To cancel a CIBC credit card, call CIBC at 1-800-465-4653 or visit any CIBC banking centre in person. There is no option to close a credit card account through CIBC Online Banking or the mobile app. Before you make the call, spend a bit of time on preparation: paying off the balance, redeeming rewards, and moving recurring payments off the card. Skipping those steps is how people end up with surprise interest charges, forfeited points, and missed bills weeks after they thought the account was done.
Pay Off the Balance First
CIBC will not close a credit card that still carries a balance, and interest continues to accrue on any unpaid amount even after you request cancellation.1Government of Canada. Cancelling Your Credit Card Log into Online Banking or check your latest statement to confirm the current balance, including any transactions that have not yet posted.
Watch for residual interest. If you carried a balance on your last statement and then paid it off, interest may have accumulated between the statement date and the day your payment cleared. That trailing charge shows up on the next statement. The safest sequence is to pay the balance, wait one more statement cycle, confirm it is truly zero, and then call to cancel.
If the account shows a credit balance (meaning CIBC owes you money), ask the representative to refund it to your bank account during the cancellation call.
Redeem Your Rewards Before You Call
Rewards points do not survive account closure. Redeem everything before you cancel.
Aventura cardholders get a 60-day window after the account closes to use remaining points, but redemption options shrink. Airline travel rewards and flexible travel rewards are gone during that grace period, leaving only lifestyle rewards, payment credits, or shopping.2CIBC. Information on Upcoming Changes to Your Aventura Rewards Terms Conditions Benefits Any points still sitting there after 60 days are forfeited without compensation.
For non-Aventura CIBC rewards cards, points are generally forfeited the moment the account closes. If you hold another active CIBC credit card, ask whether your points can be transferred to it before closure is processed. Do this before you cancel, because once the account flips to closed, the system will not process a transfer.
Move Your Recurring Payments
This is where most cancellations go sideways. Subscriptions, utility bills, and automatic payments linked to the card will fail once the account closes. The service provider will keep billing the closed card, the charges will bounce, and you may face late fees or service interruptions. Cutting up the card or letting it expire does not stop these charges either.1Government of Canada. Cancelling Your Credit Card
Pull a few months of statements and list every recurring charge. Contact each company to update the payment method to a different card or bank account. Give yourself at least one full billing cycle to confirm each switch went through before cancelling. Easy ones to miss: streaming services, cloud storage, insurance premiums, and annual renewals like domain names that only bill once a year.
Give Authorized Users Notice
Anyone listed as an authorized user on your account will find their card stops working the moment the account closes. Tell them in advance so they can arrange another payment method. Authorized users are not responsible for the account balance, that stays with the primary cardholder, but the closed account will eventually drop off their credit report too, which can affect their score if it was helping their utilization ratio or account age.
Consider a Product Switch Instead
If the reason you want to cancel is the annual fee, CIBC lets you switch to a different credit card product instead of closing the account entirely. A product switch keeps your account history intact. You keep the same account number and credit limit, and move to a card with different features or a lower (or zero) annual fee.3CIBC. Information on Upcoming Changes to Your CIBC Credit Card Account
To request a product switch, call 1-800-465-4653 or speak with an advisor at any banking centre. It is worth exploring before you commit to a full cancellation, because the credit score consequences of closing an account are harder to undo than most people expect.
Cancelling by Phone
Call CIBC at 1-800-465-4653 or the number on the back of your card. You will go through an automated system first, so have your 16-digit card number ready. Once you reach a representative, state clearly that you want to close the credit card account. The representative will verify your identity through security questions or your Personal Identification Number.
Expect a retention pitch. The representative may offer a lower annual fee, bonus points, or a temporary interest rate reduction. If you have already decided, politely decline and ask them to proceed. Before hanging up, get a confirmation number and request written confirmation that the account has been closed.
Cancelling at a Banking Centre
You can walk into any CIBC banking centre during business hours. Bring your credit card and a government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s licence or passport. In some cases, CIBC may ask for a second piece of ID.4CIBC. In-Person Authentication The advisor will process the closure and can give you immediate verbal confirmation.
Cancelling in Writing
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada notes that you can also contact your credit card issuer in writing to cancel.1Government of Canada. Cancelling Your Credit Card A written request creates a paper trail, which helps if a dispute arises later. Include your full name, card number, a clear statement that you are closing the account, and your signature. Send it to the address on your statement and keep a copy.
How Cancelling Affects Your Credit Score
Closing a credit card can hurt your credit score in two ways, and neither is obvious until the damage shows up on your report.
The first is credit utilization, the percentage of your total available credit that you are currently using. When you close a card, your total available credit drops, but the balances on your other cards stay the same. That pushes utilization higher, which credit scoring models read as increased risk.5Equifax Canada. What Is Credit Utilization and How Does It Impact Your Credit Scores If the CIBC card had a large credit limit and your other cards carry balances, this effect can be significant.
The second is account age. A closed account does not vanish from your report immediately; both Canadian bureaus keep closed accounts on file for years.6Government of Canada. How Long Information Stays on Your Credit Report So your average account age will not change right away. But when the closed account eventually falls off, your average age drops, and that can nudge your score down at that point.
If you are planning to apply for a mortgage or other major loan soon, think twice. The utilization spike alone could push your score below a threshold that matters for your application. Paying down balances on your remaining cards before cancelling can offset some of the impact.
After the Account Is Closed
Ask CIBC for written confirmation that the account is closed with a zero balance and keep it.1Government of Canada. Cancelling Your Credit Card If a billing error or collection notice surfaces months later, that letter is your proof the account was settled and closed on a specific date.
Cutting up the card does not cancel the account, but once closure is confirmed, destroy the card to prevent misuse. Cut through the chip and magnetic stripe with scissors. For a metal card, contact CIBC about returning it, since household scissors will not cut through it.
Give CIBC about 30 days to report the closure to the credit bureaus, then pull your credit report from Equifax Canada and TransUnion Canada to confirm the account shows as closed. Both bureaus offer free credit reports to Canadian consumers. If the account still shows as open after 30 days, follow up with CIBC.
Expect one last statement. It may include residual interest that accrued between your final statement date and your payoff, or a prorated annual fee adjustment. For at least some card products, CIBC refunds the unused portion of an annual fee you already paid.7CIBC. CIBC Smart Plus Credit Card Annual Fee Rebate Terms and Conditions If a small balance appears on that final statement, pay it right away. An overlooked charge of even a few dollars can be reported as delinquent and leave a mark on your credit history.