After buying you’re new home – even though your fingers might be itching to dive into unpacking so you can settle in as quickly as possible – as part of your moving checklist for Canada, remember that you now need to let your family, friends, insurance providers, workplace accounting department, utility providers, bank, credit card companies, delivery services, and government agencies all know your new address.
There is nothing like receiving a handwritten note from a loved one, delivered the old-fashioned way directly to your mailbox. Sure, bills, letters, cards, and more can easily and more efficiently be accessed online, but where is the fun in that?
For family and friends, you can easily send a change of address card by using Canada Post’s mail forwarding service via regular mail or via email. You’ll need to affix the applicable postage for the physical versions, but the cards themselves are complimentary. NOTE: For municipality-initiated or Canada Post-initiated changes to your address, such as changes to your street name, street number or for a conversion from a rural route address to a civic address, Canada Post will give you 12 months of free mail forwarding service and a limited quantity of postage-paid courtesy cards to notify others of these changes. You can get these cards at your nearest Canada Post office.
But when it comes to completing your change of address checklist for Canada, there will likely be a few more steps to take when it comes to informing the rest of your important contacts.
Nowadays, almost all companies allow you to easily change your address online as part of your updating your “profile” or “account settings.” If you’re organized, the bulk of these changes should be able to be completed in a matter of hours. However, when it comes to updating provincial registries about your address change for the purposes of keeping your Health Card and Driver’s License current, although you can fill out some forms online – depending on the province you live in – you may need to print and mail the completed forms or visit a registry office or kiosk in-person in order to finalize the process.
You’ll need to update your address with EACH provincial and federal government organization that provides services to you. Believe it or not, unfortunately, address updates are not automatically shared across all departments and agencies.
The most common service address changes include:
- The Canada Revenue Agency (personal) – for personal taxes, tax credits and the Canada Child Benefit
- The Canada Revenue Agency (businesses) – for business taxes, payroll, GST/HST
- Service Canada – for Employment Insurance, Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security benefits
- Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada – for any applications in process
You may also need to inform other agencies such as Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) if you’re a government employee; Veteran’s Affairs Canada regarding correspondence and benefits for veterans; Transport Canada if you have a boat license; the RCMP if you have a gun license; Elections Canada re: voting registration; the Bank of Canada re: your Canada Savings Bond Program; and Innovation, Science and Innovation Canada (ISED formerly IC) to keep correspondence with your incorporated business flowing freely.
Moving to Another Province Checklist
If your search for the home of your dreams ends in a different province than where you currently reside, you should inform your current province or territory when you intend to leave and where you are moving to, then register with the health insurance plan of your new province or territory. It can take up to three months before your new province or territory takes over your health care coverage. During this time, you should continue to be covered by your “home” province or territory, but if that’s not the case, you can purchase private health insurance until your new coverage begins.
Here are the Main Services for Which you Need to Change Your Address:
Canada Revenue Agency
It is very easy to update your address online to change your address with the CRA and ensure your tax information is accurate.
Canada Post
Use Canada Post’s Mail Forwarding to forward any personal or business mail from your old address to your new one so that you don’t miss any important information. This should be completed a few weeks before your moving date to ensure nothing gets missed.
Local Registry
Part of your moving checklist for Ontario – and known as Service Ontario in that province and by other names in other provinces – is your local Services Registry, which is where you can update your driver’s license and health care cards. If you are moving to a new province, you will also need to get new license plates for your cars, trucks or motorcycles.
Bank and Credit Card Company
Any information that proceeds through your bank, such as accounts, loans, or lines of credit, will need to be updated with your new address. If you have bought a new home, then your mortgage will already have the address.
Insurance Broker
All home or rental insurance will need to be updated to reflect your new address. You will also need to update your auto insurance so that your new address is printed on the card you keep in your wallet and glove compartment. You should know that insurance rates often change based on address.
Employer
If applicable, it is important to change your address for the purpose of tax information and your Employment Insurance.
Medical Practitioners
Your doctor, dentist, and any other medical practitioners that you see will need to be updated with your new address. This also includes your pet’s veterinarian.
Memberships and Subscriptions
If you are a member of a gym or have magazines or boxes (such as wine, cheese, pet or beauty products, books, toys or baby clothing) delivered to your home on a regular basis, it will be necessary to change your address information.
Utilities
Assuming that you have not done so already, all utilities, including water, hydro and gas, as well as internet and cable TV services, will need to be switched over to your new address.
Education Institutions
If you have children who will be attending the same school as before the move, you will need to notify their school that you have moved and provide your new address.
Get Started on Your Address Change and Moving Checklist for Canada Now!
Changing your address may seem like an overwhelming task, but fortunately, once everyone has been informed, you can go back to unpacking and organizing and can rest easy knowing that your friends and family will be able to easily find you to wish you well in your new home, and other essential contacts will be able to keep up their correspondence with you.
