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An FHSA combines some of the characteristics of an RRSP and TFSA. Contributions will generally be tax-deductible, and when a qualifying withdrawal is made, the amount withdrawn is not taxable.
To open a First Home Savings Account, you must be:
How is the FHSA different from the Home Buyers Plan?
With the current Home Buyers Plan, Canadians can withdraw up to $35,000 from their RRSP subject to eligibility and conditions. The funds must be paid to the RRSP over 15 years. With an FHSA, eligible withdrawals do not need to be paid back.
The FHSA is a registered plan that combines some of the characteristics of an RRSP and a TFSA to help save towards your first home!
FHSA | RRSP | TFSA | |
How does it assist me in purchasing a home? | Invest your eligible contributions and use them for purchasing a qualifying home. | Withdraw from your RRSP and use the amount towards your qualifying home purchase under the Home Buyers’ Plan. You can borrow up to $35,000 from your existing RRSP, but the borrowed funds must be paid back within 15 years. | Invest your eligible contributions and use them for a home purchase (or anything else you want). Amounts withdrawn from a TFSA create additional TFSA contribution room beginning in the year following withdrawal. |
What guidelines apply to contributions? | $8,000 is the annual contribution limit. Carry-forward rules apply. $40,000 lifetime contribution limit during the Maximum Participation Period. | The lesser of 18% of your previous year’s income and the current fixed contribution limit $31,560 for 2024. You can carry forward any unused contribution room from previous years. No lifetime contribution limit. | $7,000 is the annual contribution limit for 2024. You can carry forward unused contribution room from the year you turned 18 and was a Canadian resident for tax purposes. No lifetime contribution limit. |
Who can open this account? | Canadian residents 18 years or older but not more than 71 years on December 31 of the year you open an FHSA, who have a valid Social Insurance Number (SIN) and are considered a first-time home buyer. | Canadian residents (for tax purposes) up to the end of the year you turn 71, who have earned income and filed an income tax and benefit return. Some financial institutions may require customers to be the age of majority. | Canadian residents 18 years or older who have a valid SIN. There is no upper age limit to hold a TFSA, unlike an FHSA or an RRSP. |
Will I get a tax deduction on eligible contributions? | Eligible contributions are tax-deductible (except on transfers into your FHSA from your RRSP, although these transfers do use up FHSA contribution room). | Eligible contributions are tax-deductible (except on transfers into your RRSP from your FHSA). | No. Contributions are not tax-deductible. |
Important Benefits | Funds in the account grow tax-free, which could mean more money for a qualifying home purchase. You may also be able to transfer funds tax-free from your FHSA to an RRSP or RRIF in your name. | Funds can be used towards the purchase of a qualifying home under the HBP. Investments can grow within the plan tax deferred. | Funds in the account grow tax-free and you can use the value of the account for anything you like, including towards the purchase of a home. |
Limitations | An FHSA can only be held until December 31st of the year in which the earliest of the following occurs: the 15th anniversary of opening your first FHSA, the year you turn 71 or the year following your first qualifying withdrawal.
Non-qualifying withdrawals (not made to purchase a qualifying home) are taxable income. |
Under the HBP, any RRSP withdrawal used to buy or build a qualifying home must be returned to your RRSP within 15 years and repayment begins in the second year after the year when you first withdrew funds. If you fail to repay the required amount within the required time frame, that amount will be considered as taxable income in that year. | Contributions made to a TFSA are not tax-deductible. |