A referral bonus in Canada is cash or account credit a company pays when someone new opens the product and meets a funding or spending rule. It is not a side hustle with hours, and it is not the same thing as a bank sign-up bonus you earn by opening your own account. That separate topic is bank account sign-up bonuses. This page only states amounts that appear on the company’s own page, and it tells you to check current terms because every one of these offers says the company can change them.
This is not financial, tax, or legal advice. A bonus is not a reason to move money you need, to borrow, or to open an investing account you do not understand.
What do Wealthsimple, KOHO, and Questrade publish?
| Company | Amount on the page this guide opened | What the new person must do | Limit and hold | Check current terms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wealthsimple | $25 cash to the referrer and $25 to the referee. Terms effective September 11, 2026. Help article last updated September 25, 2026 | External deposit or transfer of at least $100 within 30 days. The referrer must already have at least $100 in net deposits that did not come from inside Wealthsimple | One bonus per referee. Bonus goes to a Wealthsimple chequing account. If you do not have one, you have 90 days to open it or the bonus is forfeited. Keep the bonus 180 days | Wealthsimple referral terms |
| KOHO | Public page: a cash reward of up to $100, while the friend gets 3 months of Everything, which the page values at $66. Footnote: non-members receive $20. The in-app offer can differ by plan. A help-centre article this guide tried returned a 404, so the plan-by-plan split is not repeated here | Friend registers, verifies, and makes one purchase of at least $20 within 30 days of signing up | Up to 50 friends, which the page says can add up to $1,000 | KOHO referral page |
| Questrade | $50 to you and $50 to your friend, in Canadian dollars. Page updated December 2, 2024 | New client opens and funds a self-directed or Questwealth account with your code within 60 days. They cannot already have an application or account. One code per new customer. Codes cannot be combined with other offer codes | Up to 30 people a year. Reward the following month, to the billing account if you have several | Questrade refer a friend |
Wealthsimple’s terms say both people must be legal residents of Canada and the age of majority in their province or territory. The referee must be new, with a narrow exception for an account registered within seven days of funding. Joint accounts, RESPs, and spousal RRSPs pay the bonus to the primary holder only. Deposits that start inside Wealthsimple, including peer-to-peer transfers and Wealthsimple’s own credits, do not count. The bonus is non-transferable. Wealthsimple says it can cancel or change the promotion without notice, and that it can remove a bonus it decides was gamed.
KOHO’s page says the code is in the app, under the gift icon, and that the friend’s code is applied from the invite link. This guide does not publish a code. KOHO says it can change the program. The dollar figure that applies to your plan is the one in the app on the day you share the link, read next to the public page.
Questrade says it can modify, suspend, or cancel the reward without notice. If the new account already has an account number, the page says the code can no longer be added. The page this guide opened also advertises a separate margin offer with its own code. That code is not a referral code, and this guide does not repeat it. Referral codes cannot be combined with other offer codes, on Questrade’s own eligibility list.
Other Canadian banks and apps run referral or sign-up offers that are not in this table. If the amount is not on a page you opened from the company, do not trust a screenshot. The same rule is why the bank bonus guide refuses to keep a live rate card.
How do you use a referral offer without fooling yourself?
Step 1: Open the terms on the day you share the link
Wealthsimple’s $25, KOHO’s “up to $100,” and Questrade’s $50 were on the pages above on October 6, 2026. Check current terms. A blog, including this one, goes stale the day the company edits the promotion.
Step 2: Invite someone who actually wants the account
The referee has to fund or spend. A friend who does not want a chequing account, a prepaid card, or a brokerage account should not open one so you can collect $25. KOHO is one prepaid account Canadians use for everyday spending. You do not need it, and you do not need to refer anyone, to keep a side hustle’s money separate. A no-fee bank account can do that job. The comparison is Wealthsimple versus a bank business account.
Step 3: Use money that can sit still
Wealthsimple requires the bonus to remain 180 days, and it can recover the bonus from a withdrawal if you do not. Questrade pays into the investing account the following month. Do not move rent money to qualify. Do not borrow to hit a deposit. A transfer fee at the old institution is your cost unless that company’s reimbursement terms cover it. Wealthsimple’s referral article says it reimburses a transfer-out fee when a qualifying transfer is at least $25,000 in a single account. Read that reimbursement page before you assume a smaller transfer is free.
Step 4: Open the account that receives the bonus
Wealthsimple pays the chequing account. If you never open one, the terms say the bonus expires 90 days after they notify you. Questrade pays the billing account when you have more than one. KOHO shows the reward in the app after the friend’s purchase clears.
Step 5: Do not publish a code on a random site and call it a business
These programs pay for a person who joins and qualifies. They are a poor substitute for work. If you want hours and a client, start from best side hustles in Canada, not from a referral link.
Illustrative example
Teaching sketch using Wealthsimple’s published $25, not a forecast of how many friends will qualify. One qualifying referral pays $25 to you and $25 to your friend, after the $100 external deposit and the other terms. Four friends who each qualify would be 4 × $25 = $100 to you, and $0 for any friend who does not deposit. The $100 is still locked to the 180-day hold on each bonus, and it assumes the September 11, 2026 terms are still the ones in force. Check current terms. This is not income you can schedule, and it is not a statement that four people will sign up.
What mistakes do people make with referral bonuses in Canada?
- Trusting a dollar amount from a post that is older than the terms. Questrade’s page was updated December 2, 2024. Wealthsimple’s current terms start September 11, 2026. They are different dates on purpose.
- Counting a deposit you moved from another Wealthsimple account. The terms exclude money that starts inside Wealthsimple.
- Missing the chequing-account step. The $25 does not land in a trade account just because that is where the deposit went.
- Combining codes. Questrade says a new customer can use one referral code and cannot combine it with other offer codes.
- Sending a code to strangers with a promise of profit. You are describing someone else’s product. If you are paid to promote it, say so. A referral bonus is not a return on an investment.
- Treating the bonus as spent on the day you send the link. It is paid when the terms say it is paid.
Which tax rules apply to referral bonuses in Canada?
Wealthsimple’s own terms say there are tax implications to bonuses of this nature in most instances, that Wealthsimple will not issue a tax slip for a bonus paid to a non-registered account, and that you are responsible for any required reporting. That is the company’s statement. It is not a CRA ruling, and it does not by itself tell you which line of the return to use.
This guide does not give a yes or no for every referral bonus. The careful version of survey rewards, cash-back, and bank bonuses is are rewards and bonuses taxable. If a T5, a T4A, or another slip arrives, report the slip. If you carry on a business of promoting financial products, incentive income is business income on Form T2125. A single bonus for inviting a friend is not automatically that business. Ask the institution whether it will issue a slip, and ask a tax professional if the amount matters. Wealthsimple Tax can file a return once you have decided what the amount is. It will not decide the label for you.
This is not tax, legal, or financial advice.
Which guides sit next to referral bonuses in Canada?
Bank account sign-up bonuses are the offers you get for your own new account. Are rewards and bonuses taxable is the tax discussion. Where to keep client money is separating business and personal money. Points programs that are not cash bonuses are Microsoft Rewards and cashback apps. Once money from the side hustle itself is in the account, the registered-account choices are in what to do with side hustle profits.
What are the common questions?
How much is the Wealthsimple referral bonus in Canada?
The terms effective September 11, 2026, and updated September 25, 2026, say 25 dollars for the referrer and 25 dollars for the referee after a qualifying external deposit of at least 100 dollars. The bonus is paid to a Wealthsimple chequing account and must remain 180 days. Check current terms. Wealthsimple can change the offer.
How much is the KOHO referral bonus?
KOHO's public referral page says up to 100 dollars for the member, and a footnote says non-members receive 20 dollars. The friend must verify and spend at least 20 dollars within 30 days. The page also offers the friend 3 months of the Everything plan, valued on that page at 66 dollars. The in-app offer can differ. Check current terms. This guide does not print a code.
How much is the Questrade refer-a-friend bonus?
Questrade's refer-a-friend page, updated December 2, 2024, says 50 dollars each when a new client opens and funds a self-directed or Questwealth account within 60 days. You can refer up to 30 new people a year. Questrade can change the offer without notice. Check current terms.
Are referral bonuses taxable in Canada?
Wealthsimple says bonuses of this kind have tax implications in most instances and that it will not issue a tax slip for a bonus paid to a non-registered account. This guide does not state one rule for every company. Report a slip if you receive one. This is not tax advice.
Should you open an account just for the referral bonus?
Only if you want the account and you can meet the hold or the spending rule with money you can leave there. A bonus is not a side hustle and not a return. This is not financial advice.
Which sources support this guide?
The rules, rates, and platform requirements in this guide are checked against these primary sources. Retail price ranges are labelled as ranges to verify locally, and they are not quotes.
- Wealthsimple Referral Bonus Promotion 2026 — Wealthsimple
- Refer a friend, reap the rewards — KOHO
- Refer a friend — Questrade
- Form T2125, Statement of Business or Professional Activities — Canada Revenue Agency