Send Money from Canada to China

Measured on the full cost — the transfer fee plus the exchange-rate margin — Remitly is cheapest on this corridor at C$1,000, across the 3 providers we hold checked figures for. The cheapest provider also changes with the amount you send, so compare the final sum that arrives in Chinese yuans rather than the headline fee.

At C$1,000, Remitly is the cheapest of the 3 providers priced at that amount on this corridor: about C$8.89 all in, or 0.89% of the amount sent. Wise is next at about C$15.36. That is the fee plus the exchange-rate margin that applied to a transfer of that size — priced at C$1,000 specifically, not worked out from a measurement taken at some other amount. It covers a bank transfer; cash pickup and mobile wallet payouts are priced separately. The margins were measured by Wise's comparison service rather than published by the providers themselves, and other providers here may be cheaper and are not priced this way.

Delivery ranges from minutes to a few business days depending on the provider and payout method. Wise, Panda Remit and WorldRemit can deliver within minutes when you pay by debit card. Bank-funded and economy transfers typically take one to three business days but usually cost less. Transfers sent outside banking hours or over a weekend may not settle until the next working day.

Across the providers we compare, the available payout methods are WeChat Pay, Alipay, UnionPay, bank deposit, cash pickup, mobile wallet and airtime top-up. The most widely used options in China are bank deposit and Alipay. China applies annual foreign-exchange limits per recipient, so large or frequent transfers may need extra documentation. Not every provider supports every method, so check the table above before you commit.

No. Western Union and WorldRemit offer cash pickup in China, so your recipient can collect the funds with valid photo ID and the transfer reference number. That said, bank deposit and Alipay generally cost less than cash collection.

Providers rarely give you the mid-market rate — the reference rate you see on Google or Reuters. Instead they add a margin, typically between 0.4% and 4%, and keep the difference. That margin is often larger than the visible transfer fee, which is why a "no fee" service can still be more expensive overall. For CAD to CNY, compare the quoted rate against the mid-market rate to see the real spread you are paying.

Yes, provided you use a licensed provider. Every service listed on this page is regulated in Canada under FINTRAC, which requires safeguarding of customer funds and identity verification. Send only to people you know personally, keep your transfer reference private, and be sceptical of anyone pressuring you to send money urgently to someone you have not met.

Yes. Each provider sets its own transfer limits, which vary by how much identity verification you have completed and how you pay. Larger transfers may require additional documentation such as proof of source of funds. China also applies an annual foreign-exchange conversion limit per individual, which can restrict repeated large transfers to the same recipient. For transfers above roughly C$10,000, a specialist foreign-exchange broker will often beat an app on rate.

China runs TWO separate USD 50,000 annual quotas per person, and the one that matters here is the settlement quota — converting foreign currency INTO renminbi. Receiving foreign currency into a Chinese foreign-currency account is not itself capped; converting it to renminbi draws on that settlement allowance, which is why a large or repeated transfer to the same recipient can eventually run into it. The other quota (purchase: renminbi into foreign currency, USD 50,000 a year) governs money leaving China and is not the one your recipient spends. Using one does not consume the other. Published summaries of this rule contradict each other freely, several of them claiming inbound conversion is uncapped — if your recipient is approaching USD 50,000 in a calendar year, have them confirm their remaining settlement quota with their own bank rather than relying on any summary, this one included. Inbound transfers are also subject to per-transaction purpose-of-payment and anti-money-laundering checks, with several exempt categories including education, medical costs and family support. Wise applies its own limits on this corridor: a maximum of 50,000 yuan per transfer, with an annual cap of 500,000 yuan or five transactions a month. Recipients may need to link a bank card to their Alipay or WeChat wallet before funds can be released — worth checking before you send something time-sensitive. China also tightened its OUTBOUND foreign-exchange rules from 1 January 2026: banks must verify the remitter's details on any single transfer out of China above RMB 5,000 or USD 1,000, under a rule issued by the central bank and the banking and securities regulators in October 2025. This one is genuinely about money leaving China and has no bearing on what your recipient can receive from Canada — unlike the settlement quota above, which does apply at their end.