How I Set Up My TD e-Series RESP

In this post, I’ll teach you how to set up a TD e-series RESP the quick and easy way.  With tuition costs soaring, it’s important that we start planning for our children’s education today, which is why I opened a TD e-series RESP.  Trying to open an e-series RESP account can be a bit tricky because you’re filling out 2 sets of paperwork: one to open an RESP and the other to apply for the e-series funds.  So I thought I’d walk you through the process that I used to quickly get it set up.

Opening an RESP account

If you looked at the TD e-series application form, you’ll notice that on the very first page, you have 3 account options (RSP, personal non-registered and joint non-registered).  Nowhere is there an RESP option or even a TFSA option for that matter.

So to avoid any problems, I just went into my TD branch and opened an RESP mutual funds account.  This involved a few things:

1. Filling out a Customer Investor Profile document,
2. Producing my child’s Birth Certificate and SIN for account registration purposes, and
3. Making an initial deposit into a mutual fund.

I just made the initial deposit to the TD Money Market Fund (TDB 164).  That way, I already had the RESP opened and now it was just a matter of applying for the e-series funds.  I will say that when I fill out the investor profile, I answer all the questions so that I achieve the “aggressive growth” profile.

I do this because if you select too conservative of profile, then you may not have the option to purchase certain funds and, in fact, a TD Investment Services (TDIS) representative may refuse to complete a purchase transaction if it does not align with your investor profile.  So be careful how you fill out the investor profile.

What are TD e-series Funds?

TD e-series funds are low-cost mutual funds that are available to customers only through online banking.  The key thing about e-series funds is that you manage them online, either through EasyWeb or email.  You cannot go to a branch and either open an e-series account or get help with one.  In fact, their consent form states that you cannot call TDIS about e-series funds unless EasyWeb is unavailable.

TD e-Series Funds Account Application

If you’ve ever looked at the TD e-series funds account application online, it can be a bit overwhelming.  It’s about 14 pages long and requires lots of documentation, filling out an investor profile etc., etc.  It can be a real nightmare to fill out and if you forget an initial here, or a signature there, the application gets returned to you and you have to correct it and resubmit it.

The great thing about my method is that if you opened the mutual fund RESP in-branch, then all you need to do is fill out and mail off an Application To Convert To A TD e-Series Funds Account form.  The form is only 2 pages long and very simple to fill out.  All you need to do is:

1. Fill out your RESP account number,
2. Fill out your TD Canada Trust Access Card number, and
3. Sign and date the form!

Too Easy!  There you have it – how to open a TD e-series RESP account.  Within about two weeks, you will notice that when you log into EasyWeb and go to “Purchase Mutual Funds,” you will have access to purchase e-series funds in addition to the regular menu of TD mutual funds.  This is also the time that you can set up a Pre-authorized Purchase Plan (PPP) to make regular, automatic contributions to your new TD e-Series Funds account!