Best Credit Cards for Newcomers to Canada - September 2026

With NBC mycredit Mastercard, you get:

• 1% cash back on restaurant purchases and recurring pre-authorized debits
• 0.5% cash back on all other purchases

And since it’s a Mastercard credit card, you can use it at Costco.

Cash back is automatically applied to your credit card account balance when each monthly statement is issued.

This is a credit card we recommend for those new to credit cards and want a no-fee credit card. What’s more, this credit card comes with a number of insurances for your purchases, including mobile device insurance (which is rare for a credit card with no annual fee).

Do you want a cash back credit card with no annual fee that earns travel points? Here’s an option for you: American Express® Green Card.

By signing up for the American Express® Green Card, you can earn 10,000 Membership Rewards Welcome Bonus Points when you charge $1,000 in purchases to your Card in the first 3 months of Cardmembership. This is a $100 value for travel or any purchase on the Card.

You can also transfer your points to airline partners (Aeroplan, British Airways Executive Club, Flying Blue, etc.) and hotel partners (Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors).

For example, with this welcome offer, if you decide to transfer your Membership Rewards points to a partner loyalty program, you would have the choice of earning:

• 10,000 Aeroplan points
• 10,000 Avios points
• 10,000 Flying Blue Miles
• 12,000 Marriott Bonvoy points

That’s a nice welcome bonus for a credit card with no annual fee.

You’ll also have access to online promotional offers to earn points or rebates on your purchases with this no annual fee credit card.

Like all American Express Canada Cards, there is no minimum income requirement.

The BMO CashBack Mastercard is a no-annual-fee, cash-back credit card. With the BMO CashBack Mastercard, you can earn 5% cash back for the first three months. This represents a maximum welcome bonus of $125 :

• 5% cash back on up to $500 in eligible grocery purchases, for a $25 bonus
• 5% cash back on up to $500 in eligible recurring bill payments, for a $25 bonus
• 5% cash back on up to $1,500 in all other eligible purchases, for a $75 bonus

Then you get a cash back rate of:

• 3% cash back on grocery purchases, including at Walmart Supercenters
• 1% cash back on recurring bill payments

You can also get a 0.99% welcome interest rate on balance transfers for nine months.

Finally, enjoy three months of Instacart+ membership and a $5 monthly Instacart credit when you sign up with your eligible BMO credit card.

The CIBC Dividend® Visa* Card is one of the best no-fee cash-back Visa credit cards in Canada.

Get 5% cash back on net purchases for the first 4 statements, on up to $2,000 in purchases (up to $100 cash back)^†.

Plus, get :

• 2% cash back on eligible grocery purchases^†
• 1% cash back on eligible gas, electric vehicle charging, transportation, and dining purchases and on eligible recurring payments^†
• 0.5% cash back on all other purchases^†

This no-annual-fee CIBC credit card offers certain insurance coverages:

• Purchase Security and Extended Protection Insurance

The Scotiabank Momentum No Annual Fee Visa Card is an excellent cash back credit card in Canada. Right now, you can get 5% cash back on all your purchases for the first three months (up to $2,000 in total purchases).

With the Scotiabank Momentum No Annual Fee Visa Card, you get:

• 1% cash back on purchases at grocery stores and pharmacies, as well as on meal delivery services and subscriptions to ready-to-cook meal services
• 1% cash back on gas, electric vehicle charging, and public transit such as bus, taxi, and ridesharing trips
• 1% cash back on eligible recurring bill payments such as utilities and gym memberships
• 1% cash back on eligible subscriptions such as video streaming or music streaming services
• 0.5% cash back on all other eligible purchases

It is an excellent no annual fee Visa credit card for cash back. Also note that you can use your cash back at any time (the cash back balance must be at least $25).

In addition, you can benefit from an introductory rate of 0.99% on balance transfers for the first nine months (2% fee per cash advance).

With the Wealthsimple Prepaid Mastercard, you can access your available funds in your Wealthsimple Cash account.

With this welcome offer, you can get $25 cash back as a new Wealthsimple client. To do this, you simply need to open an account and then deposit at least $1 within 30 days.

You can invest your money in an investment account or a cryptocurrency of your choice. Also, you earn interest on your Wealthsimple Cash account balance! Wealthsimple Generation clients can earn an interest rate of up to 2.25%.

In addition, there are no foreign transaction fees for any purchase made in a currency other than the Canadian dollar and no annual fees.

Special offer:

• Enter the code EARNKOHO when applying for your card.
• Get 2 months of the Everything Plan for free

The KOHO Prepaid Mastercard with Everything Plan gives you more cash back:

• 2% on food, beverages and bills
• 0.5% on all other purchases
• Up to 5% cash back at selected partner merchants

Your funds earn 3.5% interest (calculated daily, paid monthly) and are protected by CDIC. The card is also accepted at Costco.

For your travels, enjoy zero conversion charges on foreign purchases and one free withdrawal per month from international ATMs.

Choose between two payment options for the Everything Plan:

• $22/month, billed monthly
• $177/year, billed annually (equivalent to $14.75/month)

With the RBC ION Visa card, earn up to 14,000 Avion points^{^}, a value of up to $100 in gift cards^†.

This RBC credit card with no annual fee lets you earn 1.5X Avion points per dollar in the following categories¹:

• Groceries
• Transit, gas, and electric vehicle charging
• Streaming, digital games, and subscriptions

You also earn 1 Avion point per dollar on all other eligible purchases¹.

Plus, save 3¢ per litre on fuel at Petro-Canada and earn 20% more Petro-Points and Avion points when you pay with an eligible linked RBC card⁴.

The National Bank Platinum Mastercard® lets you earn up to 40,000 reward points, plus a refund of the $70 annual fee for the first year for the primary cardholder:

• 10,000 points when you sign up for credit card payment insurance and keep it for at least the first 3 months
• 15,000 points after $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months
• 15,000 points after $10,000 in purchases within the first 12 months

You have until November 4, 2026 to apply.

After that, you earn:

• 2 points per dollar on grocery and restaurant purchases
• 1.5 points per dollar on gas, EV charging, recurring bills and travel booked through the À la carte agency

Since it is a Mastercard, you can use it at Costco. Unlike the other two National Bank travel rewards cards, it does not require a minimum income.

The card includes mobile device insurance, an extended warranty on your purchases, and comprehensive travel insurance for trips of 10 days or less, with emergency medical coverage plus trip cancellation and interruption.

The annual fee is $70, plus $35 per additional card. The annual interest rate is 20.99% on purchases and 22.49% on cash advances.

With this welcome offer for the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite +* Card ^+* Card^MC, you’ll earn 25,000 welcome bonus Scene+ points after charging $2,000 in purchases to your account within the first three months.

Plus, every year, earn an annual bonus of at least 10,000 Scene+ points when you charge at least $40,000 in purchases to your account. In total, the offer represents up to 35,000 Scene+ points and a value of up to $1,250 in the first year, including rewards, savings on foreign transaction fees and airport lounge access.

With the Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite +* Card, you earn 3 points per $1 spent at Sobeys, IGA, Safeway, Foodland and participating Co-ops, and 2 points per $1 spent at other grocery stores, restaurants, eligible entertainment and eligible daily transit. You earn 1 point per $1 on all your other everyday purchases.

These points can be redeemed against any travel purchase at a rate of 1,000 points = $10 (flights, hotels, all-inclusives and even Airbnb), or as cash back with Scene+ at the same rate.

The Scotiabank Passport Visa Infinite +* Card also offers:

• No fees for foreign currency transactions
• 6 complimentary airport VIP lounge passes
• Excellent insurance for your travels and purchases
• Visa Infinite* Concierge Services

We have named this credit card the Best Credit Card with No Foreign Transaction Fees in 2024, 2025, and 2026.