Yes, banks and financial institutions do place holds on Electronic Funds Transfers (EFTs) and Automated Clearing House (ACH) transfers, typically for 1–5 business days. These holds allow banks to verify details, ensure sufficient funds are available, prevent fraud, and comply with regulations.
Typically, cash or funds from direct deposits (such as payroll direct deposits), Interac e-Transfer® transactions, electronic transfer of funds (EFT), and Government of Canada cheques up to $1,750 deposited and validated at the banking centre are not placed on hold.
Please be aware Interac does not hold funds and is unable to trace funds. Issues affecting the Interac e-Transfer service must be reported to your financial institution for investigation and resolution, as your bank account and relationship is held by them.
When we process an instruction after the cut-off times, on public holidays, and when there is more than 1 public holiday back-to-back, it can take up to 3 business days for us to process a transaction and for you to receive the money into your account.
However, like any other system, EFT has its drawbacks:
If you transfer by Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT), the typical transfer time is 1-3 days. There is the possibility of same-day collection, but that varies based on your bank and whether you start the transfer early in the day.
To track an EFT payment, obtain the transaction details, log into your bank account, and review the payment status.
Here's the break it down: Credit Card Transactions: Credit card transaction pending statuses usually last up to 3 business days due to layers of verification. Direct Deposits: Typically clear by the next business day. Check Deposits: Often take up to 2 business days because they require manual review.
If you need an EFT to clear urgently, you can select the immediate payment option to make the payment go through much faster.
If you transfer or receive more than $10,000, the bank automatically files a Currency Transaction Report (CTR) with the government. ¹ This doesn't mean you owe taxes — it's simply a reporting requirement.
Common reasons for placing a hold on a check or deposit include but are not limited to: Accounts with frequent overdrafts. New customer. High-dollar deposits that exceed the total available balance in the account.
EFT payments usually take between 1-3 business days to process, but this depends on the type of EFT transaction being processed, as well as other considerations.
Your bank may hold the funds according to its funds availability policy. Or it may have placed an exception hold on the deposit. If the bank has placed a hold on the deposit, the bank generally should provide you with written notice of the hold.
A transaction can be pending from a few hours (like instant payments) to several business days (typically 1-5 days for card purchases, checks, or online payments), but some holds, like hotel/rental authorization, can last up to 30 days; the exact time depends on the transaction type, merchant processing, bank policies, weekends, and holidays. Debit card holds often clear faster than credit card transactions but can tie up funds longer, while digital methods like RTP/FedNow are near-instant.
They'll hold onto your money for days while “verifying charges.” Meanwhile, you're just waiting for your funds to clear. If your transaction is taking longer than expected, checking in with your bank or the merchant might help speed things up.
Most banks include end-to-end tracking as part of their service; but be sure to confirm this before you sign up for any account. The best way to check on the status of an EFT payment is by using your business's online banking service.
EFT Days Of Operation
EFT payments are only accepted for processing on business days, and are not processed on public holidays - see our holiday calendar here. This means that EFTs are not processed on weekends and Canadian statutory holidays.
How long does it take for money to clear from another bank? Funds sent via EFT to and from other banks takes 24 to 48 business hours to clear. Alternatively, use our instant EFT option for immediate clearing of high-value transactions or PayShap for transactions under R3,000.
Common reasons for EFTs to be delayed include: Incorrect details used for the recipient — such as not giving a routing number for a local payment, or a SWIFT code for a cross-border transfer. Verification checks, particularly for high value payments, which can require you to submit additional information or paperwork.
What are the risks of EFT?