What’s my RRSP contribution limit?

What’s an RRSP?

An RRSP is a financial savings account registered with the Canadian authorities. It’s designed to assist Canadians save for retirement. RRSP contributions are tax-deductible, which means they’ll scale back your taxable earnings for that tax 12 months, however the deductions may also be delayed and carried forward to deduct in a future 12 months.

Any funding progress or earnings earned inside an RRSP is exempt from annual tax. You need to, nevertheless, pay tax on the time of withdrawal—ideally, once you’re in retirement or in any other case in a decrease tax bracket than you might be right this moment.

These tax benefits make RRSPs a worthwhile device for retirement saving. Nonetheless, there are limits on how a lot you may contribute to your RRSP in any given 12 months. Be sure you know your RRSP restrict to keep away from unnecessary tax penalties.

What’s my RRSP contribution restrict?

Whereas RRSP guidelines apply to each Canadian, every of us have our personal RRSP contribution restrict. There are three elements that decide your particular person contribution restrict:

• The RRSP contribution restrict set by the Canadian authorities. This restrict modifications yearly. For 2024, the utmost any Canadian can contribute to their RRSP is $31,560 (up from $30,780 in 2023). Beneath, one can find the contribution limits for every of the previous 10 years.
• Your earned earnings reported throughout the earlier tax 12 months. Your particular person contribution restrict is eighteen% of your earned earnings from the earlier tax 12 months, or the annual most set by the federal government—whichever is much less. Which means that solely people with an earned earnings of $175,333 or extra in 2024 will earn the total $31,560 RRSP contribution room obtainable this 12 months. Earned earnings for RRSP functions is mostly the quantity in field 14 of your T4 slips; earned earnings additionally contains self-employed web earnings, Canada Pension Plan (CPP)/Québec Pension Plan (QPP) incapacity funds and web rental earnings.
• RRSP room could also be decreased in case you are a pension plan member. In case you are a member of an outlined contribution (DC) or outlined profit (DB) pension, you’ll have a “pension adjustment” in your T4 slip. This pension adjustment reduces your RRSP room for the next 12 months. The rationale for the adjustment is to even the taking part in discipline between pension plan members and people with out pensions, so pension plan members don’t get extra skill to save lots of for retirement on a tax-deferred foundation.
• The quantity of unused contribution room you may carry ahead. Unused RRSP contribution room in a single 12 months might be carried ahead to a different 12 months. Your whole contribution room is due to this fact made up of your restrict from the present 12 months, plus any unused contribution room from earlier years. Learn extra in regards to the carry-forward rules for unused RRSP contributions.

RRSP contribution limits by 12 months

The RRSP deadline this 12 months

The deadline for RRSP contributions for the 2023 tax 12 months is Feb. 29, 2024. Contributions made within the first 60 days of the 12 months might be utilized to the earlier taxation 12 months.

The place are you able to discover your RRSP contribution restrict?

After the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) processes your tax return, it sends a Notice of Assessment (NOA), which incorporates your subsequent 12 months’s contribution restrict. This discover additionally exhibits your unused contribution room. You can too name your native Tax Information Phone Systems (TIPS) quantity, and you’ll want to have your SIN and former tax return prepared. Alternatively, you may register for My Account with CRA to view your RRSP restrict, monitor your refund, make updates to your return and monitor funds.

What occurs when you overcontribute to your RRSP?

When you overcontribute to your RRSP by greater than $2,000, you may be topic to a penalty tax. Sometimes, the penalty is 1% per 30 days on the surplus contribution for so long as it stays in your account. You possibly can cease the penalty from rising when you withdraw the surplus quantity. (Learn extra about what to do if you have overcontributed to your RRSP.)

What’s the age restrict to contribute?

You possibly can open an RRSP at any age. You possibly can then contribute to your RRSP till Dec. 31 of the 12 months you flip 71. At the moment, you should both money out your RRSP, convert it to a registered retirement income fund (RRIF) or buy an annuity.