CPP Contribution Rates 2026: Maximum CPP, CPP2 and EI Contributions

How the maximums are worked out

CPP1: ($74,600 − $3,500) × 5.95% = $71,100 × 5.95% = $4,230.45.

CPP2: ($85,000 − $74,600) × 4.00% = $10,400 × 4.00% = $416.00.

The basic exemption comes off CPP1; CPP2 is worked out on the earnings between the two ceilings, and you pay none if you earn less than the first. Self-employed people pay both the employee and the employer share of CPP contributions on their net business income (11.90% above the basic exemption up to the first earnings ceiling, plus 8% CPP2 between the first and second ceilings), worked out on Schedule 8 and paid with the income tax return. A non-refundable tax credit is claimed on half of the base contributions, and the other half, the first additional contributions and all CPP2 contributions are deducted from income. CPP on self-employment income has the details.

The maximum is prorated in the year an employee turns 18 or 70, elects to stop contributing, is considered disabled under the CPP, or dies.

Who contributes

Who has to contribute:

• You are over 18.
• You work in Canada outside Quebec (Quebec workers contribute to the QPP).
• You earn more than the basic exemption, $3,500 a year.
• You are not considered disabled under the CPP or the QPP.
• Contributions stop when you turn 70, even if you keep working.
• From 65 to 70, someone receiving a CPP or QPP retirement pension can elect to stop (employees with Form CPT30, self-employed people on Schedule 8).

If you work while on a CPP retirement pension, contributions are mandatory until 65. Contributions made while on the pension can increase your retirement income through the post-retirement benefit.

More than one employer: overpayments

Each employer deducts until you reach the maximum in your employment with that employer, and a new employer starts without counting what a previous one took. So two jobs in a year can mean paying more than the maximum.

The excess comes back when you file. Schedule 8 or Form RC381 works out the overpayment for line 44800, and the CRA refunds it or uses it to reduce your balance owing. A refund request has to be made within four years of the end of the year of the overpayment, or 10 years for an employee notified after September 1, 2010 of a decision on a disability pension. Line 44800 doesn’t apply to residents of Quebec on December 31, who claim on their Revenu Québec return. The employer doesn’t get its share back.

The opposite can also happen: if your T4 slips from more than one employer add up to less than the required amount, you may be able to make more contributions on your return. If an employer isn’t deducting at all, see my employer is not paying CPP or EI.

CPP rates and maximums by year

The self-employed maximums are double the employee figures. CPP2’s maximum more than doubled in 2025, from $188 to $396, as the second ceiling went from about 7% above the first to about 14%. The CRA’s table goes back to 1966, and your own record is on your statement of contributions.

CPP enhancement and CPP2

The CPP enhancement gives today’s workers higher benefits in return for a small increase in what they contribute. It came in two steps.

• First additional contribution, 2019 to 2023: the employee rate rose gradually from 4.95% to 5.95%, made up of the 4.95% base and 1% first additional.
• Second additional contribution (CPP2), from 2024: 4% each for employees and employers on earnings between the first and second ceilings.

Your T4 slip shows base and first additional contributions in box 16 and CPP2 in box 16A.

How the contributions are taxed

Self-employed people claim half of their base contributions as a credit on line 31000, and deduct the other half with their first additional and CPP2 contributions on line 22200.

What the enhancement adds to your pension

Service Canada says the pension goes from replacing a quarter (25%) of average work earnings to a third (33.33%) of covered earnings after 2019, and that the maximum rises by more than 50% for people who make enhanced contributions for 40 years. The CRA says those near the end of their working life will see a small increase. The CPP calculator estimates your own pension, and the CPP hub has the rest of the plan.