What the calculator shows
Enter employment income, province, planned deductible contribution and the RRSP deduction room from your Notice of Assessment or CRA account. This RRSP tax refund estimate compares the same 2026 basic employee tax calculation before and after the deduction; it reports tax savings, not a guaranteed cash refund.
Calculation method
Estimated tax savings equal federal plus provincial tax before the RRSP deduction minus tax after it. CPP/QPP, EI and QPIP do not fall because an RRSP deduction does not change employment earnings for those contributions.
Inputs to confirm
Available room is individual. It generally starts from unused room plus 18% of prior-year earned income up to the annual limit, adjusted for pension amounts. Use CRA’s figure and distinguish a contribution from the amount deducted this year.
Worked example
For CA$90,000 of Ontario employment income, CA$10,000 of available RRSP deduction room and a CA$5,000 deduction, estimated federal and provincial income tax falls from CA$17,033.56 to CA$15,551.06. The estimated tax reduction is CA$1,482.50, the after-tax cost is CA$3,517.50 and CA$5,000 of entered room remains.
Input variations
| Scenario | Deduction | Estimated tax reduction | After-tax cost | Room remaining |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ontario, CA$90,000 income | CA$5,000 | CA$1,482.50 | CA$3,517.50 | CA$5,000 |
| Ontario, same income | CA$10,000 | CA$2,965.00 | CA$7,035.00 | CA$0 |
| Quebec, CA$90,000 income | CA$5,000 | CA$1,805.87 | CA$3,194.13 | CA$5,000 |
The saving changes with province and taxable-income band. It is the modeled reduction in federal and provincial income tax, not a guaranteed refund.
Differences from official documents
The estimate treats the entered amount as a deduction against employment income in one year. It does not establish contribution room, optimize a deduction over several years, calculate a spousal RRSP, Home Buyers’ Plan or Lifelong Learning Plan, or include other income, deductions, credits and benefits. Payroll contributions and the tax return can also fall in different calendar or contribution periods.
Thresholds and limits
The published 2026 RRSP dollar limit is CA$33,810, but personal deduction room is the amount shown by CRA after carry-forward, earned-income limits and pension adjustments. This calculator refuses an entered deduction above the room supplied by the user. An RRSP deduction lowers modeled income tax but does not reduce CPP or QPP, EI or QPIP on employment earnings.
Documents to check
Check the latest Notice of Assessment or CRA My Account for deduction room, RRSP receipts for contributions, T4 slips for employment and pension adjustments, and Schedule 7 of the T1 return for contributions and unused amounts. Distinguish the amount contributed from the amount claimed as a deduction this year.
RRSP tax refund estimate vs tax savings
Contribution room, the deduction claimed and the cash refund are different figures. An RRSP contribution can be made in one period and deducted in another; this calculator compares tax before and after the deduction entered without manufacturing personal room or promising a refund.
Use personal room, not the national dollar limit
The annual RRSP dollar limit is only one part of CRA’s room calculation. Pension adjustments, unused room and prior activity make the amount personal, so the entered room must come from the Notice of Assessment or CRA account.
Savings follow the marginal slices actually crossed
The deduction lowers taxable income, and the calculator reruns federal and provincial tax. The saving can span more than one bracket and does not change CPP, QPP, EI or QPIP based on employment earnings.
Tax saving is not necessarily the cash refund
A filed refund also depends on tax already withheld, instalments, other income, deductions and credits. Treat the result as the tax difference between two otherwise identical modeled scenarios.