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Email this12:07 pm
April 6, 2013
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Jim Sherat said
however I misled, mis-spoke using the term Manulife Financial; I should have referred to it as Manulife Investment Mgmt. Ltd. which appears on all the statements. be it RIF, TFSA, or non-registered. They also refer to the holdings as GICs, not GIAs [Guaranteed Investment Annuity, or Account], which I don't fully understand, as these are definitely Insurance Co. based investments, thus the ability to use a Named Beneficiary, unlike a Bank.
…
Manulife Investment Management is Manulife's wealth management business.
TFSA's, RRSP's, and RRIF's don't have to be structured as a life insurance contract to have a beneficiary designation. Those may well be GIC's and not GIA's.
GIA's tend to have inferior rates because of the insurance structure. That's why most people don't place money in them.
5:40 am
January 1, 2018
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Well that's all very interesting ! We were never offered a GIC as an option to GIA, and yes we took a hit interest wise, for sure. I don't think we were being intentionally misled, maybe just didn't know better, and ask the right questions ?
Also strange, and an unresolved question I have is that the Manufacturer's Life Insurance Co. T5 was generally higher than the Interest paid out... a few years ago, it was $5,000 more ! I was told that is how the GIAs were structured, and it would work itself out eventually ?! I won't know that for sure, until we get the Final T5 next spring, and can compare the amount to the total of all the GIAs that were terminated and paid out final interest at time of death for MIL.
All this certainly makes me rethink any possible future decisions regarding us moving all or most of our holdings into a similar arrangement.
7:37 pm
April 6, 2013
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Sounds like she had Manulife Investments legacy GIC's. No new ones after October 21, 2022.
They are actually "GIC's" and not GIC's. This is from the product guide:
What is a Manulife Investments GIC?
A Manulife Investments Guaranteed Interest Contract (GIC) is a deferred annuity insurance contract offered through Manulife. This GIC offers investors unique tax and estate planning benefits as well as potential creditor protection.
The discrepency between actual interest paid and taxable interest reported sounds like the tail end of a prescribed annuity with leveled interest taxation instead of actual interest taxation.
4:04 am
January 1, 2018
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Thanks again Norman for sharing your insight on this subject. I think this is what she had, and she was content with the arrangement and happy with her advisor of many years, and really, in the end, that is all that matters.
The bonus is that when she passed, her estate was so simple to settle quickly and the the beneficiaries all worked together, and the will was never invoked at all.
Anyway, apologies for kind of hijacking the initial subject of this thread.
I'll stop now. 
4:50 am
March 3, 2022
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Has anyone linked external accounts using Manulife's Funds Transfer form (https://www.manulifebank.ca/do.....b0190e.pdf)?
It requires filling up the form, attaching a void cheque, then secure upload via online banking.
Or are you using the default system (providing external account's username and password to a 3rd party Flinks)?
7:40 am
April 6, 2013
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Yes.
After uploading the completed form and void cheque, the external account showed up the next business day in online banking and in the mobile app.
Their mobile app used to support external account linking by asking for the institution, branch, and account numbers and then taking a photo of the void cheque or populated direct deposit form. That capability is now gone for some reason.
7:54 am
April 6, 2013
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Jim Sherat said
… I think this is what she had, and she was content with the arrangement and happy with her advisor of many years, and really, in the end, that is all that matters.
The bonus is that when she passed, her estate was so simple to settle quickly and the the beneficiaries all worked together, and the will was never invoked at all.
…
Yes, the insurance structure can be convenient for the beneficiaries when there's no disputes. But, it is an expensive way to do it. One takes a hit around 1% per annum in lower GIA rates, instead of shopping around for the the best GIC rates, to save a one-time probate tax.
One relative was going to do something like that after being approached by an insurance salesperson. He changed his mind after I explained that the probate tax would be around 1½%. If he was an Alberta resident, the probate tax would be at most $525.
Insurance agents like to leave probate taxes to people's imagination. The relative imagined the probate tax would be 15% to 40%!
1:21 pm
March 3, 2022
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Norman1 said
Yes.After uploading the completed form and void cheque, the external account showed up the next business day in online banking and in the mobile app.
Their mobile app used to support external account linking by asking for the institution, branch, and account numbers and then taking a photo of the void cheque or populated direct deposit form. That capability is now gone for some reason.
Brilliant. Thank you!
5:20 am
January 1, 2018
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Norman1 said
Jim Sherat said
… I think this is what she had, and she was content with the arrangement and happy with her advisor of many years, and really, in the end, that is all that matters.
The bonus is that when she passed, her estate was so simple to settle quickly and the the beneficiaries all worked together, and the will was never invoked at all.
…Yes, the insurance structure can be convenient for the beneficiaries when there's no disputes. But, it is an expensive way to do it. One takes a hit around 1% per annum in lower GIA rates, instead of shopping around for the the best GIC rates, to save a one-time probate tax.
One relative was going to do something like that after being approached by an insurance salesperson. He changed his mind after I explained that the probate tax would be around 1½%. If he was an Alberta resident, the probate tax would be at most $525.
Insurance agents like to leave probate taxes to people's imagination. The relative imagined the probate tax would be 15% to 40%!
Having never experienced the "probate" process, how does one arrive at the expected fee in Ont. ? Is that $525 for lawyers fees ?, or does a lawyer even have to be involved, if the Will is not being contested ? Also, I assume if the family home is still in the name of the deceased, then that is a whole other complication, with higher Probate fee ? thanks, Norman.
6:59 am
April 6, 2013
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Separating probate tax discussion in new thread.
5:34 am
November 27, 2025
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Our new promo account paid out 3% interest today. The account shows both the promo & regular interest payouts.
6:54 am
February 6, 2019
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I am considering opening a new advantage account to take advantage of the 3% interest rate. On the flip side, I believe that if Manulife will have better offers in the future (like over 4%, as they used to), I may not qualify for that as long as the current offer is valid (just a guess). Also, I have noticed that the 3% is not guaranteed for 2 years, it may decrease anytime - if my understanding is correct. This is a quote from the terms and conditions: Manulife Bank’s 3.00% Personal Advantage Account Interest Offer, which is currently 3.00% (“Promotional
Interest”) is made up of the regular posted variable annual interest rate of 1.50% (“Regular Rate”) and the
variable annual promotional rate of 1.50% (“Promotional Rate”). Any change to the Regular Rate will result in
a corresponding change to the Promotional Interest. For example, if the Regular Rate of 1.50% were to
decrease to 1.40% the Promotional Interest would decrease to 2.90%.
Thoughts?
7:50 am
April 21, 2022
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rk said
Thoughts?
The base interest rate can go both ways, so it's theoretically possible we could see 3.25% or more over the next two years. There's nothing stopping a person from closing the account if they offer a better short term promotion, bearing in mind they'll likely be doing a snapshot to exclude funds. I'll only keep mine as a working float for now in the event a better offer comes along later, that way it might still be worth holding onto and utilizing for the entire two years.
7:59 am
April 6, 2013
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That's correct. Manulife Bank is not offering the 3% Promotional Interest for the next 730 days. The bank is offering an extra 1½% for the next 730 days.
The total interest (the Promotional Interest) won't remain at 3% if the regular interest rate changes:
… Any change to the Regular Rate will result in a corresponding change to the Promotional Interest. For example, if the Regular Rate of 1.50% were to decrease to 1.40% the Promotional Interest would decrease to 2.90%. …
8:06 am
November 1, 2025
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Per the terms on these things, they can drop their rate for an existing deposit. It is not a guarantee, not fixed, not a lock. Some bank offers seem to make it appear that the rate is guaranteed... no. meh
3:44 am
January 1, 2018
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Just wondering if there's a way to setup Two Factor Authentication on my Advantage Account ... if there is, I don't see an option on the website.
Note: I only use a desktop / laptop to do online banking, so if it's a Mobile App thing i wouldn't see that. Thanks.
re, no guarantee for total 3.0% rate; I too checked and yes, it's true, but I'm ok with that, as it's still the Best rate out there, that isn't just a short term [3-5 mth] promo, for those of us a bit fatigued from moving money around too often. 😉
6:26 am
February 6, 2019
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Thanks for all the replies to my questions. I guess that I will skip this offer ... for now. Apparently it is valid until Sep. 11, so I may reconsider it later (yes, I know that there is no guarantee that it will remain valid until the date that they posted)
7:25 am
April 6, 2013
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Jim Sherat said
Just wondering if there's a way to setup Two Factor Authentication on my Advantage Account ... if there is, I don't see an option on the website.
Note: I only use a desktop / laptop to do online banking, so if it's a Mobile App thing i wouldn't see that. …
Two-factor authentication is on the Manulife ID, under "Manage your Manulife ID". There, one can update the e-mail address, 10-digit Canada/US mobile number, and backup e-mail address to use.
Manulife will do the extra authentication as it feels the need. There's no option to force the extra authentication on every signin.
7:32 am
July 28, 2016
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Jim Sherat said
Just wondering if there's a way to setup Two Factor Authentication on my Advantage Account ... if there is, I don't see an option on the website.
Note: I only use a desktop / laptop to do online banking, so if it's a Mobile App thing i wouldn't see that. Thanks.
On the website you can click on your name on the top right and you see on the menu "Manage Manulife ID". Click on it and it will bring you to a new page where you see the option Security.
After filling it up, the website will ask you time to time for a code before login you in. You can also add a passkey if you prefer.
12:04 pm
June 22, 2023
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Markus said
Just signed up for the new advantage account promo(my 7th). Interest rate on the new account is showing 1.5%, like the other 6. It has always shown the promo rate in account details, but not this time. Anyone else signed up?
Markus:
I created my second Manulife Advantage Account (AA) in July (to take advantage of the 730 day promo interest rate offer of 3.00%, at least initially). My due diligence was having a chat with a Manulife representative to confirm that my second AA qualified for this new promotional offer prior to me transferring cash to this new account. They confirmed it did qualify. Like you , account details shows an interest rate of 1.50%.
Manulife has poor functionality to create a transcript of your chats, but I cut and pasted the necessary bits to suffice for my audit needs. Indeed, on August 1, backdated to July 31 there were two separate postings of "Interest Deposit" and "Promo Interest Deposit" each compromising interest calculated at 1.50%.
It seems like it would be relatively easy for them to advertise their high rate, but nonetheless I received my 3.00% interest rate for July within a few cents of my calculations.
