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Canada Capital Gains Tax Calculator 2024
Calculate your capital gains taxes and average capital gains tax rate for any year between 2021 and 2024 tax year. This calculator includes the effects of the changes which came into effect on June 25, 2024.
Last Changes to Capital Gains Tax
Came into effect from June 25, 2024
- The inclusion rate for capital gains will increase from ½ to ⅔. This change applies to corporations, trusts, and individuals. Yet individuals continue to enjoy the 50% inclusion rate on their capital gains up to $250,000 annually. For 2024, the ⅔ applies to capital gains realized after 24 June 2024. And the $250,000 limit for individuals will only apply to gains realized after 24 June 2024.
- Life Time Capital Gains Exemption would increase to $1,250,000 from $1,016,836. The new limit would apply to gains realized on or after June 25, 2024. The new limit will be indexed to inflation from 2026.
- The Canadian Entrepreneurs' Incentive will become available on 1 January 2025. This incentive would half the inclusion rate of an entrepreneur's capital gains up to a lifetime limit. The lifetime limit will be $200,000 for 2025 and increase by $200,000 yearly until it reaches $2,000,000.
What You Should Know
- A portion of the capital gain from any sale will be taxed based on the individual’s marginal tax rate.
- Since 2023, the profit from the sale of real estate held for less than one year is considered business income and not capital gain.
- This calculator only calculates capital gains for the sale of Canadian assets and assets in countries with whom Canada does not have a tax treaty. It does not calculate the tax credit you gain for paying tax to a foreign government with which Canada has a tax treaty.
- Please use the investment property calculator only for the building and Others calculator for the land, because building is a depreciable property and land is not. A loss on a depreciable property and a loss on a non-depreciable property are treated differently.
Capital Gains Tax in Canada
You realize a capital gain when you sell a capital asset and the proceeds of disposition exceeds the adjusted cost base. Capital assets subject to this tax, according to the Canada Revenue Agency, include buildings, land, shares, bonds, and real estate investment trust units.
The proceeds of disposition is what you sold your capital property for, less any outlays and expenses of selling. The adjusted cost base is what you paid to acquire the capital property, including any costs related to purchasing the capital property plus costs incurred to improve the property.
The capital gains inclusion rate is 50% in Canada until June 24, 2024; after that, the inclusion rate will be 67% for capital gains made by trusts and corporations, in addition to capital gains over $250,000 made by an individual taxpayer each year. This means that you have to include 50% of your capital gains (soon to become 67%) as income on your tax return. The inclusion rate for personal and business income is 100%, meaning you must pay taxes on all of your income. WOWA calculates your average capital gains tax rate by dividing your capital gains tax by your total capital gains.
Adjusted Cost Base (ACB)
The adjusted cost base (ACB) is the cost of a capital property, including any costs related to the acquisition and improvement of the capital property.
Adjusted Cost Base for Financial Instruments (e.g. Stocks)
For financial instruments such as stocks, the adjusted cost base is calculated as the number of shares multiplied by the share price at the time the shares were bought. For instance, if 100 shares of XYZ Company were purchased at a price of $30 each, then the ACB would be $3,000. If more shares of the same corporation are purchased in the future, the adjusted cost base would be the total cost of all the shares purchased at their respective prices. The adjusted cost base per share would be the average purchase price of the stock for all the shares. For instance, if you purchased 50 more shares of XYZ Company at a price of $35, the ACB per share would be $31.67. The adjusted cost base also includes any costs incurred to acquire the stock, such as trading commissions. Since commissions increase costs, investors and active traders can benefit from low-commission trading platforms.
Adjusted Cost Base for Real Estate
For real estate investments, the adjusted cost base includes the purchase price of the property, closing costs, and capital expenditures on the property.
Closing costs are the fees that a buyer pays to acquire the real estate property and include one-time fees such as the land transfer taxes, real estate lawyer and legal fees, home inspection fee, and property survey fee. It is important to differentiate between capital expenditures and current expenses on your property.
Current expenses cannot be included in the adjusted cost base while capital expenditures should be included in the ACB, irrespective of when the capital expenditures were made during the entire duration of your ownership of the home.
Some examples of capital additions and improvements to your home include installing a new HVAC system, waterproofing your basement, installing a hot tub, etc. Meanwhile, current expenses are monthly costs incurred by the homeowner or a tenant, such as electricity bills, hydro bills, restorations, and short term repairs such as painting the wall or replacing broken light bulbs.
The Canada Revenue Agency guidelines on current expenses and capital expenses indicate that capital expenditures are improvements that provide a long term benefit, significantly increase the value of the home, and contribute to extending the useful life of your property.
Proceeds of Disposition
Proceeds of Disposition is what you have earned when you sell your capital property. Outlays and Expenses are the costs of selling and these may be deducted from the Proceeds of Disposition. For instance, if you sell financial instruments such as shares in a company, the trading fees you incur will be deducted from what you sold the shares for to get the Proceeds of Disposition on the stock. For real estate, Common Outlays and Expenses include costs of selling a house such as real estate commissions, lawyer fees and legal fees. If your proceeds of disposition is in a foreign currency, convert the foreign proceeds to Canadian dollars using the Bank of Canada daily exchange rate on the date you sold the capital property.
Capital Gains Inclusion Rate
The capital gains inclusion rate determines how much of your capital gains are subject to tax. The capital gains inclusion rate was 50% between 2001 and June 24, 2024. Beginning June 25, 2024, the capital gains inclusion rate for trusts and corporations becomes 67%. For individuals, the first $250,000 of capital gains during each tax year continue to enjoy the 50% inclusion rate. Any annual capital gain of an individual over the $250,000 limit will be 67% included in taxable income. Investments in registered plans such as a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), Registered Pension Plan (RPP), or Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) are considered tax-sheltered and capital gains tax will not be charged on investments while they are held in these accounts. The disadvantage with a registered investment account is that you cannot carry forward any capital losses. For more information on registered and non registered investment accounts, see Capital Gains on Investment Accounts.
Capital Gains Tax Calculation
Olivia is a student living in Ontario and her taxable income for 2019 is $30,000. She bought stocks at the beginning of 2019 using $100,000 of inheritance and sold these stocks at the end of the year for $107,020. How much does Olivia pay in capital gains tax?
Olivia’s trading fees were $20, so her proceeds of disposition less outlays and expenses is $107,000. Olivia’s total capital gain is $7,000. Since the inclusion rate is 50%, her taxable capital gain is $3,500. This would bring her to a taxable income of $33,500. Olivia is in the lowest income tax bracket, so she will pay 15% in federal income tax and 5.05% in provincial income tax for a total of 20.05% as her income tax rate. Therefore, her capital gain tax will be $702.
Capital Gains Tax on Sale of Property
Real estate property includes residential properties, vacant land, rental property, farm property, and commercial land and buildings. If you have sold real estate property, you will have to report any capital gains or losses on Schedule 3, the capital gains and losses form. For example, you just sold a property for proceeds of disposition less outlays and expenses of $500,000. Your adjusted cost base was $400,000, so your total capital gain is $100,000, and your taxable capital gain is 50% of that, or $50,000.
Principal Residence Exemption
When you sell real estate property, you may be exempt from paying capital gain tax if the property was your principal residence. You are only allowed to have one principal residence at a time, and if you have a spouse there can only be one principal residence for both of you. Additionally, since January 1, 2023, the principal residence exemption does not apply if a home is sold within 12 months of the purchase date. However, exemptions apply for death, disability, the birth of a child, a new job, or divorce.
The principal residence exemption only applies for Canadian residents. You will still have to report the sale of the property on Schedule 3. The tax will then be deducted when you fill out Form T2091(IND), Designation of a Property as a Principal Residence by an Individual (Other Than a Personal Trust), a separate form that designates the property as your past principal residence.
During your time of ownership, if there was a period where the property was not your principal residence, then you will not be able to receive the full amount of tax exemption. Instead, the exemption will be calculated based on the number of years that you held the property as your principal residence.
If part of your home was used as a principal residence and part of your home was used to generate income, you are required to distribute the ACB and the sale price between the two parts. For example, if 40% of your home was rented out to a tenant and 60% was designated as your principal residence, the principal residence exemption will only apply to 60% of the ACB and sale price.
If you held ownership of the property for 10 years, and it was rented out for 4 years, you would input 6 years into line 3 on Form T2091(IND) and complete the calculation in Part 1 to calculate your principal residence exemption.
In some cases, you can maintain the principal residence exemption while renting part of your principal residence. However, for this to apply, you must meet all of the following criteria as outlined by the CRA.
- The rental use of the property must be small in comparison to its use as a principal residence.
- You must not make structural changes for rental purposes.
- You don’t deduct any Capital Cost Allowance (CCA) for the rental portion of your principal residence.
What is a Principal Residence?
Your principal residence is where you and your family normally live in Canada during the year. You must own or jointly own the home. However, in some cases, a vacation property that you own and only you and close relatives use may be considered as your principal residence as long as you don’t earn any rental income from it. You don’t even have to live in the residence for the whole year. However, you can only claim one home as a principal residence in any calendar year for your family unit (you, your partner and any children under 18 years of age).
Your principal residence can be any number of different property types according to the Canada Revenue Agency. It can be a house, a duplex, a condo, a cottage, a cabin, a mobile home, a trailer or a houseboat. You can generally only have half a hectare (1.25 acres) of land on which your residence sits. However, there are exceptions to this. For instance, if the municipality you bought your property in has a minimum lot size that is already greater than half a hectare, then you may prove the increased lot size is solely for enjoyment purposes.
Investment Property
When selling a property that is not a principal residence, including a second home or investment property, you will have to pay capital gains tax.
If you rent part of your home while living in another part, you will qualify for the principal residence tax exemption and won’t have to pay capital gains tax only on the part you are living in. If you change the use of your property, for example, if you moved out and rented your residence or if you start living in a property you used to rent, CRA will deem you to have disposed of your property at fair market value and immediately repurchased it at the same price.
This means that each time you change the use of your property, you have a deemed disposition, and you are expected to fill out Schedule 3 and calculate your capital gains tax. The income tax law allows you to elect not to have a deemed disposition when making this change of use. In order to make this election, one should not have claimed any capital cost allowance (CCA) for that house, and the taxpayer will not be able to claim any CCA for that property in the future. When the property is finally sold, CRA will give partial exemption from capital gain tax based on the number of years it has been a principal residence and the total number of years it has been owned.
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Capital Cost Allowance
Except for land, capital property generally has a limited useful life, as buildings and machinery wear out. Thus, everything else being equal, many capital properties would lose their value as time passes. This loss of value of capital properties is one of the costs of doing business. To account for this cost, a business (a business renting accommodation or any other business) can subtract a portion of its depreciable capital property from its taxable income each year. The amount deducted from profit for depreciation of capital assets is called capital cost allowance (CCA).
If you make a capital gain on a property for which you have deducted CCA from your profit, you have overestimated your capital asset depreciation. This is recaptured and fully included in your taxable income. If you make a loss on the sale of a depreciable property, you have underaccounted for its depreciation. This terminal loss is subtracted from your taxable income to reduce your payable tax.
If you subtract all the CCA used against income for a property over the years from its cost (capital cost) and add the cost of all improvements, you derive adjusted capitalized cost. The amount of CCA is a portion of adjusted capitalized cost. Canada Revenue Agency divides depreciable capital properties into many classes and assigns a depreciation rate to each class. You derive the maximum CCA by multiplying the capital property’s depreciation rate and its adjusted capital cost. Note that you cannot use CCA to create a loss and that you can choose to use as much CCA as you wish up to its maximum amount. In the following, we explain some of these classes.
Class 1: Most buildings acquired after 1987, their parts and additions to them are grouped in class 1. Class 1 has a depreciation rate of 4%. If a non-residential building is acquired after March 2007 and used in Canada for manufacturing or processing it has an additional allowance of 6% for a total allowance of 10%. Other eligible non-residential buildings qualify for an additional allowance of 2% for a total annual depreciation allowance of 6%.
Class 3: If you acquired a building through a written agreement before June 1987 or if you were constructing the building in June 1987 it is grouped in class 3. If an improvement cost the lesser of $500k or ¼ of the building’s capital cost, then the additional improvement cost would be added to the capital cost of the building in class 3. Any improvement costing more than that would be a capital asset by itself in Class 1. The annual depreciation allowance for Class 3 assets is 5%.
Class 6: A building belongs to class 6 if it is made of frame, log, stucco on frame, galvanized iron or corrugated metal and you acquired it before 1979, or it is used for farming/fishing, or it has no foundation below ground. Class 6 enjoys a capital cost depreciation rate of 10%.
Class 8: Furniture, appliances, and tools costing $500 or more per tool, some fixtures, machinery, outdoor advertising signs, refrigeration equipment, photocopier, and electronic equipment devices are all included in Class 8. Class 8 enjoys a CCA rate of 20%.
In the year a capital property is acquired half of the CCA rate should be used for determining the maximum allowable CCA. This is known as the half-year rule.
Example: John bought a house to rent out for $135k in March 2021, 70% of which is attributable to the building. He rented the house for $1000/month from 1 April and had to spend $1500 on the upkeep of the house. What would be the effect of this investment on his 2021 taxes?
John’s revenue is 9*$1000=$9000. His operating profit is obtained by subtracting $1500 of operating cost. John should add $7500 because of his rental income, to his other incomes on his T1 return. But to reduce his taxes John had the option of depreciating his building. A residential building acquired in 2021 belongs to Class 1. Thus the maximum possible CCA for John’s rental income would be $135,000*70%*4%*½=$1890. In this calculation, 4% is the CCA rate for Class 1 properties and the factor ½ appears because of the half-year rule. Thus, to reduce taxes John can subtract CCA of $1890 and report a rental income of $5,610.
Capital Gain Exemptions
The capital gains exemptions include the principal residence exemption as mentioned above, the lifetime capital gains exemption, exemption on capital gains for donations, and capital gains on gifted property.
Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption
The lifetime capital gains exemption is also known as the capital gains deduction and is on line 25400 of your tax return. Canadian residents have a cumulative lifetime capital gains exemption (LCGE) when they dispose of eligible properties. The capital properties eligible for the LCGE include qualified small business corporation shares (QSBCS) and qualified farm or fishing property (QFFP). The lifetime limit refers to the total amount of LCGE you can claim throughout your lifetime. The lifetime capital gains exemption (LCGE) for qualified small business corporation shares is $971,190 for 2023 and $913,630 for 2022 (as this limit is indexed to inflation), and the lifetime capital gains exemption for qualified farm or fishing property is $1,000,000.
Let’s say you have earned $10,000 in capital gains on a QSBCS in 2019 and you have not reached the lifetime capital gains exemption limit. Upon claiming the LCGE exemption, you will have used up $5,000 of your LCGE for QSBCS as the capital gains inclusion rate is 50%. You will still have $861,912 left in your lifetime capital gains exemption for qualified small business corporations as of 2019 limit amounts.
Exemptions on Capital Gains Tax for Donations
If you donate certain assets to a registered charity or other qualified donees, you may be exempt from paying capital gains tax on any capital gains realized from these gifts. The types of assets that are eligible for the exemption when donated are:
- A share of a stock of a mutual fund corporation or a unit of mutual fund trust
- A share, debt obligation, or right listed on the stock exchange
- An interest in a segregated fund trust
- Ecologically sensitive land
Qualified donees in Canada include:
- Registered charities
- Registered amateur athletic associations
- Registered municipalities
- Registered national arts service organizations
You will still have to report any capital gains and losses of these gifts on the capital gains tax form (Schedule 3) and will be required to fill out a separate form - T1170 Capital Gains on Gifts of Certain Capital Property to receive the exemption.
Capital Gains on Gifted Property
You may transfer capital property to your spouse if they are at a lower income tax bracket to save on capital gains tax as a family. Depending on the type of property, you will transfer them to your spouse at either the Adjusted Cost Base (ACB) or the Undepreciated Capital Cost (UCC). After the transfer, you will not incur capital gains tax but when your spouse sells the capital property, they will pay capital gains tax.
If the capital property you transferred to your spouse is eligible for the Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption, then your spouse can use their remaining LCGE limit when selling the capital property to reduce their capital gains tax. Eligible properties for the LCGE include qualified small business corporation shares (QSBCS) and qualified farm or fishing properties (QFFP).
Capital Gains Tax Rates
The capital gains tax rate in Canada can be calculated by adding the income tax rate in each province with the federal income tax rate and then multiplying by the 50% capital gains inclusion rate. Your income tax rate bracket is determined by your net income, which is your gross income less any contributions to registered investment accounts. The capital gains tax rates for each province is listed below based on tax bracket:
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $13,229 | 0.00% |
| $13,230 | $15,714 | 7.50% |
| $15,714 | $20,644 | 12.55% |
| $20,645 | $44,740 | 10.03% |
| $44,741 | $48,535 | 12.08% |
| $48,536 | $78,786 | 14.83% |
| $78,787 | $89,482 | 15.74% |
| $89,483 | $92,827 | 16.95% |
| $92,828 | $97,069 | 18.95% |
| $97,070 | $150,000 | 21.70% |
| $150,001 | $150,473 | 22.48% |
| $150,474 | $214,368 | 24.09% |
| $214,369 | $220,000 | 25.98% |
| $220,001 | Infinity | 26.76% |
The capital gains tax rate in Ontario for the highest income bracket is 26.76%. This means that if you earn $2,000 in total capital gains, then you will pay $535.20 in capital gains tax. The tax brackets for each province vary, so you may be paying different amounts of capital gain tax depending on which province you live in. For instance, if you earn $80,000 taxable income in Ontario and you sold a capital property in BC with a total capital gain of $1,000, you will pay $157.40 in capital gains tax based on the capital gains tax rate of 15.74% in Ontario.
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $13,229 | 0.00% |
| $13,230 | $20,698 | 7.50% |
| $20,699 | $34,556 | 11.81% |
| $34,557 | $41,725 | 10.03% |
| $41,726 | $48,535 | 11.35% |
| $48,536 | $83,451 | 14.10% |
| $83,452 | $95,812 | 15.50% |
| $95,813 | $97,069 | 16.40% |
| $97,070 | $116,344 | 19.15% |
| $116,345 | $150,473 | 20.35% |
| $150,474 | $157,748 | 21.96% |
| $157,749 | $214,368 | 23.01% |
| $214,369 | $220,000 | 24.90% |
| $220,001 | Infinity | 26.75% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $13,229 | 0.00% |
| $13,230 | $19,369 | 7.50% |
| $19,370 | $48,535 | 12.50% |
| $48,536 | $97,069 | 15.25% |
| $97,070 | $131,220 | 18.00% |
| $131,221 | $150,473 | 19.00% |
| $150,474 | $157,464 | 20.61% |
| $157,465 | $209,952 | 21.11% |
| $209,953 | $214,368 | 21.61% |
| $214,369 | $314,928 | 23.50% |
| $314,929 | Infinity | 24.00% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| $0 | $9,838 | 0.00% |
| $9,839 | $13,229 | 5.40% |
| $13,230 | $33,389 | 12.90% |
| $33,390 | $48,535 | 13.88% |
| $48,536 | $72,164 | 16.63% |
| $72,165 | $97,069 | 18.95% |
| $97,070 | $150,473 | 21.70% |
| $150,474 | $214,368 | 23.31% |
| $214,369 | Infinity | 25.20% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 13,229 | 0.00% |
| 13,230 | 16,065 | 7.50% |
| 16,066 | 45,225 | 12.75% |
| 45,226 | 48,535 | 13.75% |
| 48,536 | 97,069 | 16.50% |
| 97,070 | 129,214 | 19.25% |
| 129,215 | 150,473 | 20.25% |
| 150,474 | 214,368 | 21.86% |
| 214,369 | Infinity | 23.75% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 13,229 | 0.00% |
| 13,230 | 17,463 | 7.50% |
| 17,464 | 40,063 | 13.84% |
| 40,064 | 43,401 | 12.34% |
| 43,402 | 48,535 | 14.91% |
| 48,536 | 86,803 | 17.66% |
| 86,804 | 97,069 | 18.51% |
| 97,070 | 141,122 | 21.26% |
| 141,123 | 150,473 | 21.92% |
| 150,474 | 160,776 | 23.53% |
| 160,777 | 214,368 | 24.76% |
| 214,369 | Infinity | 26.65% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 13,229 | 0.00% |
| 13,230 | 19,372 | 7.50% |
| 19,373 | 20,537 | 11.85% |
| 20,538 | 25,906 | 19.85% |
| 25,907 | 37,929 | 11.85% |
| 37,930 | 48,535 | 14.75% |
| 48,536 | 75,858 | 17.50% |
| 75,859 | 97,069 | 18.15% |
| 97,070 | 135,432 | 20.90% |
| 135,433 | 150,473 | 21.65% |
| 150,474 | 189,604 | 23.26% |
| 189,605 | 214,368 | 23.76% |
| 214,369 | Infinity | 25.65% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 11,894 | 0.00% |
| 11,895 | 13,229 | 4.40% |
| 13,230 | 15,000 | 11.90% |
| 15,001 | 21,000 | 14.40% |
| 21,001 | 29,590 | 11.90% |
| 29,591 | 48,535 | 14.98% |
| 48,536 | 59,180 | 17.73% |
| 59,181 | 93,000 | 18.59% |
| 93,001 | 97,069 | 19.00% |
| 97,070 | 150,000 | 21.75% |
| 150,001 | 150,473 | 23.50% |
| 150,474 | 214,368 | 25.11% |
| 214,369 | Infinity | 27.00% |
| Lower Limit | Upper Limit | Capital Gains Tax Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 13,229 | 0.00% |
| 13,230 | 13,571 | 7.50% |
| 13,572 | 18,000 | 12.40% |
| 18,001 | 25,000 | 14.90% |
| 25,001 | 31,984 | 12.40% |
| 31,985 | 48,535 | 14.40% |
| 48,536 | 63,969 | 17.15% |
| 63,970 | 97,069 | 18.60% |
| 97,070 | 99,488 | 21.35% |
| 99,489 | 150,473 | 22.19% |
| 150,474 | 214,368 | 23.79% |
| 214,369 | Infinity | 25.69% |
Capital Losses
If you have assets that sold for less than the total cost you spent on them, you can offset your capital gains with the capital losses to reduce the amount of capital gains tax you have to pay. If you have more capital losses than capital gains in any given tax year, you can carry the net capital loss to the capital gains of the last three years or forward to offset any capital gains in future years.
Capital losses cannot be claimed for personal-use properties as it is considered to be a personal expense. Personal-use properties include principal residences, automobiles, furniture, and all other household or personal items.
Wash Sales
Tax-loss selling, wash-sales and tax-loss harvesting all define the act of deliberately selling an asset at a loss to offset capital gains. To counter this, Canada has a superficial loss rule in the Income Tax Act which if you or someone affiliated with you buys back an asset within 30 days of selling it, you are not allowed to claim capital loss for it. However, if you think that an investment will be unlikely to recover in value and you are unlikely to repurchase it in the future, selling a capital property that has decreased in value can set off a capital loss and help you reduce your capital gains tax. The superficial loss rule also states that if you are claiming the capital loss you cannot repurchase an equivalent asset. For example, if you sell a gold bar at a loss, you cannot repurchase another gold bar within 30 days of selling it. This is because the gold bars are equivalent commodities. However, if you sell one company’s stocks at a loss, you are allowed to purchase another company’s stock in the same sector if you think the sector has future potential to outperform.
Registered Investments
If you have investments in a registered account, you do not have to pay capital gains tax on them even if they grow in value as they are deemed to have tax-deferred or tax-sheltered status by the government. Registered accounts in Canada include:
- Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP): for retirement savings and investing that grow tax-deferred until retirement
- Registered education savings plan (RESP): for secondary education savings that grow tax-free until withdrawn with a lifetime contribution limit of $50,000; government also contributes a maximum of $7,200 worth of Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG) by providing an additional 20% of your RESP to the plan each year.
- Registered disability savings plan (RDSP): for Canadians with disabilities that is subject to additional grants and bonds from the government that grow tax-deferred until withdrawn.
- Pooled registered pension plan (PRPP): a large, pooled pension plan for retirement savings with lower administration costs.
- Tax-free savings account (TFSA): grants tax-free status to any contributions, income earned, or withdrawals associated with the account; there is a limit on the amount of contributions you can add each year; for example, in 2020 the TFSA limit is $6,000.
Tax-deferred accounts include the RRSP, RESP, RDSP, PRPP. When you first invest into tax-deferred accounts, you can reduce your taxable income by the amount you invest into the account. Funds in tax-deferred accounts are taxed when you withdraw from the account. The TFSA is a tax-sheltered account. When you contribute to your TFSA, your taxable income does not change, meaning that the amount you contribute cannot help you reduce your income tax. However, when you withdraw funds from the TFSA, you are not required to pay tax.
There are both advantages and disadvantages to holding capital property in registered accounts. The advantage is that you are not required to pay tax on capital gains for investments inside registered accounts. However, you will also not be able to use capital losses from investments in registered accounts to offset your capital gains tax.
Capital Gains Tax on Financial Instruments
If your realized capital gain was made from selling:
- Mutual fund trust units
- Public shares
- Shares of Canadian securities
- Shares of foreign corporations
You will have to report the capital gain to be taxed. In some cases, your tax can be deferred or deducted from your Lifetime Capital Gains Exemption if you purchased qualified shares of family farm corporations, fishing corporations, or qualified small business corporations.
Capital Gains on Dividends
Dividends do not count as capital gains. The tax on dividends can be calculated as the paid dividend times gross-up rate multiplied by the individual’s effective tax rate, less any federal and provincial dividend tax credits. Dividend tax can be calculated by inputting your dividends into the Canada Income Tax Calculator.
Capital Gains for Canadians Overseas
If you live outside of Canada, your capital gains tax will depend on your residency status as well as your country of residence. If you are still a Canadian resident, you will be subject to Canadian capital gains tax unless otherwise exempted by the principal residence tax exemption. If you are not a Canadian resident, then your capital gains tax will depend on your local taxes as well as the existence of any tax treaty with Canada. These are general guidelines, and to find out more information about your specific tax situation and residency status you should consult a tax lawyer specializing in international tax accounting.
Get More Information
For more information relating to the capital gains tax, please contact Canada Revenue Agency at 1-800-959-8281.
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