Can I Use an RESP for a School or University Outside Canada?

You are able to use an RESP to help fund education for eligible schools both in Canada and abroad. It is important that both the school and program are eligible and meet the outlined requirements. This page works to provide those rules as well as support that must be provided. The account basics are in the complete RESP guide, and every related guide is listed in the RESP hub.

The rules for institutions outside Canada

For study outside Canada, Educational Assistance Payments (EAPs) can be paid when the school has courses at the post-secondary level and the course meets either of these tests:

So a full-time student at a foreign university meets the same minimum length of weeks as a full-time student in Canada. A part-time course at a foreign university, or any course at a foreign college or other post-secondary institution, has to run at least 13 consecutive weeks. The rules for programs in Canada, including the hours tests, are explained in using an RESP for trade school or college.

The institution itself has to be post-secondary. Accredited universities in the US, UK, Europe, Australia and elsewhere generally are; language schools, gap-year programs and short courses usually aren’t.

Online courses from a school outside Canada

A student doesn’t have to move abroad. The CRA’s RESP guide, RC4092, counts students “enrolled in distance education courses, such as correspondence courses, provided by such institutions” as enrolled in a qualifying program, so an online course from a foreign university or college can qualify. The school still has to be post-secondary and meet the tests above.

What doesn’t qualify

• A gap year of travel or work abroad, since the student isn’t enrolled anywhere.
• Language schools, bootcamps and short courses that aren’t post-secondary, or that are too short.

Contributions can still be refunded to the subscriber tax-free; only EAPs need enrolment in a program that qualifies. Withdrawing contributions while no beneficiary is eligible for an EAP can mean repaying part of the CESG, since the grant was paid on those contributions.

If the student stops being a resident of Canada

Studying abroad doesn’t by itself make a student a non-resident for tax purposes. The CRA says you may be considered a factual resident of Canada if you are “teaching or attending school in another country”, as long as you keep significant residential ties in Canada. The CRA’s page on factual residents temporarily outside Canada explains what that status means for the student’s tax return.

Residency matters for an RESP in three ways:

• Grants: RC4092 says “a beneficiary must be a resident of Canada in order to receive the CESG or CLB as part of the EAP.” A student who has become a non-resident can’t receive the grant portion of an EAP.
• Tax: the Income Tax Act (section 212) taxes RESP payments that count as income, such as EAPs, at 25% when they’re paid to a non-resident. The provider withholds it, and a tax treaty between Canada and the student’s country can lower the rate. A refund of contributions isn’t income, so it isn’t part of this tax.
• Contributions: new contributions can only be made while the beneficiary is a resident of Canada with a SIN given to the provider, or by a transfer from another RESP.

A family planning a long stay abroad may want to ask the provider how it handles a non-resident beneficiary before the student leaves.

Documents providers ask for

Documents in another language may need a translation. Asking the provider before the student leaves avoids delays.

Withdrawal limits and tax

The usual EAP limits apply: for full-time study, at most $8,000 for the first 13 consecutive weeks of enrolment, then no limit on the amount the EAP can pay. Families paying higher foreign tuition should carefully plan out how their funds will be used. EAPs can still be paid for up to 6 months after the student’s enrolment ends, if they would have qualified had they been paid just before it ended, which helps when a final term abroad ends before the money is requested. How to time EAPs across the years of study is covered in our RESP withdrawal guide.

EAPs are taxed as the student’s income, as they would be for a Canadian school. A student who is still a resident of Canada for tax purposes while studying abroad reports them on their Canadian return. Foreign universities certify tuition for the Canadian tuition tax credit on Form TL11A, Tuition and Enrolment Certificate - University Outside Canada, not the T2202 Canadian schools issue; our tuition tax credit guide explains the credit.

Common questions

Who decides whether a school outside Canada qualifies?

The RESP provider, since it pays the EAP. RC4092 says “the promoter can only pay EAPs to or for a student if one of the following situations applies”, and the provider checks the enrolment documents against those conditions. Sending the provider the school’s name, the program and its dates before the student enrols shows early whether it will pay.

Can an RESP pay for a community college in the United States?

Yes, if the college has courses at the post-secondary level. A community college isn’t a university, so the course has to run at least 13 consecutive weeks, whether the student is full-time or part-time.

Can an RESP pay for a language course abroad?

Only if the school has courses at the post-secondary level and the course meets the length test: at least 13 consecutive weeks, or at least 3 weeks of full-time study at a university. A stand-alone language school usually doesn’t offer post-secondary courses, so checking with the provider before paying the fees avoids a surprise.