Canadian Cheque FAQ — Answered by CPA-Accredited Printer #1010

Yes — ordering cheques online in Canada is completely safe when you use a CPA Self-Accredited Printer.

The Canadian Payments Association (CPA) maintains a public registry of approved Self-Accredited Printers whose cheques are guaranteed to clear at every Canadian bank and credit union. Print & Cheques Now is CPA Self-Accredited Printer ID #1010 — a credential that is audited and maintained by the CPA, not self-declared. Every cheque we produce meets the CPA 006 standard for MICR encoding, paper stock weight, and security feature specifications.

Before ordering from any online cheque printer, ask for their CPA accreditation number. If they cannot provide one, their cheques may not clear your bank. We publish our #1010 credential openly and welcome verification directly with the CPA.

→ Order CPA-compliant laser cheques from Printer #1010

Yes — Canadian law does not require you to buy cheques from your bank.

You are free to order from any CPA-accredited cheque printer in Canada, and doing so almost always saves money. Banks typically charge two to three times more than a direct manufacturer for the same CPA-compliant cheque. The only requirement that matters is that your cheques meet the CPA 006 standard for paper stock, MICR encoding, and security features — not the identity of who printed them.

Print & Cheques Now has supplied CPA-compliant cheques to 46,000+ Canadian businesses since 2006 and backs every order with a Bank Acceptance Guarantee. If any Canadian financial institution refuses to process a cheque we manufactured, we reprint and reship the entire order at no charge.

→ Browse our full range of business cheques

The best place to order cheques online in Canada is a CPA Self-Accredited manufacturer — not a bank or reseller.

The distinction matters practically. Resellers outsource production and have limited control over turnaround times, often quoting 7–10 business days. A direct manufacturer like Print & Cheques Now controls every step — paper stock, MICR encoding, proofing, and shipping — which is why we can offer same-day printing with next-day delivery to most Canadian cities.

Five things to look for when choosing a Canadian cheque supplier:

• CPA Self-Accredited Printer number (verifiable with the CPA)
• Bank Acceptance Guarantee in writing
• Free digital proof before printing begins
• Real phone support during business hours
• Price Match Guarantee

Print & Cheques Now meets all five. If you find a lower price from another CPA-accredited printer, send us their quote and we match it while keeping your free bonus cheques.

→ Order direct from the manufacturer

The fastest way is Express Reorder at cheques.chequesnow.ca/reorder — under 60 seconds if you have ordered from Print & Cheques Now before.

Your banking details, company name, and cheque style are already on file. We print from your saved specifications and ship the same day if you order before 2 PM EST Monday to Friday.

If this is your first order or you are switching suppliers, you will need:

• A void cheque from your current book (or your last cheque book)
• Your business name exactly as it appears on your bank account
• Your bank transit number, institution number, and account number
• Your preferred cheque style (laser, manual, or personal)

Our team at 1-866-760-2661 can walk you through the setup on the first order — subsequent reorders take under a minute.

→ Express Reorder — under 60 seconds

No — as of 2026, Walmart Canada does not offer cheque printing services.

Walmart in the United States offers personal cheques through a third-party supplier, but that service is not available at any Walmart Canada location or through Walmart.ca. If you have seen this advertised, it likely refers to the US program and is not applicable to Canadian banking requirements or CPA standards.

For Canadians looking for affordable cheques delivered quickly, a CPA-accredited online manufacturer is the better option — lower pricing than banks, more security features included, faster turnaround, and Bank Acceptance Guaranteed. Print & Cheques Now ships to every province and territory, with next-day delivery available to most major urban centres including Calgary, Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Montréal.

→ Order personal cheques for Canadians

CPA compliant means the cheque meets the Canadian Payments Association standard CPA 006, which governs how cheques must be manufactured to clear the national banking system.

The standard specifies paper stock weight, MICR encoding character specifications, magnetic ink placement tolerances, and minimum security feature requirements. If a cheque falls outside these specifications, banks may refuse to honour it or may charge the issuer a manual processing fee. CPA 006 exists so that the millions of cheques processed each day across Canada can be handled automatically and reliably.

CPA Self-Accredited Printers — like Print & Cheques Now, Printer ID #1010 — are audited to confirm ongoing compliance with this standard. When you order from an accredited printer, every cheque in your book meets CPA 006 by design. Unaccredited suppliers make no such guarantee, and your bank may reject their product without recourse.

→ Our full CPA-compliant security feature list

Yes — cheques from any CPA Self-Accredited third-party printer are accepted at every Canadian bank and credit union.

This includes RBC, TD, BMO, CIBC, Scotiabank, Desjardins, ATB Financial, and all other Canadian financial institutions. Your bank processes the MICR line and paper specification — not the logo on the cheque book. The CPA 006 standard is the only acceptance criterion that matters.

Print & Cheques Now backs this with a Bank Acceptance Guarantee on every order. If any Canadian bank refuses to process a cheque we manufactured, we reprint and reship your entire order at no charge. In nearly 20 years of operation and over 46,000 business customers served, we have not had a single cheque rejected for compliance failure.

→ Order cheques for your specific Canadian bank

In Canada, a written cheque is generally considered stale-dated after six months from the date on the cheque.

Under the Bills of Exchange Act, a bank is not obligated to honour a cheque presented more than six months after its issue date. However, different cheque types have different rules:

• Personal and business cheques: Stale-dated after 6 months — bank may refuse at its discretion
• Certified cheques: Do not expire by law, though individual bank policies may vary
• Government cheques: Typically have their own stated expiry periods printed on the face
• Unused blank cheque stock: Does not expire — only written, signed cheques become stale-dated

If you receive a cheque more than six months old, contact the issuing bank or the person who wrote it before attempting to deposit it. Unused cheque books from Print & Cheques Now remain valid and usable indefinitely until you write on them.

→ Order fresh manual business cheques

MICR stands for Magnetic Ink Character Recognition — the row of numbers at the bottom of every Canadian cheque that tells the banking system which account to debit.

The MICR line is printed in a special magnetic ink or toner using a standardized character set specified by the CPA. It encodes three pieces of information: your cheque number, your bank's transit and institution numbers, and your account number. Bank readers scan this line magnetically to process cheques automatically through the national clearing system — the same system that handles millions of transactions daily across every Canadian financial institution.

If the MICR line is printed with the wrong ink, wrong character set, or outside CPA 006 tolerances, the cheque fails automatic processing and may be rejected or returned. Every cheque manufactured by Print & Cheques Now uses CPA-approved MICR encoding as a mandatory baseline — there is no option to produce a cheque without it, because it would not be a valid Canadian cheque.

→ Learn about our MICR and security standards

Yes — magnetic ink (MICR toner) is still required on all cheques clearing through the Canadian banking system as of 2026.

While mobile deposit apps photograph the face of a cheque rather than scanning the MICR line directly, physical cheques presented at a teller or processed through a clearing house still require machine-readable MICR encoding. The CPA 006 standard has not changed this requirement, and the CPA has not announced any planned change.

For businesses printing their own cheques in-house using blank cheque stock, this means using a laser printer fitted with MICR toner cartridges — standard inkjet or laser toner is not magnetic and will fail bank readers. Print & Cheques Now's blank laser cheque stock is designed specifically for in-house MICR printing and is compatible with major laser printers that accept MICR toner cartridges.

→ Order blank laser cheque stock for in-house printing

Laser cheques are printed by your computer and accounting software; manual cheques are filled in by hand.

Laser cheques (also called computer cheques) run through your laser printer and allow software — QuickBooks, Sage, Simply Accounting, and others — to print the payee name, amount, date, and memo automatically. They come pre-printed from Print & Cheques Now with your company name, logo, banking information, and MICR line. Only the payment-specific details are added at print time. Laser cheques are the standard choice for any business issuing more than a handful of cheques per month.

Manual cheques (handwritten cheques) are fully pre-printed and completed by pen at the time of payment. They are the right choice for businesses that issue cheques infrequently, operate without accounting software, or need a quick payment without a computer. Both types are CPA 2006 compliant and accepted at all Canadian banks.

→ Laser cheques  → Manual cheques

Duplicate cheques include a carbonless copy sheet directly behind each cheque — writing on the cheque automatically creates a matching copy below it.

The copy stays in the book when you tear out the original, giving you a permanent physical audit trail of every payment without scanning or manual entry. Whether you need duplicates depends on your record-keeping system:

• Skip duplicates if: You reconcile through online banking or accounting software (most Canadian banks retain cheque images for 18+ months), or your accountant works from digital records
• Choose duplicates if: You prefer physical paper records, work in low-connectivity environments, need hard copies for audits, or your accountant specifically requests them

Print & Cheques Now offers duplicate versions of both our manual and personal cheque lines. The cost difference is modest — approximately 20% more than the single-copy format.

→ Manual duplicate cheques  → Duplicate personal cheques

Blank laser cheque stock is security-grade cheque paper with all CPA 006 security features pre-embedded, but with no banking details or MICR line pre-printed — your software prints everything at transaction time.

The paper from Print & Cheques Now comes with watermark, toner adhesion coating, chemical sensitivity paper, and void pantograph already built into the stock. Your accounting software or cheque-writing program (QuickBooks, Sage, VersaCheck, and others) prints all payment details, company information, and MICR encoding directly onto the stock at the time of each transaction using a MICR-capable laser printer.

Blank stock suits businesses that:

• Manage multiple bank accounts and want one stock for all
• Need maximum flexibility in cheque layout or branding
• Want to print on demand without maintaining pre-printed stock for each account
• Already have a MICR-capable laser printer in-house

Our stock comes in standard 8.5 × 11" sheets and is compatible with all major MICR printing systems. Notify your bank before you begin using blank stock.

→ Order blank laser cheque stock

Technically yes — a personal cheque can clear through a business account — but there are significant limitations that make it impractical for most businesses.

Personal cheques have a maximum starting number of three digits, meaning your cheque number sequence resets from 001 after reaching 999. This creates reconciliation complications and can flag during audits. Personal cheques also provide only one signature line, which prevents the dual-signature control required by many corporations, non-profits, and partnerships.

Business-format cheques — manual or laser — are designed to avoid these issues. They include:

• Sequential numbering up to six digits
• Two signature lines for dual-authorization
• Space for company name, logo, and CRA number
• Higher-security paper stock appropriate for commercial volumes

For any business issuing more than a few cheques per month, or for any account that requires dual signatures, business cheques are the correct format. Print & Cheques Now's business cheque pricing starts at $111 for manual and $176 for laser.

→ Order properly formatted business cheques

For most Canadian businesses in 2026, single cheques are sufficient — digital banking records have largely replaced the need for paper duplicates.

All major Canadian banks — RBC, TD, BMO, CIBC, Scotiabank, Desjardins, ATB, and most credit unions — retain digital cheque images for a minimum of 18 months, and many include scans in monthly statements. Accounting software like QuickBooks and Sage also maintains a complete payment register. With these digital records available, the physical copy that comes with duplicate cheques adds little practical value for most users.

Duplicate cheques remain the right choice if you operate in an environment where internet access is unreliable, your accountant or auditor requests paper copies, you manage petty cash or field payments outside your accounting system, or you simply prefer a physical record-keeping habit. Print & Cheques Now offers duplicate formats for both manual and personal cheque lines at approximately 20% above the single-copy price.

→ Compare single vs duplicate formats

Canadian business cheques should include at minimum: a watermark, MICR encoding, and chemical sensitivity paper — all required under CPA 006.

The complete security hierarchy for CPA-compliant cheques looks like this:

• Mandatory (all CPA-compliant cheques): Watermark visible under light, MICR magnetic encoding, chemical sensitivity paper that reacts to solvent tampering
• Standard on all Print & Cheques Now laser and manual orders at no extra cost: Gold hologram foil (instant visual authentication, difficult to counterfeit), heat-sensitive thermochromic ink (changes colour when rubbed, exposes tampering), microprinting, void pantograph background
• Note on personal cheques: Hologram and heat-sensitive ink are features of our laser and manual lines — personal cheques are produced to standard CPA security specifications

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre consistently reports cheque fraud as one of the most common types of business fraud in Canada. Print & Cheques Now includes the full security suite on laser and manual cheques as standard because we believe these protections should not be a paid upgrade.

→ Full security feature breakdown

At Print & Cheques Now, high-security features on laser and manual cheques — including gold hologram foil and heat-sensitive ink — are included at no extra charge, so there is no cost decision to make.

Gold hologram foil provides instant visual authentication at a glance and is extremely difficult to replicate outside an industrial printing environment. Heat-sensitive (thermochromic) ink changes colour when rubbed with a finger, immediately exposing any attempt to alter amounts or payee details by chemical washing. Both are included as standard on every laser and manual cheque order from Print & Cheques Now.

For businesses that source cheques elsewhere and face an actual upcharge for security features: the cost-benefit calculation is straightforward. Businesses writing large-value cheques, operating in construction, real estate, property management, or trades — sectors where cheque fraud is historically common — should treat these features as non-negotiable. A fraudulently altered cheque for thousands of dollars is a far greater cost than the per-cheque premium for security features.

→ Laser cheques with full security suite at no extra cost

No — printing cheques at home or in your office is not illegal in Canada, provided the cheques meet CPA 006 standards.

The Bills of Exchange Act does not prohibit self-printed cheques. What makes self-printing complex is the technical setup required to meet those standards:

• CPA-approved blank cheque stock (contains required security features)
• A laser printer capable of accepting MICR toner cartridges
• The correct MICR character set and encoding software
• Bank verification of your test prints before going live

In practice, this setup is economical only for businesses issuing very high volumes from multiple accounts simultaneously. For most businesses, ordering pre-printed cheques from a CPA-accredited manufacturer is faster, cheaper per unit, and significantly simpler. If you do want to explore in-house printing, Print & Cheques Now's blank laser cheque stock is an appropriate starting point.

→ Blank cheque stock for in-house printing

No — printing cheques on regular office paper is not a reliable or compliant approach for Canadian banking.

Regular paper does not contain the security features required under CPA 006: no watermark, no chemical sensitivity coating, no void pantograph. Many Canadian banks will reject a cheque printed on plain paper on sight. Even if accepted, the absence of security features makes it trivially easy to alter or counterfeit.

Two additional technical problems make plain-paper cheques non-functional in practice:

• No magnetic encoding: Standard inkjet or laser toner is not magnetic. The MICR line must be printed in magnetic ink or toner to pass bank readers. A cheque printed with regular toner will fail automatic processing.
• No security paper: Chemical sensitivity paper reacts visibly to tampering attempts. Without it, alterations to amounts or payee names may go undetected.

The correct approach for in-house printing is CPA-approved blank cheque stock — which contains all required security features — combined with a MICR-capable laser printer. This is a purpose-built setup, not a standard office printer with regular paper.

→ CPA-compliant blank cheque stock

Business cheque pricing in Canada ranges from roughly $0.30 to $0.75 per cheque depending on format, quantity, and supplier — with banks typically charging two to three times more than a direct manufacturer.

At Print & Cheques Now, current pricing starts at approximately $111 for manual business cheques and $176 for laser cheques, with the cost per cheque dropping significantly on larger orders. A practical example: a small order of 50 personal cheques may cost around $0.75 each, while an order of 200 drops to approximately $0.30 — ordering slightly more volume cuts your unit cost substantially.

Key factors that affect pricing:

• Format: Laser cheques are typically priced higher than manual, reflecting the additional setup requirements
• Quantity: Larger orders cost significantly less per cheque
• Single vs duplicate: Duplicate format adds approximately 20% to the base price
• Supplier type: Banks charge a reseller margin; a direct manufacturer like Print & Cheques Now does not

Print & Cheques Now also includes 25–60% more free cheques on eligible orders and offers a Price Match Guarantee — if another CPA-accredited printer quotes lower, we match it while keeping your free bonus cheques.

→ Current laser cheque pricing  → Current manual cheque pricing

Print & Cheques Now offers same-day printing for orders placed before 2 PM EST Monday to Friday, with next-day delivery to most major Canadian cities.

Delivery timeframes from Print & Cheques Now by shipping method:

• Same-day printing + next-day delivery: Orders placed before 2 PM EST to Calgary, Toronto, Vancouver, Edmonton, Montréal, and most major urban centres
• Standard delivery: 2–3 business days across Canada
• Remote locations: Additional 1–2 days depending on courier availability

For urgent situations, call us at 1-866-760-2661 and we can confirm the fastest available option for your specific location. We ship to every province and territory. For comparison, most Canadian bank cheque orders are routed through an offshore call centre and produced at a third-party printing facility in Ontario before being mailed — a process that typically takes around 10 business days.

→ Order now for same-day printing

Most Canadian bank cheque orders arrive in approximately 10 business days.

Canada's major banks — RBC, TD, BMO, CIBC, Scotiabank — historically outsourced cheque manufacturing to Davis & Henderson (D&H), a Canadian cheque manufacturing company. Orders placed through a bank branch or online banking are routed to the production facility and shipped by standard mail, which accounts for the extended timeline. Rush options exist at some banks but next-day delivery is rarely available.

If you need cheques urgently, an order placed with Print & Cheques Now before 2 PM EST can be manufactured the same day and couriered for next-day delivery to most Canadian cities — typically at a lower total cost than the bank's standard price. Call 1-866-760-2661 and we can confirm delivery timeframes for your location before you place the order.

→ Order bank-specific cheques directly

Yes — Print & Cheques Now offers a Price Match Guarantee on all cheque products.

If you find a lower advertised price from another CPA-accredited cheque printer in Canada for a comparable product, send us their written quote and we will match it. Critically, our price match includes your free bonus cheques — we do not reduce the free quantity to meet a competitor's price:

• Laser cheques: 25% more free on eligible styles
• Manual cheques: 50% more free on eligible styles
• Personal cheques: 60% more free on eligible styles

The price match applies to direct competitors offering CPA-compliant cheques of the same format and security level. It does not apply to clearance items, one-time promotions, or non-accredited suppliers. To request a price match, call 1-866-760-2661 or email orders@printnow.ca with the competitor's quote and we respond the same business day.

→ Contact us to request a price match

Cheque and check refer to exactly the same financial instrument — a written order directing your bank to pay a specific sum from a specific account. The difference is spelling only.

Cheque is the standard spelling in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and most Commonwealth countries. Check is the American English spelling used in the United States. In Canada, the legally and commercially correct spelling is cheque — this is the spelling used by the CPA, the Bank of Canada, and all major Canadian financial institutions.

When you see a Canadian cheque supplier consistently using the American spelling "checks" throughout their website, that can indicate the content was written without Canadian context. As CPA Self-Accredited Printer #1010 since 2006, everything Print & Cheques Now produces is designed specifically for the Canadian clearing system, CPA standards, and Canadian banking practices — not adapted from American content.

→ Detailed cheque vs check breakdown

The numbers at the bottom of a Canadian cheque are the MICR line — three sets of numbers encoding your cheque number, bank routing information, and account number.

Reading left to right:

• Cheque number: The sequential identifier for that specific cheque in your book
• Transit number (5 digits): Identifies your specific branch
• Institution number (3 digits): Identifies your bank (e.g., 004 = TD, 002 = BMO, 003 = RBC, 010 = CIBC, 002 = Scotiabank)
• Account number: Your specific bank account, unique to you

These numbers are printed in MICR (Magnetic Ink Character Recognition) font using magnetic toner — not regular ink — so that bank readers can scan and process the cheque automatically. If any of these numbers are incorrect, the cheque will either be rejected or deducted from the wrong account. Print & Cheques Now verifies all routing information against your void cheque or banking details before any order goes to press.

→ How to read a Canadian cheque — step by step guide

Your accounting software determines which cheque position you need — top, middle, or bottom — and Print & Cheques Now manufactures laser cheques in all three.

Most Canadian accounting platforms — QuickBooks, Sage 50, Simply Accounting, Sage Intacct, Wave, and others — support three standard cheque positions:

• Top position: Cheque at top of the page, two stubs (vouchers) below
• Middle position: Stub at top, cheque in the middle, stub at bottom
• Bottom position: Two stubs above, cheque at the bottom

Your software's cheque printing setup menu will specify which position it uses. If you are switching from another supplier, send Print & Cheques Now a void cheque from your current book and we will replicate the layout exactly — including logo placement, colour, and custom branding. If you are unsure which position your software requires, call us at 1-866-760-2661 and our team will walk you through it. We have been matching accounting software cheque layouts for Canadian businesses since 2006.

→ Laser cheques compatible with QuickBooks, Sage, and more

Print & Cheques Now offers five cheque supply products: address stamps, cheque binders, deposit bags, personalized deposit books, and self-sealing double-window envelopes — all available to order with or without a simultaneous cheque order.

Each supply product is designed to work alongside our cheque products. Address stamps save time on envelopes and documents. Cheque binders organize your cheque books. Deposit bags provide tamper-evident transport to the bank. Personalized deposit books are pre-printed with your banking details for faster, error-free deposit slips. Self-sealing envelopes are sized for standard Canadian business cheques folded in thirds with double windows for addresses. All supplies can be bundled with a cheque order to consolidate shipping, or ordered independently at any time.

→ Browse all cheque supplies

Address stamps from Print & Cheques Now are self-inking rubber stamps pre-set with your business name, address, and contact details — used to quickly mark envelopes, deposit books, documents, and correspondence without handwriting your details each time.

Self-inking stamps contain their own ink supply and re-ink automatically between impressions — no separate pad needed. You provide your business details at order time and Print & Cheques Now sets the stamp to your exact specifications before shipping. Address stamps pair naturally with any cheque order: they speed up addressing non-window envelopes for businesses mailing cheques to suppliers or employees, and they work equally well on deposit books, invoices, and general correspondence. Replacement ink pads are available when the stamp runs low.

→ Order a custom address stamp

Self-sealing double-window envelopes fold standard Canadian business cheques in thirds so the payee address and your return address show through the two windows — no separate address labels, no licking, fold, insert, peel, and seal.

Print & Cheques Now self-sealing envelopes are sized for standard Canadian business cheques (8.5 × 11" folded in thirds) and are compatible with laser cheques, manual cheques, and most standard business cheque formats. When your accounting software prints the payee name and address on the cheque face, that address shows through the front window. Your business address in the stub area shows through the return address window. For businesses mailing high volumes of supplier or payroll cheques each month, self-sealing envelopes significantly speed up the mailing process.

→ Order self-sealing cheque envelopes

Personalized deposit books from Print & Cheques Now are pre-printed with your business name, bank transit number, institution number, and account number — every deposit slip is ready to use without handwriting your banking details each time.

Each book includes duplicate carbonless copy slips. When you complete a deposit and the teller stamps your original slip, the copy transfers automatically to the sheet below and stays in the book as a permanent dated record. Over time, your deposit book becomes a running reconciliation trail of every deposit made — comparable to the duplicate copies in a cheque book. Personalized deposit books are ordered with the same banking details as your cheques, printed to CPA specifications, and accepted at all major Canadian banks and credit unions. Production time is 1–2 business days before shipping.

→ Order personalized deposit books

Yes — Print & Cheques Now deposit bags use a tamper-evident seal that shows any attempt to open the bag after sealing, and each bag includes a removable serial-numbered receipt stub that provides a chain of custody record from your premises to the bank.

To use: place your cash and cheques in the bag, note the amount on the exterior and stub, peel and seal the tamper-evident strip, tear off the stub (which shares a serial number with the bag), and retain it for your records. Drop the sealed bag at your bank's night deposit or hand it to a teller. Print & Cheques Now deposit bags are compatible with deposit procedures at all major Canadian banks and credit unions and are sold in boxes for regular business use.

→ Order tamper-evident deposit bags

Yes — all five cheque supply products from Print & Cheques Now can be ordered independently at any time, without a simultaneous cheque order.

Address stamps, cheque binders, deposit bags, deposit books, and self-sealing envelopes are all available as standalone orders through our online store. Shipping is calculated at checkout based on your location and order size. If you are ordering both cheques and supplies at the same time, bundling them in a single order consolidates shipping and is the most cost-efficient approach. Call 1‑866‑760‑2661 if you need help placing a combined order or want to confirm which envelope style fits your specific cheque format before ordering.

→ Browse and order all cheque supplies

To place your first cheque order with Print & Cheques Now, you need your bank transit number, institution number, account number, your business or personal name exactly as it appears on your bank account, and your mailing address.

The easiest way to provide this information is to send us a void cheque from your current cheque book — it contains everything we need pre-printed on it. If you are opening a brand new account and don't have a cheque book yet, a direct deposit form printed from your online banking portal contains the same information and works equally well.

For business cheque orders, also have ready:

• Your company name and full address as it should appear on the cheque
• Your logo file if you want it printed (EPS, PDF, or high-resolution PNG)
• Your preferred cheque position (top, middle, or bottom) if ordering laser cheques
• Your preferred background colour

Our team reviews every order for accuracy before printing — if anything looks unclear or inconsistent we will contact you before proceeding.

→ Contact us if you have questions before ordering

Yes — for a first-time order on any bank account, Print & Cheques Now requires either a void cheque or a direct deposit form from your online banking portal to verify your banking information before printing.

A void cheque is the most reliable way to ensure your transit number, institution number, and account number are encoded correctly. Transposing even a single digit in your account number means your cheques will be deducted from the wrong account or rejected entirely — something that causes significant disruption. By verifying against a void cheque, we catch errors before they reach the printing press.

To void a cheque: write "VOID" in large letters across the face of a cheque from your existing book. Do not sign it. Scan or photograph it clearly and email it to orders@printnow.ca, or upload it when placing your order online. If you do not have an existing cheque book, a direct deposit form printed from your bank's online portal contains the same information and is equally acceptable.

For reorders of an existing account we already have on file, a void cheque is not required.

→ Returning customer? Use Express Reorder

Yes — Print & Cheques Now provides a free digital proof for every new cheque order before printing begins, giving you the opportunity to review and approve your exact name, address, banking details, logo placement, and cheque layout.

Your proof is prepared by our prepress team using your submitted information and void cheque. It is emailed to you as a PDF or image file showing exactly how your cheques will appear when printed — including the MICR line at the bottom. If anything looks incorrect — a misspelled name, wrong address, misaligned logo, or incorrect cheque number sequence — you reply with your correction and we update the proof before any cheques are produced.

Approving the proof is your confirmation that all details are correct. Once you approve, we go to press immediately. If you need same-day printing, note that proof review time is included in the turnaround — approving quickly keeps your order on schedule for the 2 PM EST same-day print cutoff.

→ Questions about your proof? Call 1-866-760-2661

Changes and cancellations are possible if your order has not yet gone to press — contact Print & Cheques Now immediately by phone at 1‑866‑760‑2661 if you need to make a change after ordering.

Because Print & Cheques Now offers same-day printing, orders move quickly through our production workflow. Once an order is approved and printing has begun, it cannot be cancelled or changed. However, there is typically a window between order placement and proof approval during which modifications are possible — this is one reason the proof step exists.

If an error occurs on our part after printing — a misprint, wrong information, or quality defect — Print & Cheques Now will reprint and reship your entire order at no charge, no questions asked. Our error reprint guarantee covers any mistake attributable to our production process. Errors resulting from information submitted incorrectly by the customer are handled case by case.

→ Call immediately to request a change: 1-866-760-2661

If your cheques arrive with an error caused by Print & Cheques Now — a misprint, incorrect banking information, or quality defect — contact us immediately and we will reprint and reship your entire order at no charge.

Call 1‑866‑760‑2661 or email orders@printnow.ca as soon as you identify the issue. Have your order number ready and describe the error clearly. For banking detail errors, please also have your void cheque available so we can verify the correct information before reprinting.

Our quality control team reviews every order before shipping — but if something does slip through, our response is straightforward: we fix it, we reprint it, we reship it, at no cost to you. Do not use cheques with incorrect banking information — return them unused and wait for the corrected replacement order, which we prioritize as an urgent reprint.

→ Report an error — we make it right

Technically you can write on a laser cheque by hand, but doing so creates a compliance issue under CPA 006 — laser cheques are designed to be completed by printer, and handwritten amounts may be flagged or rejected by some financial institutions.

CPA 006 specifies that computer-generated cheques must be completed by computer — the standard distinguishes between the printed format (laser/computer cheque) and the handwritten format (manual cheque). A bank may process a handwritten laser cheque as a customer service courtesy currently, but enforcement of this distinction is expected to tighten over time and some institutions already impose processing fees for non-compliant formats.

If you sometimes need to complete cheques by hand, the correct solution is to order manual cheques — which are designed and specified for handwritten completion — rather than writing on laser cheques. Print & Cheques Now manufactures both, and you can order both formats for the same account. Many businesses keep a book of manual cheques alongside their laser cheques for exactly this situation.

→ Order manual cheques for handwritten payments

Yes — Print & Cheques Now can update your name on a new cheque order at any time. Simply place a new order with your updated name and provide a void cheque showing your updated bank account details.

When you change your name, your bank will update the account holder name on file. Before ordering new cheques, confirm with your bank that the name change has been processed and that your account now reflects your new name. Then order new cheques with the updated name — your transit, institution, and account numbers remain the same even after a name change, so the MICR line on your new cheques will be identical to your previous order.

If you are reordering with only a name change and all banking details remain the same, contact us at 1‑866‑760‑2661 — in many cases we can process the update as an express reorder with the name correction applied, without requiring a full new setup process.

→ Contact us to update your cheque details

Yes — Print & Cheques Now prints cheques for lawyers' general accounts and trust accounts, and is familiar with the dual-account setup common in Canadian legal practices.

Law firms in Canada typically maintain at least two accounts: a general operating account for firm expenses, and a trust account that holds client funds in trust. Cheques for trust accounts must clearly identify the account as a trust account — typically with "IN TRUST" or "TRUST ACCOUNT" printed on the face of the cheque. Print & Cheques Now can accommodate this designation as part of your cheque order.

Both general and trust account cheques can be ordered with your firm name, logo, and required fields. Many law firms also require two authorized signature lines — our business cheque formats include this as standard. If you have specific Law Society requirements in your province, call us at 1‑866‑760‑2661 and we will confirm how to structure your order to meet them.

→ Order professional cheques for law firms

Shipping costs for cheque orders from Print & Cheques Now vary by delivery speed, order size, and destination — standard shipping rates apply at checkout, with expedited and next-day options available for urgent orders.

Shipping costs are calculated at checkout based on your location, the weight of your order, and the courier service you select. Standard delivery across most of Canada via ground courier is the most economical option and typically takes 2–3 business days after same-day printing. Expedited options — including next-day delivery to most major Canadian cities — are available at a higher shipping rate.

For businesses placing regular or high-volume cheque orders, our team can discuss shipping arrangements that minimize per-order costs. Call 1‑866‑760‑2661 to discuss volume ordering and shipping options before placing your first order. Note that if you need the absolute fastest delivery, ordering before the 2 PM EST same-day print cutoff maximizes how quickly your order can be in the courier's hands.

→ Start your order to see shipping options

Print & Cheques Now ships via major Canadian couriers including Purolator, FedEx, and Canada Post depending on your location, order size, and selected delivery speed.

For next-day and expedited delivery to major urban centres, we use Purolator or FedEx — both provide reliable tracked delivery with online tracking numbers emailed to you when your order ships. For standard delivery to addresses across Canada, including smaller centres and rural locations, Canada Post is often the most practical option.

If you have a strong preference for a specific carrier — for example, if your business has a preferred courier account — let us know when placing your order and we will accommodate where possible. For PO Box addresses and remote locations where courier delivery is limited, Canada Post is typically the available option. Call 1‑866‑760‑2661 before ordering if you have specific carrier requirements.

→ Ask us about shipping options for your location

When your cheque order ships, Print & Cheques Now sends you a shipment confirmation email containing your tracking number and the courier's tracking link — allowing you to monitor delivery status in real time.

Business cheque orders shipped via Purolator or FedEx include full tracking from the moment they are picked up. Personal cheque orders shipped via Canada Post also include a tracking number where tracking is available for that Canada Post service level. If you did not receive a shipment confirmation email, check your spam folder first — then contact us at orders@printnow.ca or 1‑866‑760‑2661 with your order number and we will look up the status and resend your tracking information.

If your order appears to be delayed beyond the expected delivery window, contact us immediately. We will investigate with the courier and, if the order is confirmed lost in transit, reprint and reship at no charge.

→ Contact us about a shipment

Yes — Print & Cheques Now can ship to PO Box addresses via Canada Post, which delivers to PO Boxes at Canadian post offices across the country.

If your mailing address is a PO Box, your order will be shipped via Canada Post rather than a courier service. This means next-day delivery is not available for PO Box destinations — Canada Post delivery typically takes 3–7 business days depending on your location. If you need faster delivery, consider providing a physical street address (home or workplace) where courier delivery is available.

For businesses in remote locations where courier service does not reach, Canada Post is often the only option regardless of address type, and Print & Cheques Now ships to every province and territory in Canada through Canada Post. When placing your order, enter your PO Box address exactly as formatted by Canada Post (e.g., PO Box 123, Town Name, Province, Postal Code).

→ Questions about delivery to your location?

Yes — Print & Cheques Now prints company logos on business cheques, and logo printing is included at no extra charge on eligible cheque styles.

To include your logo, provide your artwork file when placing your order or email it to orders@printnow.ca with your order number. Accepted file formats are:

• Preferred: EPS or PDF (vector format — scales to any size without quality loss)
• Acceptable: High-resolution PNG or TIFF at minimum 300 DPI at the intended print size
• Not suitable: JPG from websites (typically too low resolution), screenshots, or files under 300 DPI

Your logo is placed during the prepress stage and shown on your digital proof for approval before printing. If your logo file is not print-ready, our prepress team will advise you — in some cases we can work with what you have, and in others we may need a higher-quality version. Logo placement size on a cheque is limited by CPA-required fields, but most business logos fit within the available space on the left or right of the pre-printed area.

→ Order custom logo cheques

Print & Cheques Now offers one of the widest colour selections in Canada for cheque backgrounds — available colours include blue, green, yellow, pink, grey, and more across our manual and laser cheque ranges.

Colour selection varies slightly by cheque type and style:

• Manual business cheques: Multiple background colour options including classic blue and green, plus lighter pastel options depending on the style chosen
• Laser / computer cheques: Colour options vary by layout position and style — a selection is available at checkout
• Personal cheques: Range of designs and colours available through our personal cheque order portal

For businesses with specific brand colour requirements, Pantone colour matching is available on request — contact us at 1‑866‑760‑2661 to discuss Pantone matching before placing your order. Note that cheque background colours are subject to CPA security feature requirements — certain background treatments must remain legible under scanning and imaging conditions.

→ Browse available styles and colours

One-per-page laser cheques (also called voucher cheques) have one cheque on an 8.5 × 11" sheet with one or two stub sections for payment details. Three-per-page cheques have three cheques stacked on a single sheet with no stubs — better for high-volume, simple payments.

The right layout depends on how you use cheques:

• 1-per-page (voucher style): Best for accounts payable and payroll. The stub sections carry invoice details, deduction breakdowns, or payment notes that stay with the cheque record. QuickBooks, Sage, and most accounting software default to this format. Cheque can be at the top, middle, or bottom of the page depending on your software's template.
• 3-per-page (3-up): Three cheques per sheet, no stubs. More economical per cheque and faster to load in printers. Best for simple, high-volume payments where stub detail is not needed — rent, utilities, simple supplier payments.

If you are unsure which layout your accounting software uses, check its cheque printing setup screen or call us at 1‑866‑760‑2661 and we will confirm before you order.

→ Order laser cheques in your required layout

Print & Cheques Now accepts Visa, Mastercard, Interac e-Transfer, Direct Debit, and — for returning business customers — pre-authorized bank account debit.

Credit and debit card payments (Visa and Mastercard) are accepted on all orders through our secure online checkout. Interac e-Transfer is accepted for customers who prefer to pay directly from their bank account without a credit card. Direct Debit is available for business customers. If you are a returning business customer and prefer to set up pre-authorized bank account debiting — similar to how you would pay invoices from other suppliers — contact our team at 1‑866‑760‑2661 to discuss account terms.

All payment methods are processed through secure, encrypted channels. We do not store full credit card numbers on our systems after a transaction is complete. For questions about payment options not listed here, call us during business hours Monday to Friday, 7 AM to 5:30 PM MST.

→ Place a secure order online

Yes — chequesnow.ca and the Print & Cheques Now order platform use SSL/TLS encryption on all pages where personal, banking, and payment information is submitted, ensuring your data is encrypted in transit and protected from interception.

Look for the padlock icon in your browser's address bar when you are on any order or checkout page — this confirms an active encrypted connection. Your credit card information is processed through a PCI-compliant payment gateway and is not stored on our servers in full form after the transaction is completed. Your banking details (transit number, institution number, account number) are used solely to produce your cheques and are stored securely in our production system for reorder convenience.

Print & Cheques Now has operated securely online since 2006 and has served 46,000+ Canadian businesses. If you have specific concerns about data handling or would prefer to order by phone rather than online, call 1‑866‑760‑2661 and our team can take your order securely over the phone.

→ Read our privacy policy

In Canada, responsibility for cheque fraud losses is increasingly shifting from banks to the business or individual whose cheque was forged or altered — making high-security cheques and careful cheque handling practices essential, not optional.

Under Canadian banking law, if a bank can demonstrate that you failed to exercise adequate care in safeguarding your cheques — for example, by using low-security cheque stock, leaving cheque books in unsecured locations, or failing to reconcile your account promptly — the bank may hold you partially or fully responsible for losses resulting from fraud on your account.

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre consistently reports cheque fraud in the billions of dollars annually. Protective steps every business should take:

• Use high-security cheques with hologram, heat-sensitive ink, and watermark (included on all Print & Cheques Now laser and manual cheques at no extra charge)
• Reconcile your bank account promptly every month — you typically have a limited window to dispute unauthorized transactions
• Store unused cheque books in a locked location
• Report any missing or stolen cheques to your bank immediately

→ See our security features that protect you

If you receive a cheque that appears suspicious or fraudulent, do not deposit it — contact the issuing bank directly using a phone number from their official website to verify the cheque before accepting it.

Warning signs of a fraudulent cheque include:

• The cheque amount is unexpectedly large or the circumstances feel unusual
• The cheque arrived unsolicited or as part of a prize, employment, or overpayment scenario
• The MICR line at the bottom looks printed with a standard inkjet printer (raised, shiny appearance rather than flat magnetic ink)
• The paper feels lightweight, glossy, or lacks the texture of security cheque stock
• No watermark visible when held up to light
• The font or layout looks inconsistent with genuine cheques from that bank

If you have already deposited a suspicious cheque and the funds are available, do not spend them — your bank can claw back the amount if the cheque does not clear. Report suspicious cheques to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre at 1-888-495-8501 and your local police. Cheque fraud often involves sophisticated counterfeits that appear legitimate at first glance.

→ Learn how to identify genuine security cheques

Yes — Print & Cheques Now cheques are CPA 2006 compliant and designed to process correctly through all standard Canadian ATMs, bank deposit machines, teller windows, and electronic clearing systems.

ATMs and deposit machines that accept cheque deposits read the MICR line at the bottom of the cheque magnetically and capture a digital image of the cheque face. Both functions depend on proper CPA 006 compliance — correct paper stock weight for image quality, MICR encoding within tolerance for magnetic reading, and security features that do not interfere with scanning. All Print & Cheques Now cheques meet these specifications as a mandatory baseline.

If you experience a cheque being rejected at an ATM or deposit machine — which is extremely rare with properly manufactured CPA-compliant cheques — the issue is almost always the MICR line encoding being outside tolerance for that specific machine. Contact us at 1‑866‑760‑2661 immediately if this occurs and we will investigate and reprint if the issue is with our production.

→ Our CPA 2006 compliance guarantee

Yes — Print & Cheques Now can print cheques for US bank accounts and for US dollar accounts held at Canadian banks, subject to providing the correct US routing number and account information.

Two different situations apply:

• US dollar account at a Canadian bank: Many Canadian businesses maintain a USD account at their primary Canadian bank (e.g., RBC USD, TD US Dollar). These accounts have Canadian-format transit and institution numbers but are denominated in US dollars. We print these cheques with a "USD" or "US Funds" indicator on the face. Provide your void cheque from that account when ordering.
• Account at a US bank: US bank accounts use a 9-digit ABA routing number (different from the Canadian transit+institution format). We can print cheques encoded with the US routing system. Provide your void cheque from your US account and specify that this is a US bank account when ordering.

Call 1‑866‑760‑2661 before ordering a US account cheque if you are unsure which situation applies — we will confirm the right approach for your specific account.

→ Contact us to discuss US account cheque orders

Yes — Print & Cheques Now can add your driver's licence number as a pre-printed field on personal cheques, a practice that helps retailers verify your identity when you pay by cheque.

Some individuals — particularly those who frequently pay by cheque at businesses that require ID verification — prefer to have their driver's licence number pre-printed rather than handwriting it each time. To add this, note your driver's licence number in the order instructions when placing your personal cheque order, and specify where you want it to appear (typically below your name and address area).

Note that pre-printing sensitive identifying information does carry a small privacy consideration — your driver's licence number is visible on every cheque you write, to every recipient. This is a personal preference decision. If you prefer not to pre-print it but still want to provide it to retailers, you can simply write it on the cheque at time of payment. Print & Cheques Now accommodates either approach.

→ Order custom personal cheques