What are the CPP and CPP2 maximums for 2026?
For 2026, the maximum CPP contribution is $4,230.45 each for the employee and the employer: 5.95% of earnings between $3,500 and the $74,600 YMPE. CPP2 adds up to $416 each, 4% of earnings from $74,600 to the $85,000 YAMPE. A sole proprietor pays both halves: $8,460.90 plus $832.
What are the 2026 CPP maximums next to 2025?
The 2026 maximum CPP contribution is $4,230.45 each for the employee and the employer, up from $4,034.10 in 2025, while the rate stayed at 5.95% each canada.ca. The ceilings moved instead. The YMPE rose $3,300 to $74,600, so every maximum climbed with it.
| Figure | 2026 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| CPP rate, each side | 5.95% | 5.95% |
| YMPE (maximum pensionable earnings) | $74,600 | $71,300 |
| Basic exemption | $3,500 | $3,500 |
| Maximum contributory earnings | $71,100 | $67,800 |
| Maximum employee CPP | $4,230.45 | $4,034.10 |
| Maximum CPP, sole proprietor | $8,460.90 | $8,068.20 |
| CPP2 rate, each side | 4% | 4% |
| YAMPE (CPP2 ceiling) | $85,000 | $81,200 |
| Maximum employee CPP2 | $416 | $396 |
| Maximum CPP2, sole proprietor | $832 | $792 |
CPP2 sits on its own CRA page, and it only touches earnings above the YMPE canada.ca. An employee earning $74,600 or less pays no CPP2 at all.
How the $4,230.45 and the $416 are built
Both maximums are one line of arithmetic. Take the earnings band, then apply the rate.
| Step | CPP | CPP2 |
|---|---|---|
| Earnings band | $3,500 to $74,600 | $74,600 to $85,000 |
| Contributory amount | $71,100 | $10,400 |
| Rate, each side | 5.95% | 4% |
| Maximum, each side | $4,230.45 | $416 |
The 5.95% is the full employee rate. It's the 4.95% base plus the 1% first additional contribution that the enhancement added canada.ca. Quote 4.95% alone and the remittance comes up short.
The split follows the contribution onto the T1: the 4.95% base earns a credit on line 30800, while the 1% and all of CPP2 are deducted on line 22215 canada.ca. And when an employee with two jobs overpays, the employee gets the excess back but neither employer recovers its matching share
canada.ca.
What happens when an employee reaches the maximum partway through the year?
Each employer stops deducting once that employee has paid the year's maximum through its own payroll, and the employer's matching share stops at the same point. A new employer starts from zero, because the maximum applies separately to each job with a different employer canada.ca.
So an employee with two jobs can overpay. They claim the excess on line 44800 of their T1, and the CRA refunds it or uses it to reduce a balance owing canada.ca. The employers don't get theirs back: the CRA says an employer isn't entitled to a refund of its share of the contributions
canada.ca.
If your own payroll deducted too much, for example by missing a pay period, file Form PD24 to ask for the overdeducted amount back canada.ca.
Where do CPP contributions land on the T1?
An employee claims the 4.95% base contribution as a tax credit on line 30800, and deducts the 1% first additional contribution and all of CPP2 on line 22215, which lowers taxable income canada.ca. The caps the CRA has published so far are for 2025: $3,356.10 on line 30800, and $1,074 on line 22215 ($678 first additional plus $396 of CPP2).
A sole proprietor uses different lines: half of the base contribution earns a credit on line 31000, and the other half of the base plus all of the enhanced contributions are a deduction on line 22200 canada.ca.
Quebec runs its own plan
An employee working in Quebec contributes to the Quebec Pension Plan instead. For 2026 Retraite Québec sets the employee rate at 5.3% basic plus 1% additional on earnings from $3,500 to $74,600, then 4% on earnings from $74,600 to $85,000, and the employer contributes as much retraitequebec.gouv.qc.ca. The CPP figures on this page don't apply to Quebec payroll.
What is the maximum CPP retirement pension in 2026?
The maximum CPP retirement pension starting at 65 in January 2026 is $1,507.65 a month, and the average new pension at 65 was $858.34 a month as of July 2026 canada.ca. That's the benefit side, separate from the contributions above. Paying the maximum contribution in one year doesn't earn that amount. The pension depends on the whole contribution history and the age it starts.
Sources
Do I keep deducting CPP for an employee over 70?
No. Deduct up to and including the last pay dated in the month the employee turns 70, and prorate that year's maximum by the months up to that month canada.ca. An employee aged 65 to 70 who already gets a CPP or QPP retirement pension can elect to stop sooner by giving you Form CPT30
canada.ca.
Is the $3,500 basic exemption split across pay periods?
Yes. Payroll divides the $3,500 by the number of pay periods in the year, so a biweekly employee gets $134.61 of exemption each pay, and only earnings above that attract CPP.
Does the employer pay CPP2 too?
Yes. CPP2 is matched like CPP, so the employer pays the same 4% on earnings between $74,600 and $85,000, up to $416 for 2026.
General information for the tax year shown, not advice for a specific client. Confirm the facts before you file or remit.