Contribute $6,000, get how much back? An RRSP contribution is deductible: it lowers your taxable income and generates a refund proportional to your marginal rate. Move the sliders.
Quebec receives a 16.5% federal abatement, applied automatically.
An estimate to adjust: this rate varies by province and income. You'll find it on your latest return.
Estimated tax refund
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Net cost of the contribution
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Refund rate
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Your 2026 RRSP room (estimated)
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The federal portion uses the 2026 tax brackets with exact progressive calculation. The provincial portion is an estimate based on the marginal rate you enter. This is not tax advice.
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Methodology
How the refund is calculated
An RRSP contribution is a deduction, not a credit: it comes straight off your taxable income. The refund therefore equals the tax you would have paid on that slice of income, your marginal rate, not your average rate.
On the federal side, the tool applies the 2026 brackets (14% up to $58,523, 20.5% to $117,045, 26% to $181,440, 29% to $258,482, then 33%) with exact progressive math: if your contribution drops you into a lower bracket, that's accounted for. Quebec residents get the 16.5% federal abatement, applied automatically.
On the provincial side, the marginal rate varies by province and income, so the tool uses the one you enter, that way the result matches your actual situation rather than an average. You'll find it on your latest return or from your payroll department.
The part people miss
The refund is not free money
This is the costliest misunderstanding about RRSPs. What you get back isn't a gift: it's a tax deferral. You skip the tax today on the amount contributed, but you'll pay it on withdrawal, at your marginal rate at that time.
So the RRSP wins if your marginal rate in retirement is lower than it is today, true for most salaried workers. Conversely, if your income is low now and you expect better later, the TFSA is often the better call: withdrawals there are tax-free. Calculate your TFSA room →
One habit changes everything: reinvest the refund instead of spending it. An $1,800 refund put back to work every year for 25 years is worth tens of thousands more at retirement. Project it here →
By bracket
Your 2026 refund by income
For a $5,000 contribution, here is the federal share of the refund in each of the five 2026 brackets. The Quebec column applies the 16.5% abatement. Then add your provincial rate times $5,000: that is what the calculator does with the slider.
2026 taxable income
Federal rate
Federal refund
In Quebec
Up to $58,523
14 %
$700
$585
$58,523 to $117,045
20.5 %
$1,025
$856
$117,045 to $181,440
26 %
$1,300
$1,086
$181,440 to $258,482
29 %
$1,450
$1,211
Over $258,482
33 %
$1,650
$1,378
2026 federal brackets, checked September 9, 2026. The amounts are exact if the whole $5,000 stays within the bracket; if the contribution drops you into a lower bracket, part of it is refunded at the lower rate, which is what the calculator above works out to the dollar.
Calendar
The 2026 refund arrives in 2027
A contribution made today produces nothing until you file. Three dates stand between the deposit and the refund.
March 1, 2027: last day for a contribution to be deductible against the 2026 tax year. It is the sixtieth day after December 31, and it falls on a Monday, so no shift. The full RRSP deadline calendar covers the years after.
Late February 2027: electronic filing of 2026 returns opens at the CRA. You can file as soon as your slips are in.
Two weeks after an electronic return with direct deposit, up to eight weeks on paper: that is the CRA's service standard for issuing the refund.
Two ways not to wait
Form T1213 (TP-1016 in Quebec) asks the CRA to let your employer withhold less tax on every pay, up to your planned RRSP contributions: the refund then arrives month after month instead of in April. And nothing forces you to deduct the contribution the year you make it: the deduction carries forward indefinitely, and a contribution made in a 14% year can be claimed later, in the year your income moves into the 26% bracket.
FAQ
Common questions
18% of your 2025 earned income, up to a maximum of $33,810 for 2026, minus any pension adjustment if you're in a workplace plan. Unused room carries forward indefinitely, your exact figure is on your notice of assessment.
Contributions made in the first 60 days of the following year can be deducted against the previous year. That's what drives the February rush every year.
Because your return accounts for much more: tax credits, other income, tax already withheld at source, CPP/QPP contributions. This tool isolates the effect of the RRSP contribution alone.
A $2,000 buffer is tolerated without penalty, but it isn't deductible. Beyond that, the CRA charges 1% per month on the excess.
Simple rule: if your current marginal rate is high and you expect a lower one in retirement, the RRSP wins. If it's low today, fill the TFSA first. Plenty of people use both.
After you file your 2026 return, in spring 2027. The CRA aims for two weeks on an electronic return with direct deposit, and up to eight weeks on paper. A contribution made in September 2026 therefore yields nothing before March 2027 at the earliest.
No. The contribution uses your room in the year it is made, but the deduction carries forward indefinitely. If your income is low this year and you expect a higher bracket, contributing now and deducting later yields a bigger refund on the same amount.
