How to File a Complaint Against Your Bank in Canada and Escalate It to OBSI

Where do you complain about a bank first?

Start with the bank itself. Federally regulated banks must maintain a complaint-handling process and make that process available to customers and the public.

You can usually find the procedure on the bank's website or at its branches in Canada. The bank must explain how its internal complaint process works and how you can move the complaint through its stages.

The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada says consumers may be able to file their initial complaint in person, by telephone or online, depending on the bank.

Use the official FCAC bank complaint procedure to understand the federal process.

What should you include in your bank complaint?

Explain the problem clearly enough that someone who has not previously dealt with your account can understand what happened.

Include, where relevant:

• the product, service, account or transaction involved;
• important dates and amounts;
• the names of employees or departments you dealt with;
• what the bank did or failed to do;
• why you disagree with the bank's position;
• what you want the bank to do to resolve the problem.

Attach documents that directly support the complaint, such as account statements, receipts, transaction records, contracts, emails and previous correspondence.

FCAC specifically recommends taking notes and recording conversation dates, employee names and what was discussed.

Does the bank have to acknowledge your complaint?

Yes. When you file a complaint, a federally regulated bank must provide written acknowledgement of the date it received the complaint and information explaining its complaint-handling process.

FCAC's current complaint-handling guideline also expects the acknowledgement to explain relevant timelines, internal escalation steps and when the consumer can contact the external complaints body.

Keep this acknowledgement because the original complaint date is important for calculating the 56-day federal complaint period.

When should the bank escalate your complaint internally?

Bank procedures differ, but FCAC's current guideline expects complaints that have not been resolved or closed to be referred to a designated complaint-handling employee promptly.

FCAC states that the timeframe for this internal referral should not exceed 14 calendar days from the date the complaint was first communicated to the bank.

You do not necessarily have to wait 14 days to ask for escalation. FCAC expects banks to give consumers the option to escalate before that timeframe has passed.

What is the 56-day rule for bank complaints?

The most important statutory deadline is the 56-day complaint-handling period.

The Financial Consumer Protection Framework Regulations prescribe 56 days after the day the complaint is received as the period for dealing with a complaint. FCAC's 2026 guideline confirms that a bank must resolve or close the complaint within that period.

The clock starts when you first communicate the complaint to the bank, regardless of the channel used. FCAC also states that the 56-day period must not be paused.

You can read the current federal 56-day complaint regulation.

What response must the bank give you?

A bank must give you a detailed written response when it closes the complaint and you are not satisfied with its proposed resolution. FCAC's current guidance also describes the requirement for a written final response within the complaint-handling period.

The final response is important because it establishes that the bank's internal process has reached its conclusion and allows you to proceed to OBSI without waiting until day 56.

Keep the response and the date you received it. That date is also important for OBSI's 180-day escalation deadline.

When can you take the complaint to OBSI?

The Ombudsman for Banking Services and Investments is Canada's designated external complaints body for banks and federal credit unions.

You can contact OBSI on the earlier of these points:

• the bank provides its detailed final written response, closes the complaint and you remain dissatisfied; or
• more than 56 calendar days have passed since you first filed the complaint and it remains unresolved.

This means you do not have to wait 56 days after receiving an unsatisfactory final response.

The OBSI complaint service is available online.

How long do you have to complain to OBSI?

Once you receive the bank's final written response, OBSI states that you generally have 180 calendar days to bring the complaint to OBSI.

Do not confuse this with the bank's 56-day period. They serve different purposes:

If you never received a final response, OBSI says it will need clear evidence showing when you complained to the bank before it can consider a case based on the expiry of the 56-day period.

What should you send to OBSI?

When you submit the complaint, explain what happened and what resolution you are seeking. Upload the records that support your account of the dispute.

OBSI's current consumer guidance says it will need:

• your complaint information;
• the bank's final response, if one was issued;
• relevant supporting information and documents;
• your signed consent allowing OBSI to communicate with the bank about you and the complaint.

If you escalate because 56 days have passed without a final response, keep evidence of the date you first complained.

OBSI's Consumer Portal lets consumers submit information and securely upload documents electronically.

Does it cost anything to use OBSI?

No. OBSI provides banking consumers with a free and impartial external review.

It operates independently from the bank. All banks and federal credit unions must be members of the designated external complaints body.

You do not need to pay a government filing fee to take an eligible banking complaint to OBSI.

What does OBSI do after accepting your complaint?

OBSI first determines whether the complaint falls within its mandate. If it does, OBSI obtains your consent and relevant information and investigates the dispute.

The investigation can involve:

• reviewing your documents;
• reviewing information from the bank;
• speaking with you;
• communicating with the bank;
• assessing the facts and the circumstances of the dispute.

Federal law requires a bank to provide OBSI, without delay after being notified that the complaint has been received, with information in the bank's possession or control that relates to the complaint.

How long does an OBSI banking complaint take?

The federal complaint framework requires OBSI to make its final written recommendation within 120 calendar days after the day it has all the information required to deal with the complaint.

If OBSI decides that all or part of the complaint is outside its terms of reference, FCAC states that OBSI must advise you in writing within 30 calendar days.

The 120-day period therefore does not necessarily begin on the day you first submit the online complaint. It is tied to when OBSI has the information it requires to deal with the case.

What can OBSI recommend?

OBSI attempts to reach fair and reasonable outcomes between consumers and participating financial firms.

If its investigation finds that a bank acted unfairly, made a mistake or caused a compensable loss, damage or harm, OBSI may recommend monetary compensation. Its current published maximum recommendation is CAD 350,000.

OBSI may also recommend a non-monetary remedy where appropriate, such as correcting an error on a credit report.

OBSI's role is dispute resolution. It is not a court or banking regulator and does not impose regulatory fines or penalties.

When might OBSI refuse to investigate?

OBSI's mandate contains limits. Current examples of complaints it may not investigate include situations where:

• you waited more than 180 days after the final written response to escalate the complaint;
• you did not raise the problem with the financial firm within OBSI's applicable limitation period;
• the subject matter is already before the courts;
• you and the bank have already reached a settlement;
• the complaint concerns an entity outside OBSI's participating-firm mandate;
• the issue materially concerns general pricing, interest-rate or risk-management policies rather than how the bank dealt with your individual circumstances.

OBSI currently applies a six-year limitation rule requiring consumers generally to have raised the problem with the firm within six years of when they knew or ought to have known about it.

Review the OBSI eligibility guidance if your situation is unusual.

What is the difference between OBSI and FCAC?

These organizations have different jobs.

OBSI handles individual dispute resolution. It reviews eligible unresolved complaints between consumers and banks and can recommend a resolution.

FCAC is the federal financial consumer regulator. It supervises whether regulated entities comply with federal consumer protection obligations.

FCAC does not resolve your individual dispute and does not provide compensation. Information consumers provide to FCAC can nevertheless help it identify compliance problems and broader trends.

The FCAC financial complaints information explains where different types of complaints belong.

Does this procedure apply to credit unions?

It applies to federal credit unions, which are federally regulated.

Provincially regulated credit unions may have different complaint processes and different regulatory deadlines. FCAC specifically advises consumers dealing with provincial credit unions to check their provincial or territorial complaint and regulatory framework.

Do not assume the federal 56-day rule applies to every financial institution simply because it offers banking services.

How should you document the complaint?

A simple chronology can make a complicated banking dispute much easier to explain.

Keep:

• the date you first complained;
• the bank's complaint reference number;
• copies of emails, letters and secure messages;
• dates and approximate times of calls;
• names or identification numbers of employees you spoke with;
• notes of what each person told you;
• relevant account statements and transaction records;
• the written acknowledgement from the bank;
• the bank's final written response;
• proof of any financial loss you are claiming.

This documentation is especially important if you need to establish that 56 days have passed or explain the complaint later to OBSI.

Common bank complaint mistakes to avoid

• Complaining informally but keeping no evidence of the date the complaint was first made.
• Waiting for 56 days even though the bank has already closed the complaint with a final response you reject.
• Assuming the 56-day clock restarts each time the bank transfers the complaint to another department.
• Missing OBSI's 180-day deadline after receiving the bank's final response.
• Sending large amounts of unrelated documentation without identifying the key transactions and dates.
• Failing to state clearly what outcome you want.
• Contacting OBSI before first giving the bank an opportunity to handle the complaint.
• Assuming FCAC will order the bank to compensate you in an individual dispute.
• Applying federal bank deadlines to a provincially regulated credit union without checking its jurisdiction.
• Starting court proceedings without considering how that action could affect OBSI's ability to investigate the same matter.