KOHO 2FA: how to set up an authenticator app

KOHO is the Canadian money app you use for your KOHO card, e-Transfers and credit building, in the mobile app or on KOHO Web. Its name for two-factor authentication is two-step verification (2SV). Once it's on, signing in takes your password plus a code, either from an authenticator app or sent to your phone by text or automated call. KOHO calls the authenticator app the most secure of the two and recommends it as your main method, since SMS codes stop arriving if your phone number changes (KOHO). Its help pages don't say that 2SV is required.

This guide uses Authenticator App - Novaz on iPhone. Any authenticator app that makes time-based codes works the same way.

How we checked this guide: the KOHO steps come from KOHO's own help center articles, linked below, which we read on October 21, 2026. We haven't tested them on a KOHO account, so a label may differ slightly. The Novaz steps are checked against the app, version 1.0.5.

Before you start: verify your device

KOHO asks you to make sure your device is verified before you turn on two-step verification (KOHO). Device verification is a separate check: when you sign in on a new phone or browser, KOHO emails the login address on your account, and you follow the link once per device. Until then, you can't change your account settings (KOHO).

Turn on 2FA with an authenticator app

The two-step verification settings live on the same page as your password (KOHO):

1. In the KOHO app, open the profile page from the top left-hand corner and select Login & password. On KOHO Web, go to Settings, then Login & passwords.
2. Under two-step verification, pick the authenticator app option. KOHO's help doesn't name the button.
3. KOHO opens a page called Setup KOHO in your authenticator with a unique code. That code is the setup key.
4. In Novaz, tap +, then Enter key manually. Type KOHO under Service, your email under Account if you like, and type or paste the code into Setup key. See What is a 2FA setup key?
5. Novaz starts showing a 6-digit code for KOHO. Enter it on the Check your authenticator app page.

KOHO's article describes copying the code and doesn't mention a QR code. If KOHO shows one on your screen, you can scan it instead: tap +, then Scan QR code.

KOHO only supports time-based codes, not counter-based ones. Apps that ask you to pick should use the time-based option (KOHO). Novaz makes time-based codes only, so there's nothing to choose.

The labels in KOHO's own articles vary: the 2SV article says Login & Passwords, while newer articles from August 2026 say Login & password (KOHO).

No backup codes, but an SMS fallback

KOHO's help pages don't mention backup or recovery codes. Instead, the phone number on your account is the fallback. If your authenticator app doesn't get you in, KOHO switches to phone verification and sends a code by text or automated call (KOHO).

So keep that number current. It has to be an active Canadian number that can receive texts; VoIP and texting-app numbers may not get the codes. You change it under Personal Details on the profile page, from a verified device (KOHO).

Passkeys are separate

KOHO also supports passkeys, set up under Login & password > Passkey in the app. They let you sign in with Face ID, Touch ID or your device PIN instead of a password (KOHO). KOHO's pages don't say whether a passkey sign-in also asks for your 2SV code.

If KOHO rejects your code

KOHO doesn't give its own fix. It sends you to the troubleshooting pages of the authenticator app you use (KOHO). For Novaz, start with the iPhone's clock: Settings > General > Date & Time > Set Automatically. Novaz warns you when the clock is 15 seconds or more off. Also check that you copied the whole setup key. More causes are in Authenticator code not working?

Changing phones

While you still have the old phone, sign in and update your two-step verification settings under Login & password before you switch (KOHO). KOHO also says you can move to a different authenticator app by copying the unique code from the Setup KOHO in your authenticator page into the new one (KOHO).

If you have a Novaz iCloud backup or backup file, restore it on the new iPhone and KOHO comes with it. Without one, add KOHO to Novaz on the new iPhone that way, then remove it from the old one. See How to transfer your authenticator app to a new iPhone.

If you lose your authenticator

First, try the text or phone-call code to the number on your account. If neither method works, KOHO lets you prove who you are with ID (KOHO):

1. Sign in with your email and password.
2. When KOHO asks for a code, select Verify via another method.
3. Submit a photo of your government-issued photo ID and a video selfie.

KOHO says the check may take a few minutes, after which it sends you back into your account. It accepts Canadian IDs such as a passport, a provincial driver's license or a Permanent Resident Card, and wants both sides of the original card, not a scan or screenshot (KOHO). Once you're in, set up your authenticator again.

If the identity check doesn't work, contact KOHO's support team in the app or at userverification@koho.ca. For other sign-in trouble, KOHO lists loginissues@koho.ca (KOHO). More in Lost the phone with your authenticator app?

Turning 2SV off

KOHO says you manage two-step verification and your default method on the Login & password page, but its help doesn't spell out the steps for turning it off.

Official KOHO help

• Set Up Two-Step Verification
• How do I update my phone number to continue receiving two-step verification codes?
• I changed my phone number and now I can’t log in. What should I do?
• Tips for completing an identity check in KOHO
• How do I verify my device?
• How do I set up and use a passkey?
• Can't log in to KOHO?