Saving & retirement · guide
TFSA Contribution Room Calculator: how it works in 2026, with a worked example
TFSA room is not based on your income: every Canadian resident 18 or over gets the same yearly limit ($7,000 in 2026), and unused years carry forward. Find out exactly how much you can put in your TFSA today, starting from the number in your CRA account or from your own history, with this year's deposits and withdrawals taken into account. If you are over the limit, it shows the penalty and what to do about it.
How this calculator works
Your TFSA room is a running total:
Room = all annual limits since you became eligible − all contributions ever made + all withdrawals made before this year.
You become eligible on January 1 of the year you turn 18, as long as you are a Canadian resident. The annual limits, set by the CRA, were $5,000 in 2009 to 2012, $5,500 in 2013 and 2014, $10,000 in 2015, $5,500 in 2016 to 2018, $6,000 in 2019 to 2022, $6,500 in 2023, and $7,000 in 2024, 2025 and 2026.
Worked example: born in 1998, contributed $25,000, withdrew $4,000 in 2024
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| First eligible year (turned 18) | 2016 |
| Total annual limits 2016–2026 | $68,000 |
| Contributions to date | − $25,000 |
| Withdrawals in earlier years | + $4,000 |
| Room in 2026 | $47,000 |
Assumptions
- You have been a Canadian resident every year since your first eligible year (or since the residency year you enter).
- Withdrawals entered for earlier years were not already re-contributed.
- Transfers between your own TFSAs done directly by the institutions do not count as withdrawals or contributions; cashing out and re-depositing does.
Questions people ask
- What is the TFSA limit for 2026?
- $7,000, the same as 2024 and 2025. The limit is indexed to inflation and rounded to the nearest $500, so it rises in $500 steps every few years.
- How much total TFSA room do I have if I have never contributed?
- $109,000 if you were 18 or older in 2009 and have been a Canadian resident the whole time. If you turned 18 later, add up the limits from that year onward; the tool does this for you.
- Do I need to open a TFSA for room to accumulate?
- No. Room accrues automatically every year from the year you turn 18 (and are a resident), whether or not you have an account or have filed a tax return.
- When can I re-contribute money I withdrew?
- Not until January 1 of the following year, when the amount you withdrew is added back to your room. Re-contributing in the same year, unless you still have unused room, is an over-contribution taxed at 1% per month: taking out $5,000 in March and redepositing it in June counts as a new $5,000 contribution.
- I moved to Canada. When does my room start?
- The year you became a resident for tax purposes, if you were already 18. Years before you arrived do not count, and years you are a non-resident do not add room either.
- Why is the CRA's TFSA room figure different from mine?
- The CRA number is as of January 1 and only includes what financial institutions reported for the previous year. Anything you deposited or withdrew since January 1 is not in it, and a late-reporting institution can make it wrong for months. Start from the CRA figure as the official baseline and add this year's activity yourself.
- Does investment growth use up room?
- No. Only contributions and withdrawals count. Gains, dividends and interest inside the account do not affect room, and losses do not restore it. If $7,000 grows to $10,000 you have used $7,000 of room, and if you withdraw the $10,000 you get $10,000 of room back the next year.
- What happens if I over-contribute?
- A tax of 1% per month on the highest excess amount for every month it stays in the account. Withdraw the excess as soon as you notice; the CRA will send a proposed assessment and you can ask for relief with form RC243 if it was an honest mistake.
How to open and use a TFSA
Any bank, credit union or brokerage opens one in minutes. The room the tool shows is yours whether or not you have ever had an account.
Sources
Every figure on this page comes from one of these primary sources. Data last verified .