purchase from an Egyptian account is less standardized than from India. Expect to show at least four to six months of consistent account history, and avoid large, unexplained deposits shortly before applying, which IRCC officers flag as a common red flag regardless of source country. Our dedicated guide on studying in Canada from Egypt walks through the visa office process in detail.

For families in South Korea

South Korean families applying for a minor’s study permit often pair a GIC with an education loan or a documented parental income letter, since Korean banks frequently require additional verification steps for large international transfers. Processing at the Seoul visa office tends to move quickly once documentation is complete. See our guide on studying in Canada from South Korea for the full application sequence.

For families in Bangladesh

Bangladeshi applicants benefit the most from a clean, well documented GIC, since bank statement based applications from Bangladesh face a higher scrutiny rate on source of funds. A GIC purchased through a partner bank removes much of that ambiguity, because the funds are already sitting in a Canadian institution rather than requiring officers to trace the money’s origin. Our guide on studying in Canada from Bangladesh covers this in detail, alongside the Provincial Attestation Letter process.

What a GIC Does Not Cover

This is the detail that catches families off guard. A GIC releases funds in monthly installments after the student has already arrived in Canada, typically after opening a Canadian bank account and completing a short in-branch or online verification step. It does not cover:

● Tuition deposits due before or at enrollment, which must usually be paid separately and in full as shown on the Letter of Acceptance.

● Flights and initial travel costs to Canada.

● The first two to four weeks of expenses before the first GIC installment is released, since banks stagger the payout schedule rather than releasing a lump sum on arrival.

● Boarding fees, uniforms, or move-in costs that a private school may bill upfront.

Families should keep a separate cash buffer outside the GIC for these upfront costs. Our guide on best bank accounts for international high school students in Canada explains how to set up banking before the GIC installments begin flowing.

Step by Step: Preparing the Financial and Custodianship File

1. Confirm your child’s Letter of Acceptance (LOA) from a Designated Learning Institution, which states the first year tuition figure you need to match against your proof of funds.

2. Decide whether a GIC, bank statements, or a combination best fits your situation. A GIC is usually the fastest to verify; bank statements need four to six months of stable history.

3. If your child is under 17, appoint a custodian and complete IMM 5646, notarized on both the Canadian and home country sides.

4. If your child is 17 or older, check with the school and, where possible, the visa office whether custodianship will still be requested, since it remains discretionary in this age band.

5. Gather the Provincial Attestation Letter if required for your child’s program level, and confirm with the school which exemptions apply to K-12 study permits.

6. Submit the full package together: LOA, proof of funds, custodianship documents if applicable, passport, and photos, since incomplete files are one of the most common reasons for delay.

USCA Academy’s international student support team guides families through each of these steps directly, and our page on Canada study permit processing times helps set realistic expectations for how long the full sequence takes once your file is submitted.

Common Mistakes That Delay or Refuse Minor Study Permit Applications

● Submitting mismatched custodianship pages, where the Canadian custodian’s page and the parents’ page reference different dates, names, or addresses.

● Assuming a GIC alone satisfies every financial requirement, when the Letter of Acceptance tuition figure still needs to be separately demonstrated.

● Large, unexplained deposits shortly before applying, which read as a red flag to visa officers regardless of the family’s actual financial situation.

● Missing notarization on either page of IMM 5646, which is one of the single most common reasons this document is returned.

● Assuming custodianship is unnecessary once a child turns 17, when many boarding schools and some visa offices still expect it as a practical safeguard.

For a full breakdown of why study permits get refused more broadly, our guide on Canada study visa rejection reasons covers the most common causes beyond custodianship and funding.

Conclusion

Three decisions matter most when preparing a minor’s study permit file. First, choose your proof of funds method deliberately, a GIC for a clean paper trail, or bank statements if you already have a long stable account history. Second, treat custodianship as a legal requirement to solve early, not paperwork to rush at the end, especially for children under 17. Third, keep money outside the GIC on hand for the upfront costs that installments will not cover.

USCA Academy’s admissions and boarding teams work with families from India, Egypt, South Korea, and Bangladesh every intake cycle on exactly this preparation. If you are weighing accommodation options alongside your financial planning, our team can walk you through what a custodianship arrangement through the school actually looks like day to day.

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