RRSP Withdrawal Tax Calculator (Canada, 2026)

See what a cash RRSP withdrawal really costs in 2026. The calculator shows what the bank withholds, the cash you get, the tax the withdrawal actually adds to your return in your province, and whether you get money back or owe more in April. It also handles Home Buyers' Plan and Lifelong Learning Plan withdrawals.

$
$
Salary, pension, EI or CPP, before this withdrawal. Sets the tax bracket the withdrawal lands in
From 65 the age amount credit lowers the tax
Type of withdrawal
Split into smaller requests
Ask for it in requests of $5,000 or less?
Cash you receive now$8,000.00$2,000 is withheld at 20% on a single request of $10,000. The tax the withdrawal really adds to your 2026 return is about $2,965, so in April you owe about $965 more. That is 29.6% of the withdrawal, at Ontario rates with $60,000 of other income.
Cash now $8,000Withheld $2,000
Withheld now vs what you really owe
Withdrawal$10,000.00
Withheld by the bank (20%)− $2,000.00
Cash in hand$8,000.00
Tax the withdrawal really adds for 2026$2,965.00
Extra owing in April$965.00
Marginal rate on your next dollar after this29.6%
To have $10,000 in hand after withholding, ask for$12,500.00
Before you withdraw. The room you use is gone for good. Unlike a TFSA, an RRSP withdrawal does not come back as room next year. Withholding is only a down payment on the tax: the full amount is added to your income for 2026. Once an RRSP becomes a RRIF, the required minimum withdrawal has no withholding at all, and only the amount above the minimum is withheld.
Show the math

Withholding uses the CRA lump-sum rates on each request: 10% up to $5,000, 20% up to $15,000, 30% above $15,000. The true tax is the 2026 federal and Ontario tax on your other income plus the withdrawal, minus the tax on the other income alone, using the basic personal amount. Other income is treated as pension-style income (no CPP or EI on it). The refund or bill is the withholding minus that true tax. The "ask for" line finds the gross amount whose withholding leaves your amount in hand, using the rate for a request of that size.

How this calculator works

When you take cash out of an RRSP, two things happen. First, the bank keeps part of it and sends it to the CRA. That is withholding tax. The rate depends only on the size of the request, not on your income. Second, the whole withdrawal is added to your income for the year. When you file, it is taxed at your real rates, and the withholding is credited against that bill.

The calculator works out both. Withholding uses the CRA lump-sum table for your request. The tax the withdrawal really adds is the 2026 federal and provincial tax on your other income plus the withdrawal, minus the tax on your other income alone. The difference between the two is your refund or the extra you owe in April.

Two withdrawals skip all of this. A Home Buyers’ Plan withdrawal, up to $60,000 per person for a first home, and a Lifelong Learning Plan withdrawal for full-time study are not income and have no withholding, as long as you repay them on the CRA’s schedule.

Withholding rates on a single request

Request sizeOutside QuebecQuebec (federal + Quebec)
Up to $5,00010%5% + 14% = 19%
Up to $15,00020%10% + 14% = 24%
Above $15,00030%15% + 14% = 29%

The rate applies to the whole request, not in slices. A request one dollar over a line is withheld at the higher rate on every dollar.

Worked example: $10,000 in Ontario with $60,000 of other income

StepAmount
Withdrawal$10,000.00
Withheld at 20%− $2,000.00
Cash in hand$8,000.00
Tax the withdrawal really adds for 2026$2,965.00
Extra owing in April$965.00

The withdrawal is taxed at 29.6% in the end, because it lands on top of $60,000 of other income. The 20% withholding was not enough, so $965 more is due at filing. To have $10,000 in hand after withholding, the request would need to be $12,500.00.

Change one input and the picture changes. The same $10,000 withdrawn in a year with no other income adds $0 of tax, because it sits under the basic personal amount, so the whole $2,000 withheld comes back as a refund. A $30,000 request is withheld at 30% ($9,000) and really costs $9,045.00 on $60,000 of other income. In Quebec, $10,000 is withheld at 24% ($2,400) and the withdrawal really adds $3,611.75 at Quebec rates.

Assumptions

  • Other income is treated as pension-style income: no CPP or EI is worked out on it, and no employment credits. If it is salary, the tax the withdrawal adds is the same within a few dollars.
  • The basic personal amount and, from 65, the age amount are the only credits. Other credits and deductions you claim could change the refund or bill.
  • Withholding is on a single request. The split option shows each piece at the lowest rate.
  • The Home Buyers’ Plan and Lifelong Learning Plan results assume you qualify and will repay on schedule. A missed repayment is added to your income that year.
  • Non-residents of Canada are withheld at a different flat rate set by the tax treaty with their country, which this calculator does not model.
Common questions

Frequently asked questions

Can I take money out of my RRSP without paying tax?
Only through the Home Buyers' Plan for a first home or the Lifelong Learning Plan for full-time study, and both must be repaid over the years the CRA sets. Any other withdrawal is taxable income in the year you take it. The tax can be small if your other income that year is low, for example in a gap year or early retirement.
Is the withholding tax the final tax?
No. Withholding is a down payment. The whole withdrawal is added to your income for the year and taxed at your rates when you file. If your marginal rate is above the withholding rate you owe the difference in April, and if it is below you get a refund.
Do I get the contribution room back after a withdrawal?
No. RRSP room used by a contribution is gone for good, even if you withdraw the money later. This is the opposite of a TFSA, where a withdrawal comes back as room the next January. Home Buyers' Plan and Lifelong Learning Plan repayments do not use new room.
Does an RRSP withdrawal affect my benefits?
Yes. It counts as net income, so a large withdrawal can reduce the Canada Child Benefit, the GST/HST credit, the Guaranteed Income Supplement and trigger the OAS clawback for that year. Plan withdrawals around the income thresholds that matter to you.
Can I split a withdrawal into smaller amounts to pay less withholding?
Each separate request is withheld at the rate for its own size, so several small requests can be withheld at the lowest rate. That does not change the tax you owe, only when you pay it, and the CRA can treat a planned series as one payment. Many banks also charge a fee per withdrawal.
What happens at 71?
By the end of the year you turn 71 the RRSP must be closed, turned into a RRIF or used to buy an annuity. RRIF withdrawals have a required minimum each year that is paid with no withholding. Only amounts above the minimum are withheld.
Can I withdraw from a spousal RRSP?
The account holder can, but if the contributing spouse put money in during the year of the withdrawal or the two years before, that part is taxed in the contributor's hands, not the holder's. After three calendar years with no contributions the withdrawal is taxed to the holder.
Is an RRSP withdrawal taxed differently after 65?
The withholding is the same. At filing, the age amount credit lowers your tax from 65, which the calculator applies. RRSP withdrawals do not qualify for the pension income amount, but RRIF withdrawals do from 65, which is one reason people convert some RRSP money to a RRIF early.
Sources

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from one of these primary sources. Data last verified .

  1. CRA – Tax rates on withdrawals (RRSP/RRIF)
  2. Revenu Québec – Single Payments (source deductions)
  3. CRA – Transfer of a retiring allowance
  4. CRA – Special payments chart
  5. CRA – Calculate income tax deductions (Bonus or irregular payments / Lump-sum payments tabs)
  6. CRA – Federal non-refundable tax credits for newcomers and emigrants
  7. CRA – Before you contribute to a TFSA
  8. Vacation - Province of British Columbia
  9. Vacation pay | Alberta.ca
  10. Calculating and Paying Vacation Pay | Annual Vacation and Vacation Pay | Government of Saskatchewan
  11. Vacations and Vacation Pay - Employment Standards - Manitoba
  12. Your guide to the Employment Standards Act: Vacation (ontario.ca)
  13. Act respecting labour standards, CQLR c. N-1.1, ss. 67-69, 74 (LegisQuebec); CNESST 'Annual vacation'
  14. Employment Standards Act, S.N.B. c. E-7.2, ss. 24-25 (laws.gnb.ca); 'Paid public holidays, vacation time and pay' (gnb.ca)
  15. Vacation Time and Vacation Pay (novascotia.ca Labour Standards); Labour Standards Code R.S.N.S. 1989 c.246 s.32-34
  16. Employment Standards Act, Chapter 66 (Bill 76), 2024 - Legislative Assembly of PEI chapter PDF
  17. Labour Standards Act, R.S.N.L. 1990 c. L-2, ss. 8-9 (House of Assembly consolidated statutes); 'Your Rights at Work' booklet (gov.nl.ca)
  18. Learn about annual vacation pay and vacation time | Yukon.ca
  19. Employment Standards Act, SNWT 2007, c.13 (office consolidation), s.25(1)
  20. Labour and Employment Standards in Nunavut | Government of Nunavut
  21. Annual vacations and general holidays for employees working for federally regulated employers - Canada.ca
  22. Government of Canada – Current and forthcoming general minimum wage rates in Canada (modified 2026-09-17)
  23. CRA – Calculate your TFSA contribution room (modified 2026-02-20)
  24. CRA – MP, DB, RRSP, DPSP, ALDA, TFSA limits, YMPE and the YAMPE (TFSA dollar limit, 2009 to 2026)
  25. CRA – How contributions affect your RRSP deduction limit (modified 2026-01-29)
  26. CRA – RRSP contribution receipt: Contribution year (modified 2026-01-29)
  27. CRA – Participating in your FHSAs (modified 2026-02-02)
  28. CRA – Opening your FHSAs (modified 2026-02-10)
  29. CRA – Closing your FHSA (modified 2026-02-02)
  30. CRA – What is the Home Buyers' Plan (withdrawal limit $60,000; repayment relief for first withdrawals 2026 to 2028)
  31. CRA – Lifelong Learning Plan
  32. CRA T4127 Payroll Deductions Formulas, 123rd Edition, effective July 1, 2026 (Rev. 26/06)
  33. CRA – CPP contribution rates, maximums and exemptions
  34. CRA – Second additional CPP (CPP2) contribution rates and maximums
  35. ESDC – EI maternity and parental benefits: how much you could receive
  36. CRA – EI premium rates and maximums
  37. CRA – Indexation adjustment for personal income tax and benefit amounts
  38. Income Tax Act, R.S.C. 1985, c. 1 (5th Supp.), s. 150(1)(d) and s. 156.1(4): filing deadlines and balance-due day
  39. Canada Employment Insurance Commission – Canada Employment Insurance Commission confirms 2027 Employment Insurance premium rate (September 14, 2026)
  40. CRA, Canadian income tax rates for individuals, current and previous years
  41. Ontario Ministry of Finance, Personal income tax rates and credits (2026 dataset)
  42. Revenu Québec, TP-1015.F-V (2026-01) Formulas to Calculate Source Deductions and Contributions
  43. Retraite Québec, Québec Pension Plan Figures 2026
  44. Gouvernement du Québec (Québec.ca), Taux de cotisations au Régime québécois d'assurance parentale (RQAP) — page updated 19 March 2026
  45. Ministère des Finances du Québec, Parameters of the Personal Income Tax System for 2026 (November 2025)
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Data verified for tax year 2026: Updated By Nishant Malik, founder of GlassLayer