What is the TFSA contribution limit for 2026, and how much total room does my client have?
The TFSA contribution limit for 2026 is $7,000, the same as 2024 and 2025. A client who was 18 or older and resident in Canada in 2009, and has never contributed, has $109,000 of total room in 2026. Unused room carries forward, and withdrawals are added back on January 1 of the following year.
What is the TFSA limit for 2026 next to earlier years?
The TFSA dollar limit for 2026 is $7,000 canada.ca. It's the third year in a row at $7,000, and the CRA's limits table shows every year back to 2009
canada.ca. Add them up and a client who was 18 or older and resident in 2009, and never contributed, has $109,000 of room in 2026.
| Year | Annual TFSA dollar limit | Cumulative since 2009 |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | $5,000 | $5,000 |
| 2010 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
| 2011 | $5,000 | $15,000 |
| 2012 | $5,000 | $20,000 |
| 2013 | $5,500 | $25,500 |
| 2014 | $5,500 | $31,000 |
| 2015 | $10,000 | $41,000 |
| 2016 | $5,500 | $46,500 |
| 2017 | $5,500 | $52,000 |
| 2018 | $5,500 | $57,500 |
| 2019 | $6,000 | $63,500 |
| 2020 | $6,000 | $69,500 |
| 2021 | $6,000 | $75,500 |
| 2022 | $6,000 | $81,500 |
| 2023 | $6,500 | $88,000 |
| 2024 | $7,000 | $95,000 |
| 2025 | $7,000 | $102,000 |
| 2026 | $7,000 | $109,000 |
The limits come straight from the "TFSA dollar limit" definition in subsection 207.01(1) of the Income Tax Act: $5,000 for 2009 to 2012, $5,500 for 2013 and 2014, $10,000 for 2015, and for later years $5,000 indexed under section 117.1 and rounded to the nearest $500 laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The 2015 figure is a fixed amount written into the Act, which is why it breaks the pattern.
How much total room does a client who turned 18 after 2009 have?
Room starts to accumulate when your client turns 18 as a resident of Canada, and the whole dollar limit for that year becomes available canada.ca. The Act grants the year's limit if at any time in the year the person is 18 or older and resident in Canada, so a December birthday still earns the full $7,000
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. Assuming continuous residence and no contributions, here is the 2026 total by the year your client turned 18.
| Turned 18 in | Born in | Total room in 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 or earlier | 1991 or earlier | $109,000 |
| 2010 | 1992 | $104,000 |
| 2011 | 1993 | $99,000 |
| 2012 | 1994 | $94,000 |
| 2013 | 1995 | $89,000 |
| 2014 | 1996 | $83,500 |
| 2015 | 1997 | $78,000 |
| 2016 | 1998 | $68,000 |
| 2017 | 1999 | $62,500 |
| 2018 | 2000 | $57,000 |
| 2019 | 2001 | $51,500 |
| 2020 | 2002 | $45,500 |
| 2021 | 2003 | $39,500 |
| 2022 | 2004 | $33,500 |
| 2023 | 2005 | $27,500 |
| 2024 | 2006 | $21,000 |
| 2025 | 2007 | $14,000 |
| 2026 | 2008 | $7,000 |
In provinces and territories where the age to sign a contract is 19, your client can't open the account until 19, but the room from the year they turned 18 carries over canada.ca. Nothing is lost by the wait.
New residents are the costly case. Room accrues only for years of residence, starting with the year they arrive, so a client who moved here in 2024 at age 40 has $21,000 for 2026, not $109,000. The CRA's own example is a newcomer who put $95,000 into a TFSA with $7,000 of room and ended up with an $88,000 excess canada.ca.
How do you calculate a client's 2026 room?
The Act's formula for unused room at the end of a year is last year's unused room, plus withdrawals made last year, plus this year's dollar limit, minus this year's contributions laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. Qualifying transfers, exempt contributions and specified distributions don't move room either way
canada.ca.
Take a client born in 2000 who has lived in Canada all her life. She turned 18 in 2018, put in $30,000 over the years, withdrew $10,000 in 2025 and contributed $5,000 in March 2026.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Dollar limits 2018 to 2025 ($5,500 + 4 × $6,000 + $6,500 + 2 × $7,000) | $50,000 |
| Less contributions to the end of 2025 | ($30,000) |
| Unused room at the end of 2025 | $20,000 |
| Plus the 2025 withdrawal, restored January 1, 2026 | $10,000 |
| Plus the 2026 dollar limit | $7,000 |
| Room available on January 1, 2026 | $37,000 |
| Less the March 2026 contribution | ($5,000) |
| Room left for the rest of 2026 | $32,000 |
If she takes out $4,000 in June 2026 and puts it back in September, the September deposit uses 2026 room and drops her to $28,000. The $4,000 only comes back on January 1, 2027. Investment growth inside the account doesn't reduce room at all canada.ca.
Why does putting a withdrawal back the same year cause an overcontribution?
A withdrawal is added back as room on January 1 of the next calendar year, and the CRA tells holders not to put it back in the same year unless they're sure they have room canada.ca. Its example: a holder with no room left at the end of 2024 contributes the $7,000 for 2025, withdraws $3,000 and puts it back, and now has a $3,000 overcontribution. The excess is taxed at 1% a month for as long as it stays in the account
canada.ca. The penalty mechanics are on the TFSA overcontribution penalty page.
Moving money between two of your client's own TFSAs is the classic accidental version. A direct transfer requested through the receiving institution isn't a withdrawal and doesn't touch room. Withdrawing the cash and depositing it at the other institution is a new contribution canada.ca.
On a separation, a direct transfer from one spouse's or common law partner's TFSA to the other's leaves both people's room alone, as long as they're living apart and the transfer follows a court order or written separation agreement canada.ca.
What happens to TFSA room when a client leaves Canada?
No new room accrues for a year your client is out of Canada for the whole year. A year with any period of residence still earns that year's full dollar limit, including the year they leave canada.ca.
They can withdraw while abroad without Canadian tax, but they can't put money back tax free until they're resident again. A contribution made while not resident is taxed at 1% for each month it stays in the account canada.ca. For the rest of the exit, see departure tax and Canadian tax residency.
What is the TFSA limit for 2027?
As of October 2026, the 2027 TFSA dollar limit hasn't been published. The CRA's limits table carries TFSA figures only through 2026 canada.ca.
The rounding rule tells you what to watch. The limit is $5,000 indexed for each year after 2009 and rounded to the nearest $500, with a tie going up laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. So it stays at $7,000 for 2027 unless the indexed amount reaches $7,250, in which case it becomes $7,500. Until the figure is out, plan 2027 contributions on $7,000.
Sources
My client turned 18 in December 2026. Do they get the full $7,000 for 2026?
Yes. The year's whole dollar limit is granted if the person is 18 or older and resident at any time in that year laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The CRA's example is a client who turned 18 on December 21, 2024 and opened a TFSA in January 2025 with $14,000 of room
canada.ca.
Can I rely on the room figure in the client's CRA account?
Not on its own. The CRA updates TFSA room once a year in the spring, after issuers report the prior year, so it misses this year's transactions; use the client's own records or Form RC343 canada.ca.
Do investment losses or gains change contribution room?
No. Room moves only with the dollar limit, contributions and withdrawals, so growth inside the account doesn't use room canada.ca. A loss doesn't create room either, because the formula adds back only amounts actually withdrawn, the next January
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca.
General information for the tax year shown, not advice for a specific client. Confirm the facts before you file or remit.