The Canadian tax system provides a number of opportunities for taxpayers to save on a tax-assisted basis. Most Canadians are familiar with registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) and many are also aware of the availability of the tax-free savings account (TFSA). The newest (and probably least well known) such tax-assisted savings opportunity is the first home savings account (FHSA), which was introduced by the federal government in the 2023-24 budget and first became available in 2023.
According to numbers released by Statistics Canada there were, as of July 1, 2024, an estimated 2.5 million Canadians aged 65 to 69 and around 2 million Canadians who were between the ages of 70 and 74. That being the case, it’s likely that during the 2025 calendar year, hundreds of thousands of Canadians will reach the age of 71 and, for retirement income planning purposes, that is a very consequential birthday.
For most taxpayers, the first few months of the year can seem to involve a seemingly unending series of bills and payment deadlines. During January and February, many Canadians are still trying to pay off the bills from holiday spending. The first income tax instalment payment of 2025 is due on March 17, and the need to pay any tax balance for the 2024 tax year comes just six weeks after that, on April 30. Added to all of that, the deadline for making an RRSP contribution for 2024 falls on March 3, 2025.
Each new tax year brings with it a schedule of tax payment and filing deadlines, as well as some changes with respect to tax saving and planning opportunities. Some of the more significant dates and changes for individual taxpayers for 2025 are listed below.
For most Canadians, the subject of making RRSP or TFSA contributions, or making RRIF withdrawals, isn’t usually top of mind at year-end. Most Canadians know that the deadline for making contributions to one’s registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) comes 60 days after the end of the calendar year, around the end of February, but relatively few are aware that in some circumstances an RRSP contribution must be (or should be) made by December 31, in order to achieve the best tax result.
During the 2024 calendar year, hundreds of thousands of Canadians will reach their 71st birthday, and a significant percentage of that group are likely to have saved money for retirement through a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP).
If there is one invariable “rule” of financial and retirement planning of which most Canadians are aware, it is the unquestioned wisdom of making regular contributions to one’s registered retirement savings plan (RRSP). And it is true that for several decades the RRSP was the only tax-sheltered savings and investment vehicle available to most individual Canadians.
The age at which Canadians retire and begin deriving income from government and private pensions and private retirement savings has become something of a moving target.
Many, if not most, taxpayers think of tax planning as a year-end exercise to be carried out in the last few weeks of the year, with a view to taking the steps needed to minimize the tax bill for the current year.
For most taxpayers, the first few months of the year are a seemingly unending series of bills and payment deadlines. During January and February, many Canadians are still trying to pay off the bills from holiday spending.
