TFSA question - moving from savings to stocks
 

I have made about $9000 in contributions to the TFSA account, is there a way I can transfer that into investing without going over my limit? What I mean is, I should have $1000 left in contribution room, does that mean I can only invest $1000 in stocks in TFSA? or can I move everything over and still be ok?

you should be able to move all 9k from the savings acount into stocks... and also add another 1000 if you want.

Johny's info was a bit unclear. You need to apply for a transfer or you will be penalized.

Don't just withdraw it and deposit it into another TFSA account.

iceburner is correct,

depending on the provider you are choosing there should be an option for you to "transfer funds from another account".
should do it electronically for you or at most require you to fill out a manual form and send off for processing.
penalties for overcontributing to a TFSA is something like 1% of the excess per month

Make sure you're transferring funds within the same institution though if the funds are contributed in the same year! (for example transferring from RBC TFSA savings to RBC Direct Investing). If you are transferring to a different financial institution (eg. RBC to Scotia iTrade), eventhough you are transferring from a TFSA to TFSA they would still consider it a withdrawl of the year and a contribution, which might signal an overcontribution.

actually TFSA to TFSA directly would be like a transfer in kind, just like if you transfered your RRSP from one provider to another.

Sorry to bump this thread back up.

Lets say if I maxed out my TFSA trading account ($15K) and over the years I made some money and ended up with $20K total. How do I go about switching TFSA accounts? (from TD to Scotia) Do I apply for a transfer and will I be able to transfer all my funds over without over contributing? Also, can I transfer all my stocks over or do I have to liquidate everything before I can transfer? Thanks!

I don't think you have to worry. Since you want to move to Scotia, sign the transition form for Scotia and they will pull all the funds in-kind from your TD account. The TD account will pull everything over and since you're doing a "in-kind" transfer your initial buy prices will remain.

Scotia charged me $125/account to close out the account when I transferred my TFSA and Direct Investing. The new bank will eat the charge to take you on as a client so make sure you make you submit the statements for reimbursement.

I left Scotia Itrade as the trading platform was absolute junk and now use RBC.

^Whats the cheapest trading platform that offers TFSA? Commission at TD is killing me..

Do I call them for the reimbursement or is there a form for me to fill?

Thanks

i use questrade at $4.95-$9.95 max, can't go wrong

Can u open a TFSA with questrade?

yes u can, don't know if it was limited time thing but if you transfer to them, they waive the transfer fee from where your money was

if you have over $50k in asset they all charge 9.95.

you don't have to fill out a form, once you give the new bank the OK to pull the funds/cash you will see the incumbent bank levy a transaction fee for about $120-$140. You're going to call customer service for the investing side of the new bank and they'll give you a number to fax in the statement showing you were penalized $120ish and they'll reimburse that amount directly into your investing account.

So I was reading at TD's commission rates. If i have over 50k and under 100k its $9.95. What happens if I have over 100k? Anyone with TD can explain?