Know your real TFSA limit before you contribute

If you were born in 1991 or earlier and have been a Canadian resident since 2009, your lifetime TFSA room as of 2026 is $102,000. If you have never contributed, that is your available room. If you have contributed in previous years, subtract your net lifetime contributions (total contributions minus prior-year withdrawals) from $102,000 to find your current room. Use the calculator above to get a personalized estimate.

The TFSA annual contribution limit for 2026 is $7,000. This is the same as 2024 and 2025. This new room was added to every eligible Canadian's account on January 1, 2026. If you were already maxed out, you now have at least $7,000 of room available again.

CRA updates TFSA room figures once per year, based on information reported by financial institutions. The number you see in CRA My Account does not include contributions made in the current calendar year, and may not yet reflect withdrawals made late in the previous year. This is why CRA's figure is often higher than your actual available room if you have contributed recently.

CRA charges a 1% per month penalty tax on the excess amount in your TFSA. For example, if you over-contribute by $5,000, you owe $50 per month until the excess is withdrawn. CRA sends a TFSA return (RC243) requiring you to report and pay the penalty. The fix is to withdraw the excess immediately to stop the penalty from growing.

Yes, but not until January 1 of the following year. If you withdraw $10,000 in March 2026, that $10,000 is added back to your TFSA room on January 1, 2027. Contributing that money back before then would be considered an over-contribution and attract the 1% monthly penalty.

Yes. TFSA room only accumulates for years in which you were 18 or older and a Canadian resident for tax purposes. If you lived outside Canada for several years, you do not earn room for those years. However, you can continue to hold your TFSA while living abroad. You just cannot make contributions during those years without triggering a 1% monthly penalty on the amount contributed.

TFSA room begins accumulating in the first calendar year in which you are both 18 or older and a Canadian resident for tax purposes. If you arrived in Canada at age 30 in 2020, your TFSA room starts from 2020, not from when you turned 18. You do not receive backdated room for years before you became a resident.

Yes. Unused TFSA room carries forward indefinitely with no deadline. If you have never contributed to a TFSA and have been eligible since 2009, your full lifetime room (up to $102,000 as of 2026) is still available to you. There is no "use it or lose it" rule with TFSA room.

Yes. Your TFSA contribution room is a single lifetime limit shared across all TFSA accounts you hold, regardless of how many institutions you bank with. If you have a TFSA at your bank and another at a brokerage, contributions to both count toward the same room limit. This is a common source of accidental over-contribution.

It depends on your income level and when you expect to withdraw the money. Generally, if your current income is low or you expect to have a higher income in retirement, a TFSA is often the better first step. If you are in a high tax bracket now and expect a lower income in retirement, an RRSP's upfront deduction is more valuable. For most beginners, the TFSA is the natural starting point.