Canadian Silver Maple Leaf Coin: Specifications, Security and Where to Buy

Last reviewed: 9 November 2026. Sources are linked in the text.

The Silver Maple Leaf (SML) is the Royal Canadian Mint’s flagship silver bullion coin: legal tender in Canada, struck in 99.99% pure silver, produced every year since 1988. It is the silver counterpart to the better-known Gold Maple Leaf, and for many Canadian buyers it is the first silver coin they come across. This guide covers what the coin actually is, its official specifications, its security features, how it is taxed, and where it fits next to other ways of buying silver in Canada.

This is educational material only. It does not tell you to buy the coin, it does not recommend one dealer over another, and it is not investment advice.

What the Silver Maple Leaf is

The Silver Maple Leaf is a bullion coin produced by the Royal Canadian Mint, struck in fine silver with a single maple leaf design on the reverse and the reigning monarch on the obverse. According to the Mint’s own current product page, the coin was introduced in 1988 and has been “a highly sought-after bullion investment coin” since. The Mint’s own investor guide separately credits the 1988 release as “the world’s first 99.99% pure silver bullion coin” (Royal Canadian Mint, 2026 Silver Maple Leaf product page, checked 9 November 2026; Royal Canadian Mint, “Buying Precious Metals” guide, checked 9 November 2026).

Like all Canadian bullion coins, the Silver Maple Leaf is legal tender, but its face value sits well below its market value. The 1 oz coin carries a $5 CAD face value, while its market worth tracks the silver price. This is a feature of bullion coinage generally, and it applies the same way to the Gold Maple Leaf, whose $50 face value is also far below its gold-backed market price.

Official specifications

The standard, currently sold Silver Maple Leaf is 99.99% pure silver. These specifications come from the Mint’s own current product page for the 1 oz coin:

Specification	1 oz Silver Maple Leaf
Composition	99.99% pure silver
Weight	31.11 g (one troy ounce)
Diameter	38 mm
Face value	$5 CAD
Edge	Serrated
Finish	Radial lines

Source: Royal Canadian Mint, 2026 Silver Maple Leaf Coin, 1 oz, 99.99% Pure (Bullion), checked 9 November 2026. The product has no fixed mintage, per the same page.

Weight and size options: why there is no fractional Silver Maple Leaf

Unlike the Gold Maple Leaf, which the Mint currently sells new in a full ounce plus four fractional sizes (1/2, 1/4, 1/10 and 1/20 oz) on the same product page, the Silver Maple Leaf is sold new only as a 1 oz coin. Checking the Mint’s own “Maple Leaf Bullion Coins” catalogue, every Silver Maple Leaf listing from 2022 through the current 2026 issue is a 1 oz, 99.99% pure coin; no 1/2 oz, 1/4 oz or 1/10 oz Silver Maple Leaf appears anywhere in that catalogue as a standard, currently sold bullion product (Royal Canadian Mint, Maple Leaf Bullion Coins catalogue, checked 9 November 2026).

The Mint does sell other silver bullion coins above one ounce under different names and designs, such as a 2 oz Twin Maples coin, a 5 oz Grand Maple Leaf, and larger multi-ounce pieces, but these are not branded as the Silver Maple Leaf and they add weight rather than offering a smaller, fractional unit. The Mint’s own investor guide does note that “some coins are available in fractional amounts (including 1/2-, 1/4-, 1/10- and 1/20-ounce)” as a general statement about its coin lineup, but based on the current catalogue, that fractional range applies to the Gold Maple Leaf, not to the Silver Maple Leaf (same sources as above, checked 9 November 2026). A fractional Silver Maple Leaf set did exist as a one-off 25th-anniversary collector release in 2013, but that was a limited numismatic product, not part of the Mint’s ongoing bullion lineup, and it is not sold new today.

For a Canadian buyer, the practical takeaway is simple: if you want a smaller, lower-cost entry point into Mint-issued Silver Maple Leaf bullion, there is no official half-ounce or quarter-ounce version to buy. The 1 oz coin is the base unit.

Bullion DNA: the Mint’s anti-counterfeiting technology

Silver Maple Leaf coins dated 2015 or later carry the Mint’s layered Bullion DNA security package:

Radial lines machined across the coin’s surface to within microns, creating a light-diffracting pattern specific to that coin.
A micro-engraved security mark, a textured maple leaf visible only under magnification, with the last two digits of the year of issue at its centre.
Bullion DNA proper, a Digital Non-Destructive Activation process: every die used to strike the coins is photographed and registered in the Mint’s secure database, so an authorized dealer can later match a coin’s security mark against that database.

Bullion DNA was developed jointly by the Royal Canadian Mint and EDGYN SAS and uses the patented Signoptic technology. The Mint’s own Bullion DNA page is explicit about the date split: the technology “facilitate[s] the authentication of Gold Maple Leaf coins dated 2014 and later, and Silver Maple Leaf coins dated 2015 and later.” A coin’s design, security mark and registration can be checked onsite by a dealer registered in the Bullion DNA program, using a reader device, in three steps: insert the coin, take a photo, and the server matches that image against the registered database (Royal Canadian Mint, Bullion DNA, checked 9 November 2026).

Silver Maple Leaf coins dated 2018 and later carry a second, silver-specific feature called MINTSHIELD, described by the Mint as “the world’s first proven approach to reducing the occurrence of white spots discolorations on silver bullion coins.” The Mint states this surface treatment has no effect on a coin’s purity or composition; it addresses an aesthetic issue (so-called “milk spots”) that is specific to silver and does not apply to gold coins (Royal Canadian Mint, 2026 Silver Maple Leaf product page, checked 9 November 2026).

GST/HST treatment

Under the Excise Tax Act, a “precious metal” is a bar, ingot, coin or wafer composed of gold, silver or platinum, refined to a purity of at least 99.5% for gold and platinum, or at least 99.9% for silver. This is an important distinction: the purity bar for silver is higher than the one for gold and platinum, not the same. For a coin specifically, it must also have been issued by a government authority and be usable as currency. A supply of a precious metal meeting that definition is treated as a supply of a financial service, which is generally exempt from GST/HST (Canada Revenue Agency, GST/HST Memorandum 17-1, “Definition of Financial Instrument”, July 2026 version, paragraphs 29 to 31, checked 9 November 2026).

At 99.99% purity, the Silver Maple Leaf comfortably clears the 99.9% threshold that applies to silver specifically, and as a Government of Canada-issued coin that is also legal tender, it meets the issuance test as well. Consistent with this, a Mint-sold Silver Maple Leaf gift product on mint.ca lists “No GST/HST” directly on its own product page (Royal Canadian Mint, Treasured Silver Maple Leaf product page, checked 9 November 2026).

This is a tax rule about the metal itself, not a recommendation to buy it, and it is separate from any income tax owed on a gain when the coin is eventually sold. Confirm directly with the CRA or a tax professional for a specific purchase.

Premiums over spot: why silver coins often cost proportionally more

The spot price is the quoted market value of one troy ounce of silver. Dealers do not sell at spot. The Mint’s own investor guide explains the general mechanism: “there are costs involved in the manufacturing, transportation and delivery of bullion, so dealers will typically charge a premium on top of the spot price to cover those costs,” and “smaller bars and coins will have higher premiums than larger ones, reflecting the higher cost of production relative to their bullion weight.” The same guide adds that “typically, smaller items like coins command higher premiums compared to larger items like bars,” and that different coins with the same metal content can carry different premiums depending on the product (Royal Canadian Mint, “Buying Precious Metals” guide, checked 9 November 2026).

The Mint’s guide does not directly compare a silver coin’s premium to a gold coin’s premium side by side. Working from the mechanism it does describe, striking, packaging, distributing and authenticating a coin costs roughly the same in dollar terms whether that coin holds gold or silver. Silver’s spot price per ounce is a small fraction of gold’s, so those largely fixed costs make up a much bigger share of a silver coin’s total price than they do for a similarly sized gold coin. That is the structural reason Silver Maple Leafs, and silver coins generally, tend to carry a noticeably higher premium over spot as a percentage, even though gold and silver Maple Leafs share the same purity standard and a similar security package.

This guide does not state a current premium in Canadian dollars, since premiums move with market conditions and differ by dealer. For the coin’s current melt value, this site’s existing coin melt-value calculator tool can work out melt value from the live silver price, weight and purity. A dealer’s asking price above that melt value reflects the premium described here.

Where Canadians can buy the Silver Maple Leaf

The coin’s own product page on mint.ca notes that “a variety of bullion coins and bars are available to purchase through select dealers,” and the Mint’s own published answers to buyer questions on that page state plainly that “the Mint does not sell bullion products directly to the public; only to distributors who have the infrastructure to sell and buy back bullion to and from the public.” In practice, Canadians reach the Silver Maple Leaf through a few channels:

The Royal Canadian Mint’s own online store, which lists current and past Silver Maple Leaf coins, sells certain specialty and gift-packaged bullion products directly, and provides a dealer locator for the standard investment coin.
Banks offering investment or precious-metals services; the Mint’s own investor guide suggests contacting your bank if it offers this.
Bullion dealers, including dealers registered in the Mint’s Bullion DNA program, who have the equipment to authenticate a coin’s security mark in person.

(Royal Canadian Mint, 2026 Silver Maple Leaf product page, checked 9 November 2026; Royal Canadian Mint, “Buying Precious Metals” guide, checked 9 November 2026.)

Prices differ between these channels, and between dealers, because each sets its own premium over spot. For help comparing dealers, see this site’s existing guide to where to buy gold in Canada, much of which applies equally to buying silver, and use the coin melt-value calculator tool to check a coin’s melt value before comparing it against a dealer’s asking price. Gold in Canada may earn a commission on some dealer links elsewhere on this site. This guide itself does not rank or promote any one dealer, and nothing here is investment advice.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Silver Maple Leaf a good investment?

That depends on your own circumstances, goals and risk tolerance, and this guide does not answer it for you. What can be said factually: the coin is Mint-issued, 99.99% pure silver, legal tender in Canada, and generally exempt from GST/HST under the rule described above because it clears the 99.9% purity threshold that applies to silver. Those are facts about the coin, not a recommendation to buy it. If you are weighing silver against other assets, speak with a financial professional about your own plan.

How do I verify a Silver Maple Leaf is genuine?

Coins dated 2015 or later carry the Mint’s Bullion DNA features: machined radial lines, a micro-engraved maple leaf mark showing the last two digits of the year, and a registered die image in the Mint’s database. A dealer registered in the Bullion DNA program can check a coin against that database with a reader device. Coins dated 2018 or later also carry MINTSHIELD surface protection, which reduces (but does not fully prevent) the appearance of white-spot discolouration without affecting purity. You can also check the coin’s weight, diameter and packaging against the Mint’s published specifications.

Why does silver often carry a higher premium over spot than gold, proportionally?

The Mint’s own guide explains that production, packaging and distribution costs make up a bigger share of a coin’s price the smaller and lower-value that coin is relative to its weight. Because silver’s spot price per ounce is a small fraction of gold’s, those largely fixed minting and dealer costs are spread over a much smaller dollar amount for a silver coin, which tends to push silver’s premium higher as a percentage of spot than gold’s, even on coins of similar design and security features. This is a structural explanation, not a stated current figure; actual premiums vary by dealer and by market conditions.

How is the Silver Maple Leaf taxed when I sell it?

Resale of a coin meeting the precious-metal definition above, which for silver means at least 99.9% purity plus government issuance and usability as currency, is generally exempt from GST/HST. That is separate from income tax: any capital gain or loss on the sale is governed by the Income Tax Act and depends on your own situation. This guide does not cover personal income tax treatment in detail; confirm with the CRA or a tax professional.

Sources

All checked 9 November 2026 unless a document’s own internal date is shown.

Royal Canadian Mint, 2026 Silver Maple Leaf Coin, 1 oz, 99.99% Pure (Bullion)
Royal Canadian Mint, Maple Leaf Bullion Coins (catalogue)
Royal Canadian Mint, Treasured Silver Maple Leaf: Happy Birthday (Premium Bullion gift product)
Royal Canadian Mint, Bullion DNA
Royal Canadian Mint, “Buying Precious Metals” investor guide (PDF)
Canada Revenue Agency, GST/HST Memorandum 17-1, “Definition of Financial Instrument”, July 2026 version