RRSP contribution limit 2026: $33,810 max

The 2026 RRSP dollar limit is $33,810 (Canada Revenue Agency). But that is a ceiling, not everyone's limit: your personal RRSP room is 18% of your 2025 earned income, up to that $33,810 cap, minus any pension adjustment, plus any unused room carried forward from previous years. To earn the full $33,810 of new room for 2026 you needed about $187,833 of earned income in 2025.

Contributions count toward a tax year if they're made within that year or in the first 60 days of the following year — on or about March 1. So contributions for the 2025 tax year are due in early March 2026, and contributions you want to deduct on your 2026 return are due on or about March 1, 2027. Contributions made January 1 to the deadline can be applied to either the previous or the current tax year.

The formula is: 18% of your previous year's earned income, capped at the annual dollar limit ($33,810 for 2026), minus your pension adjustment (if you have a workplace pension), plus any unused contribution room carried forward from prior years. Earned income includes employment income, self-employment income, and rental income, but not investment income like dividends or capital gains. Your exact figure is on your latest Notice of Assessment or in CRA My Account.

You're allowed a $2,000 lifetime over-contribution cushion with no penalty (though it isn't tax-deductible). Beyond that $2,000 buffer, excess contributions are taxed at 1% per month for every month they stay in the account. If you over-contribute by more than $2,000, withdraw the excess promptly and file Form T1-OVP. Because the penalty recurs monthly, even a modest over-contribution can become costly if left in place.

Yes. Any RRSP room you don't use carries forward indefinitely and stacks onto future years — there's no expiry. This is why someone who hasn't contributed in years can have a large deduction limit available. Carrying room forward can be a deliberate strategy: deferring contributions to a higher-income year makes each deducted dollar worth more in tax savings.

RRSP room depends on income — 18% of your prior-year earned income up to $33,810 (2026). TFSA room is a flat amount everyone gets regardless of income ($7,000 in 2026; $109,000 cumulative since 2009). RRSP contributions are deducted from income now and taxed on withdrawal; TFSA contributions are made with after-tax dollars and are never taxed again. RRSP generally wins if your retirement tax rate will be lower than today's; otherwise the TFSA often does — see our RRSP vs TFSA comparison.

Yes. The Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) lets a first-time buyer withdraw up to $60,000 from an RRSP tax-free toward a home, repaid over 15 years. The Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP) lets you withdraw up to $20,000 for full-time education, repaid over 10 years. Both are loans from yourself — you must repay on schedule or the missed amount is added to your taxable income. The FHSA is often a better first-home vehicle because withdrawals are never repaid.

You must close or convert your RRSP by December 31 of the year you turn 71 — most people convert it to a Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF), which then requires a minimum withdrawal each year. You can't make new RRSP contributions to your own plan after that, though you can still contribute to a spousal RRSP if your spouse is under 71 and you have room. Plan the RRSP-to-RRIF transition in advance to manage the tax on withdrawals.