How much tuition credit can a student transfer to a parent?
For 2025 and 2026, a student can transfer up to $5,000 of the current year's federal tuition amount, minus what they need to bring their own tax to zero. At the 14.5% rate for 2025 that saves a parent or grandparent up to $725, and $700 for 2026 at 14%. Carried forward amounts can't be transferred.
How much tuition can a student transfer, and what is it worth?
The student can transfer up to $5,000 of the current year's federal tuition amount, minus the amount they used to reduce their own tax canada.ca. The law states the cap in tax dollars, not tuition dollars: the transferred credit can't exceed the appropriate percentage times $5,000 under section 118.81 of the Income Tax Act
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca. The appropriate percentage is the lowest federal rate in subsection 117(2)
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca.
| Tax year | Lowest federal rate | Most federal tax a $5,000 transfer saves |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 15% | $750 |
| 2025 | 14.5% | $725 |
| 2026 | 14% | $700 |
The 2025 rate is a blend: the rate fell from 15% to 14% on July 1, 2025, so the CRA uses 14.5% for the year canada.ca. For 2026 the lowest bracket is 14% on the first $58,523
canada.ca. So any source still quoting a $750 cap is using the 2024 rate. The $5,000 itself isn't indexed. Provincial and territorial tuition amounts have their own maximums where the province still offers one
canada.ca.
How does Schedule 11 work out the transferable amount?
The student files Schedule 11 even when someone else paid the fees, and even with no tax owing, so the CRA records the unused balance canada.ca. The 2025 form is the current one as of October 2026, and the 2026 version isn't out yet
canada.ca. Here's its order of operations
canada.ca:
| 2025 Schedule 11 line | What it does |
|---|---|
| Lines 1 to 6 | Canadian fees, less any Canada training credit claimed |
| Line 8 | Current year tuition (Canadian plus foreign) |
| Line 9 | Unused tuition from the 2024 notice of assessment |
| Line 13 | Tax room: taxable income (or line 76 divided by 14.5%) minus other credit amounts |
| Line 14 | Carried forward tuition used first, up to the tax room |
| Line 16 | Current year tuition used, from whatever room is left |
| Line 21 | Line 8, capped at $5,000 |
| Line 23 | Line 21 minus line 16: the most the student can transfer |
| Line 24 (field 32700) | Amount actually transferred |
| Line 25 | Balance carried forward |
The order matters. Carried forward tuition soaks up the student's tax room before current year tuition does, so a student with an old balance uses less of this year's amount and can transfer more of it.
How much can a student with $8,000 of 2025 tuition transfer?
Your client's daughter paid $8,000 of eligible tuition for 2025, has $20,000 of taxable income, $18,000 of other credit amounts (the basic personal amount, CPP, EI and so on), no carried forward balance and no Canada training credit. Her taxable income is under $57,375, so line 11 is her taxable income canada.ca.
| Step | Arithmetic | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Tax room (line 13) | $20,000 minus $18,000 | $2,000 |
| Current year tuition she uses (line 16) | Lesser of $8,000 and $2,000 | $2,000 |
| Transfer cap (line 21) | Lesser of $8,000 and $5,000 | $5,000 |
| Most she can transfer (line 23) | $5,000 minus $2,000 | $3,000 |
| Federal tax it saves the parent | $3,000 times 14.5% | $435 |
| Carried forward (line 25) | $8,000 minus $2,000 minus $3,000 | $3,000 |
Her own $2,000 claim is worth $290 at 14.5%, which is exactly the tax left after her other credits ($2,900 minus $2,610). She ends the year owing no federal tax, the parent claims $3,000 on line 32400, and $3,000 waits on her notice of assessment for a year she owes tax.
She doesn't have to transfer the full $3,000. The CRA tells students to transfer only what the recipient can use and carry forward the rest canada.ca. If the parent needs only $1,500, transfer $1,500 and carry forward $4,500.
Who can receive the transfer, and what blocks it?
The student can transfer to a spouse or common law partner, to that partner's parent or grandparent, or to their own parent or grandparent canada.ca. The spouse claims it on line 32600 with federal Schedule 2. A parent or grandparent claims it on line 32400.
Three rules trip up families:
- A spouse's claim shuts out the parents. If the student's spouse or common law partner claims an amount for the student on line 30300, 30425 or 32600, no parent or grandparent can take the transfer
canada.ca. Section 118.9 sets that rule
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca.
- Only one recipient a year. Only one person can claim the transferred amount from a student for a tax year, so two parents can't split it
- Foster parents paid by an agency don't qualify as a parent for this claim
The student designates the amount on the back of Form T2202 (second box), in part 3 of TL11A for a university outside Canada, or in part 4 of TL11C for a commuter to the United States canada.ca. The recipient keeps that certificate, or the official receipt if the amount isn't on it, and doesn't send it with the return
canada.ca.
Why carried forward tuition can never be transferred
Only the current year's amount moves. Once tuition is carried forward, the student can't transfer it to anyone in the future canada.ca. The student must claim it in the first year they owe income tax. They must also file a return every year they carry it: the CRA says a missed year between the expense and the claim means the amount isn't carried forward at all
canada.ca. The mechanics are in section 118.61
laws-lois.justice.gc.ca.
That makes the transfer a one year window. If your client's child doesn't designate an amount for the year, the unused tuition drops into the carryforward and no parent can ever claim it. Unclaimed amounts from earlier years can be fixed through a change to the return canada.ca.
Federal education and textbook amounts ended in 2017 canada.ca, so only tuition transfers federally now. Older education and textbook balances can still sit in a student's carryforward. For the student loan side, see student loan interest, and for adults back in school, the Canada training credit.
What changes the pool before anything is transferred?
Each institution's fees must be more than $100 to count, and fees paid or reimbursed by an employer (the student's or a parent's) don't count when the amount isn't included in income canada.ca. A Canada training credit claim comes off the Canadian fees on line 6 of Schedule 11, so it shrinks the amount that can be transferred
canada.ca.
Quebec residents don't use a provincial Schedule 11 and claim provincial credits on the Quebec return. A spouse receiving a transfer may need a provincial Schedule 2 too, unless they lived in Quebec, Alberta, Ontario or Saskatchewan on December 31 canada.ca.
Sources
Does the parent have to be the one who paid the tuition?
No. The student claims first on their own return even if someone else paid the fees, and the transfer goes to whichever eligible person the student designates canada.ca.
Can both parents split the transferred tuition?
No. Only one person can claim the transferred amount from a student for a tax year canada.ca. Pick the parent who can use the most of it.
Can a student skip their own claim and transfer everything?
No. The student must first use the tuition amount to reduce their own tax, and only the remainder, up to $5,000, can move canada.ca. A student with $5,000 or more of fees and taxable income below their other credit amounts uses nothing, so the full $5,000 can move.
Is the 2026 transfer cap published yet?
The $5,000 is fixed in section 118.81, and the 14% lowest rate for 2026 is published, which puts the federal value at $700 canada.ca. The 2026 Schedule 11 itself isn't out as of October 2026.
General information for the tax year shown, not advice for a specific client. Confirm the facts before you file or remit.