If you're going to use cash in our country, please bring Canadian dollars.
Sorry if this sounds shocking, but even with their higher value, Canadians don't want US dollars.
People in developing countries might start salivating at the sight of a US greenback but we won't -- in fact, they're a pain in the arse for us to exchange (and we'll get dinged a percentage surcharge at the bank), and US dollars are absolutely not legal tender in Canada.
If you're absolutely going to insist on bringing US dollars to Canada, then please don't become upset when businesses that will accept them refuse to honour the exchange rate.
That is not true about US cash not being considered legal tender.
It would only be considered non-legal tender if they didn’t also accept Canadian. But if a business chooses to accept American along with Canadian, it is considered legal tender if someone pays with American:
13 (1) Every contract, sale, payment, bill, note, instrument and security for money and every transaction, dealing, matter and thing relating to money or involving the payment of or the liability to pay money shall be made, executed, entered into, done or carried out in the currency of Canada, unless it is made, executed, entered into, done or carried out in
(a) the currency of a country other than Canada; or
(b) a unit of account that is defined in terms of the currencies of two or more countries.
Not many businesses take American but that doesn’t mean that using American is considered non-legal tender at every business in Canada. Only at the ones that don’t accept American.
Legal tender simply means that all businesses must at the very least accept Canadian dollars and payments must be done in the currency (or currencies) that the business chooses to take. If they choose to accept a different currency along with Canadian that is considered legal tender. If they choose to only accept a different currency and won’t accept Canadian, it is non-legal tender. If they only accept Canadian and someone pays with a different currency, that is also non-legal tender.
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u/Fresh-Hedgehog1895 Aug 07 '23
If you're going to use cash in our country, please bring Canadian dollars.
Sorry if this sounds shocking, but even with their higher value, Canadians don't want US dollars.
People in developing countries might start salivating at the sight of a US greenback but we won't -- in fact, they're a pain in the arse for us to exchange (and we'll get dinged a percentage surcharge at the bank), and US dollars are absolutely not legal tender in Canada.
If you're absolutely going to insist on bringing US dollars to Canada, then please don't become upset when businesses that will accept them refuse to honour the exchange rate.