Checked 15 October 2026. What was checked. How these pages are maintained.
How TFSA room is estimated (2026)
The annual dollar limit for 2026 is $7,000, the same as 2024 and 2025. Room starts the year you turn 18 and are a Canadian resident, even if you never opened an account. Unused room carries forward. Amounts you withdrew in 2025 are added back on 1 January 2026 — not the day you take the money out.
If you paste the room from CRA My Account, leave withdrawals at 0 unless that figure is from before April (CRA often updates last year’s slips in the spring). Over-contributions can be taxed at 1% per month. Official limits: Canada.ca TFSA limits.
Worked example
If you turned 18 in 2009 or earlier, never contributed, and were a resident the whole time, 2026 lifetime room is $109,000 including the $7,000 annual limit for 2026. A $5,000 withdrawal in 2025 is added back on 1 January 2026, not the day you took it out.
Gains inside the TFSA do not use room. You cannot recontribute a 2026 withdrawal until 2027 unless you still have leftover room. Over-contributions can be taxed at 1% per month. Use CRA My Account when it disagrees with this estimate.
Room adds up even if you never opened an account
TFSA room starts the year you turn 18 and are a resident of Canada. The annual dollar limits this page adds are $5,000 for 2009–2012, $5,500 for 2013 and 2014, $10,000 for 2015, $5,500 for 2016–2018, $6,000 for 2019–2022, $6,500 for 2023, and $7,000 for 2024, 2025, and 2026. Someone who turned 18 in 2009 or earlier, lived in Canada the whole time, and never contributed has $109,000 of room at the start of 2026. Someone who turned 18 in 2022 has 6,000 + 6,500 + 7,000 + 7,000 + 7,000 = $33,500 if they have never contributed and were resident each of those years.
A withdrawal does not restore room on the day you take the money. A $1,200 withdrawal in 2025 is added back on 1 January 2026, on top of the new $7,000. A withdrawal you make in 2026 waits until 2027, unless you still have unused room from before. Gains inside the account do not consume room. Losses inside it do not give room back.
When to type the CRA figure instead
If you have contributed before, the lifetime sum assuming zero contributions is too high. Put the unused room from CRA My Account in the CRA box and leave the 2025 withdrawal box at 0 if that CRA figure already includes everything through the latest update. CRA has said 2025 records are the ones to check once they are processed in 2026. Over-contributions can be taxed at 1 percent a month. This estimate is not My Account. The RRSP calculator is a different room, driven by earned income, and the two do not share a limit.
The $7,000 limit was read again on 15 October 2026. Lifetime room on this page is not CRA My Account. The log is the figures check.
Common questions
Does investment growth use up room?
No. Gains and losses inside the TFSA do not change contribution room.
Can I recontribute a withdrawal this year?
Not until January 1 of the next year, unless you still have leftover room.
What if I became a resident after 2009?
Room only accumulates for years you were a resident and 18 or older. This page assumes residency from the year you turned 18.