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By Jason Heath, CFP on January 1, 2026
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

By Jason Heath, CFP on January 1, 2026
Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

If you’re not among the few who max out their TFSA every January 1, these new year TFSA tips can help you avoid penalties and make smarter moves.

Tax-free savings accounts (TFSAs) are useful tax tools with rules that sometimes confuse even the savviest savers. Here are some of the TFSA considerations to keep in mind for the new year to maximize your tax savings, avoid penalties, and leverage the accounts as effectively as possible.

Every Canadian resident aged 18 or older has $7,000 of new TFSA room as of January 1, 2026. This has been the annual maximum for three consecutive years now, but it could possibly rise in 2027 to $7,500. The 2027 TFSA limit will be confirmed in late 2026.

Since 2016, the annual maximum has risen in $500 increments based on adjustments tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures annual inflation.

Your cumulative TFSA limit is more important than the annual maximum. If you have missed contributions in the past, your TFSA room carries forward, with the yearly maximum added to your past room.

If you were 18 years of age or older in 2009 and a resident in Canada all of those years, your cumulative TFSA room would be $109,000 as of January 1, 2026. That is: if you were born in 1991 or earlier, have been a resident in Canada since 2009, and have never contributed to a TFSA, you could have $109,000 of TFSA contribution room in 2026.

Earn 1.50% tax-free on your cash savings.

Earn a guaranteed 3.50% in your TFSA when you lock in for 1 year.

Open your TFSA with one of the best online brokers in Canada. See our ranking.

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