🇨🇦 Canada
The #1 Canadian money search. Written for readers who search this on Google in Canada. This page has 50 important questions and answers.
50 important questions. Quick 10 is a random set; Full set plays every question.
Original practice items — not copied from any official exam paper. Tap a question to see the answer.
Answer: Tax-Free Savings Account
Growth inside a TFSA is not taxed on withdrawal.
Answer: Registered Retirement Savings Plan
Contributions can lower taxable income now.
Answer: tax-free
Contribution room is the limit, not tax on the way out.
Answer: taxed as income
That is the TFSA vs RRSP trade-off.
Answer: 18 (and are a Canadian resident)
Unused room carries forward.
Answer: the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP)
You can borrow from your RRSP under HBP rules.
Answer: trigger a CRA penalty tax
Track your room in My Account.
Answer: a US 401(k) or Roth IRA, though the idea is similar
Use Canadian rules, not IRS ones.
Answer: each year you are an eligible Canadian resident adult
Unused room carries forward.
Answer: carries forward indefinitely
Check the official room on CRA My Account.
Answer: on 1 January of the following year
Re-contributing too soon can over-contribute.
Answer: also carries forward
It appears on your Notice of Assessment.
Answer: split retirement income later under the rules
Attribution rules apply on early withdrawals.
Answer: withdraw RRSP funds for a first home under HBP rules
Repayments follow a set schedule.
Answer: withdraw RRSP money for qualifying full-time study
You repay it to your RRSP over time.
Answer: a First Home Savings Account, separate from TFSA and RRSP
Qualifying home withdrawals have their own tax rules.
Answer: tax withheld at source
HBP and LLP withdrawals are the main exceptions.
Answer: trigger a penalty tax on the excess
There is a small lifetime buffer — do not rely on it.
Answer: the year you turn 71
Convert remaining funds to a RRIF or annuity.
Answer: moved to a RRIF or used to buy an annuity
Missing the deadline can cause a full inclusion.
Answer: minimum annual withdrawals that are taxable
You can withdraw more than the minimum.
Answer: a spouse or common-law partner who takes over the account
A beneficiary designation is different from successor holder.
Answer: US withholding tax that you generally cannot recover
The Canada–US treaty treatment differs from an RRSP.
Answer: treat the income as taxable business income
A TFSA is not a licence for a trading business.
Answer: does not create extra contribution room
Room comes from annual limits plus carry-forward.
Answer: an RRSP that uses your personal RRSP room
Employer deposits count as contributions.
Answer: uses your RRSP contribution room
The match is valuable but not free room.
Answer: stocks, ETFs, bonds or cash if the issuer allows
Not every product is a qualified investment.
Answer: a high-interest savings account at a bank
Brokerage TFSAs are common.
Answer: TFSA room generally stops accumulating
Non-resident withdrawals have extra rules.
Answer: matters when the holder dies
Review it after marriage or divorce.
Answer: added to your taxable income
You can repay sooner than the schedule.
Answer: CRA My Account
Issuers do not see your other TFSAs.
Answer: set by the federal government and can change by year
Do not invent a 2026 figure from a rumour.
Answer: earned income and a yearly maximum
A pension adjustment can reduce it.
Answer: reduces the RRSP room you earn that year
It appears on the T4 and assessment.
Answer: not give that contribution room back next year
That is a key TFSA vs RRSP difference.
Answer: income-tested benefits because it is taxable
Plan withdrawals around GIS, CCB and tax brackets.
Answer: income for GIS or OAS clawback tests
That is why TFSAs are popular in retirement.
Answer: all of them share one room limit
Direct transfers avoid using room.
Answer: a direct transfer
A withdrawal-and-deposit can over-contribute.
Answer: fair market value and can trigger a capital gain outside the plan
You cannot claim a loss on an in-kind transfer in.
Answer: not claimable on income earned inside a TFSA
An RRSP/RRIF can be treated differently for US tax.
Answer: different registered plans, not TFSA substitutes
Each has its own contribution and grant rules.
Answer: still starts with that calendar year’s eligibility, not a half-limit formula you invent
You must be 18 and resident — the CRA page states the start rule.
Answer: 1% per month on the excess
Withdraw the excess quickly and file the TFSA return if required.
Answer: tax-free under the FHSA rules
Unused FHSA amounts have transfer options — read the CRA guide.
Answer: not deductible on your T1 return
That is the upfront tax trade-off vs an RRSP.
Answer: a Canadian issuer or trustee
DIY does not mean unregistered.
Answer: a US account — useful as an analogy, not the CRA rulebook
Use CRA publications for limits and withdrawals.
Pick the next article in this topic — that is how a magazine issue is meant to be used.
