Quick check · 3 questions
Buffer first
First, a gut check. You’ll answer the same question at the end. Then three yes-or-no questions show where your next dollar does the most work.
Where should my savings go?
Save for what’s next
Four accounts, a lot of free government money, and plenty of people trying to sell you something. See how a TFSA, RRSP, FHSA and RESP each work, find your room on your own CRA papers, and claim the education money your kids may already be owed.
Free, no sign-upYour numbers stay in your browser
What’s in this journey · 7 steps, about 20 min
You’ll leave with
- Where your contribution room is written, and what it means
- Which accounts fit which goals, with the trade-offs
- The free education money you can claim, and the three papers it takes
Annotated document · 1 min
Read your room
Your limits aren’t a secret. The CRA prints your RRSP limit on your Notice of Assessment and shows your TFSA room in your online account. Here’s where to look.
Notice of Assessment2025 tax year · RRSP deduction limit statement
SampleRRSP deduction limit for 2025$4,200.00
Minus: allowable RRSP contributions deducted for 2025$0.00
Plus: 18% of 2025 earned income, up to $33,8102$9,000.00
Minus: 2025 pension adjustment$0.00
RRSP deduction limit for 20261$13,200.00
Unused RRSP contributions available to deduct3$0.00
TFSA contribution room on January 1, 20264$57,000
Transactions made this year may not appear until next year.5
- 1What you can deduct, not what you must saveThis is the most you can put into an RRSP and deduct for the year. Leaving it unused costs nothing.
- 218% of last year’s earned incomeUp to a yearly maximum ($33,810 for 2026). Room you don’t use carries forward.
- 3Money in, not yet deductedIf you put money in but didn’t claim it, you can still deduct it in a later year.
- 4TFSA room grows every year from age 18$7,000 was added for 2026, whether or not you have an account. The CRA announces next year’s limit in late November or December. Money you take out is added back to your room on January 1 of the next year.
- 5Your own records beat this screenThe CRA only sees this year’s deposits after your bank reports them. Going by this number alone is how people over-contribute.
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Read the transcript
Sample figures for a person born in 2000 who earned $50,000 in 2025 and hasn’t used a TFSA or RRSP yet. Your own numbers will differ.
Account sorter
Four accounts, one goal
Pick what you’re saving for. Each account lights up with how it fits and what to watch for. There’s no single right answer, only trade-offs.
TFSA Tax-Free Savings Account
- Going in
- No tax deduction
- Growing
- Not taxed
- Coming out
- Not taxed, any time
- Yearly room
- $7,000 for 2026, plus unused room
Watch for: withdrawals only come back as room next January 1.
RRSP Registered Retirement Savings Plan
- Going in
- Lowers your taxable income now
- Growing
- Not taxed while inside
- Coming out
- Taxed as income, and the room is gone
- Yearly room
- 18% of earned income, up to $33,810 for 2026
Watch for: the deduction is worth more in years your income is higher.
FHSA First Home Savings Account
- Going in
- Lowers your taxable income now
- Growing
- Not taxed
- Coming out
- Not taxed, for a qualifying first home
- Yearly room
- $8,000, up to $40,000 in total
Watch for: only for first-time buyers; room starts when you open the account.
RESP Registered Education Savings Plan
- Going in
- No deduction, but the government adds grants
- Growing
- Not taxed while inside
- Coming out
- Growth and grants taxed to the student, usually at a low rate
- Yearly room
- No yearly limit; grants on the first $2,500 a year
Watch for: grants must be repaid if no one uses it for school.
Living with a disability? The Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) has its own government grants and bonds. We’ll cover it in a future journey.
Calculator
Free money first
If there’s a child in your life, the government adds money to their education savings, and lower-income families can get the Canada Learning Bond with no contribution at all. about 2.7 million eligible children and youth haven’t received it yet.
Basic grant (CESG)–
Extra grant–
Canada Learning Bond–
Provincial–
By age 18, to scaleYour savings and the money added to them, before any growth
For the Learning Bond, your family must file taxes and get the Canada Child Benefit. Grants and the bond are maximums and are paid into the RESP, not to you. Unused grant room can partly carry forward. FinLII doesn’t decide eligibility; the government does.
How to get it: three papers
- A Social Insurance Number for your child. Free from Service Canada; you can apply when you register the birth in most provinces.
- An RESP, opened with a provider you choose. Ask the provider to apply for the grant and the Learning Bond. You don’t have to put money in to get the bond. From April 2028, children born in 2024 or later will be enrolled automatically; older children still need these steps.
- A tax return, every year. The government uses it to check your income for the extra grant and the bond.
To-scale graphic
Saved isn’t growing
Money in an account isn’t the same as money that grows. A TFSA can hold plain cash earning almost nothing. Slide the numbers and watch what time does, at example rates.
The same savings, three waysExample rates, not predictions
Over-contributing costs 1% per monthIf you put in more than your room, the CRA charges a tax on the excess every month until it’s out. An RRSP lets you go up to $2,000 over before that tax starts; a TFSA doesn’t. Keep your own record of deposits and withdrawals; the CRA screen can be a year behind (see step 2).
Quick check · 4 questions
Too good to be true
Saving makes you a target. Scammers and paid “mentors” go where the savers are. No score is saved.
The Fraud and scams journey lets you practise on eight real scam patterns.
Checklist and directory
Your plan and where to get help
A few dates and papers turn good intentions into savings that grow.
Your plan
Email this plan to myselfOpens your own email app with the plan filled in. Send it to yourself; nothing reaches FinLII.
Next up: Get the benefits you’re owed Share it, or tell us what you think
Where to get unbiased help
Free, and nobody here is selling anything.
- CRA My AccountYour RRSP limit, TFSA room and notices
- Tax-Free Savings Account (CRA)TFSA rules, room and over-contributions
- RRSPs and related plans (CRA)RRSP limits, the Home Buyers’ Plan and deadlines
- First Home Savings Account (CRA)FHSA rules
- Canada Learning Bond (Government of Canada)Check eligibility and how to apply
- Canada Education Savings Grant (Government of Canada)Grant amounts and rules
- Free tax clinics (CRA)Free filing, which unlocks grants and room
- Financial Consumer Agency of CanadaSaving and investing basics, and your rights with banks
- Check registration (Canadian Securities Administrators)Is this person or firm allowed to sell investments?
- Investor education from your securities regulator: GetSmarterAboutMoney (Ontario), InvestRight (B.C.), Autorité des marchés financiers (Quebec), CheckFirst (Alberta)Plain-language investing basics
- OBSIFree complaints service if a bank or investment firm won’t fix a problem
- Non-profit credit counselling (Credit Counselling Canada)If debt is in the way of saving
- Registered Disability Savings Plan (Government of Canada)Eligible for the Disability Tax Credit? An RDSP can get government grants and bonds too.
Independence Score · Saving for the long term
What’s next
Next journey
“Am I missing money I’m entitled to?”
Make sure the benefits keep coming
The same tax return that unlocks the Learning Bond keeps the Canada Child Benefit coming. See what else is worth checking.
Get the benefits you’re owed →Was this helpful?
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