FHSA Guides: First Home Savings Account Rules, Limits and Withdrawals

The First Home Savings Account (FHSA) is a registered account for first-time home buyers: contributions are deductible like an RRSP, and a qualifying withdrawal for a first home is tax-free. For the full picture of how the account works, start with the FHSA guide. The pages below each answer one question in depth.

Start here

• FHSA guide: how the account works, from eligibility to reporting it on your tax return
• FHSA calculator to project a balance and the tax deduction
• Is an FHSA worth opening?, including when you are not sure you will buy

Contribution room and deductions

• FHSA contribution limit: the annual and lifetime limits, over-contributions and checking your room
• How FHSA carry-forward works, with worked examples by opening year
• The first-60-days rule and the FHSA: which year a contribution counts for and when to claim the deduction

Opening an account

• When to open an FHSA, the age limits, and whether it is too late
• Best FHSA accounts in Canada by provider type
• FHSA investment options: what the account can hold and how to match it to a buying timeline

Withdrawals and closing the account

• FHSA withdrawal rules: the conditions and steps for a tax-free qualifying withdrawal
• Qualifying home and first-time buyer rules: which properties count and who counts as a first-time buyer
• Withdrawing from an FHSA not for a home: the tax, the withholding and the room that comes back
• What happens to your FHSA if you never buy: the closing deadline and the RRSP transfer

Comparisons

• FHSA vs TFSA vs RRSP: which account to fund first
• FHSA vs the Home Buyers’ Plan, and using both

Special situations

• The FHSA for couples
• Opening an FHSA when your partner owns a home
• The FHSA for newcomers to Canada

Related guides elsewhere on the site

• The T4FHSA slip explained
• The RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan
• First-time home buyer programs in Canada