RRSP withdrawal tax calculator: the tax withheld vs the tax you really pay

How much tax will you pay on an RRSP withdrawal?

The tax on an RRSP withdrawal is your own marginal tax rate on the amount withdrawn, settled when you file the return for that year. What comes off at the bank counter is something else: a flat withholding rate set only by the size of the withdrawal. The two numbers are rarely equal, and the gap turns into a balance owing or a refund months later.

This RRSP withdrawal tax calculator works out both. It applies the CRA withholding bands (and Revenu Québec’s rate in Quebec) to each withdrawal request, then runs the full 2026 federal and provincial tax calculation on your income with and without the withdrawal. The difference is the real tax. From age 65 it also counts the smaller federal age amount and, if OAS is received, the OAS recovery tax. The results compare other withdrawal sizes, all 13 provinces and territories, and the effect of splitting the withdrawal into separate requests.

What are the RRSP withholding tax rates?

RRSP withholding tax rates are 10%, 20% or 30% for residents of Canada outside Quebec, chosen by the size of each withdrawal request. The rate applies to the whole request, not just the part above a threshold, and it does not depend on income. Quebec residents have a lower federal rate withheld plus Quebec income tax.

How to read this table: the rate is picked by the size of each withdrawal request and applies to the whole request. Quebec residents also have Quebec income tax withheld (see below). Non-residents have 25% withheld unless a tax treaty lowers it.

Size of the withdrawal	Withheld outside Quebec	Federal part in Quebec
Up to $5,000	10%	5%
Over $5,000, up to $15,000	20%	10%
Over $15,000	30%	15%

Source: Tax rates on withdrawals — Canada.ca; Tax rates on withdrawals — Canada.ca (non-residents); Registered Retirement Savings Plans and Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRSPs/RRIFs) — Q&A for plan administrators, section 7 Withholding tax on payments from a RRIF; Registered Retirement Savings Plans and Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRSPs/RRIFs) — Q&A for plan administrators (tax on the minimum); Registered Retirement Savings Plans and Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRSPs/RRIFs) — Q&A for plan administrators (instalments, A7.1); Receiving income from a RRIF — Canada.ca; Receiving income from a RRIF — Canada.ca (pension income amount); Guide T4040, RRSPs and Other Registered Plans for Retirement — Canada.ca; Setting up a RRIF — Canada.ca. In effect from August 1, 2014; checked September 29, 2026.

In Quebec, Revenu Québec requires the issuer to withhold Quebec income tax at a flat 14% on a single RRSP payment, on top of the federal part. Its own example: a $6,000 single payment has $840 of Quebec tax withheld. With the 10% federal part for that size, a Quebec resident has $1,440 withheld in total on $6,000.

The CRA is clear that this is a prepayment, not the final bill: the tax withheld may not be enough to cover the tax you owe at your tax bracket, so you may owe more when you file your return. The withdrawal is reported as income on line 12900 of the return and the tax withheld, shown in box 30 of the T4RSP slip, is claimed on line 43700.

How do you use this RRSP withdrawal tax calculator?

1. Enter the withdrawal amount. Use the gross amount requested from the RRSP, before any tax comes off.
2. Choose the type of withdrawal. Pick Home Buyers’ Plan or Lifelong Learning Plan only if the withdrawal is made under that plan; anything over the plan limit is treated as a regular withdrawal.
3. Pick your province or territory. Use where you live on December 31 of the year of the withdrawal.
4. Enter your other income for the same year. Salary, pension, CPP, OAS, EI or interest, before tax and not counting this withdrawal. Choose employment or other income, because employment income comes with CPP and EI credits.
5. Enter your age at the end of the year. From 65 the federal age amount is included.
6. Open “Splitting and OAS” if it applies. Try separate requests to see how withholding changes, and turn on OAS if it is received this year.

The four result cards show the tax withheld, the real tax, the amount owing or refunded at filing, and what is kept after all tax.

What does a worked example look like?

Take an Ontario employee earning $60,000 in 2026 who withdraws $20,000 from an RRSP in one request, age 45.

Here the 30% withheld comes close to the real cost, because the combined Ontario marginal rate at this income is 29.65%. That near-match is a coincidence of this income and this size of withdrawal, as the next table shows.

Why is the withholding tax often not enough?

Withholding tax is often not enough because the band rate ignores the rest of your income, while the real tax depends on it. Small withdrawals are hit hardest: a withdrawal of up to $5,000 has only 10% withheld even when the person’s marginal rate is triple that. The table below uses the same Ontario employee on $60,000, one request each.

Swipe to see all columns →

The pattern holds in every province: the smaller the withdrawal and the higher the other income, the bigger the shortfall. The opposite happens in a low-income year. Someone between jobs, on parental leave or newly retired can have more withheld than the withdrawal really costs and get the difference back as a refund. The calculator’s province table shows the same withdrawal in all 13 provinces and territories; for the $20,000 example above the real tax ranges from $5,500 in Nunavut to $7,390 in Nova Scotia, against the same $6,000 withheld.

How does age change the tax on an RRSP withdrawal?

From 65, an RRSP withdrawal can cost well above the bracket rates, because it raises net income and two income-tested amounts shrink. The federal age amount of up to $9,208 is reduced by 15% of net income above $46,432, and OAS recovery tax takes back 15% of net income above the threshold, set at $95,323 for the 2026 income year.

Take an Ontario retiree aged 67 with $85,000 of pension and OAS income who withdraws $30,000 from an RRSP in one request.

The OAS recovery tax is worked out on net income before it is deducted, then deducted on the return, which is why the federal and Ontario lines apply to $27,048 of extra taxable income rather than the full withdrawal.

Those almost 10 extra points are invisible at the bank counter. The OAS clawback guide explains how the recovery tax is collected, and the RRIF calculator shows the minimum amounts that come out of a RRIF each year once an RRSP is converted. An RRSP has to mature by December 31 of the year you turn 71, so the timing of withdrawals before and after 65 is often the bigger lever.

Does splitting an RRSP withdrawal lower the tax?

Splitting an RRSP withdrawal into smaller separate requests lowers the tax withheld, never the tax owed. Four requests of $5,000 instead of one of $20,000 drop the withholding from $6,000 to $2,000, but all $20,000 is still income for the year. In the worked example, the amount owing at filing would jump from $80 to $4,080. CRA guidance for plan administrators rates one request paid in instalments on the total requested, and issuers apply their own rules to back-to-back requests.

What does change the real tax is timing across calendar years. Taking half in December and half in January puts each half on a different return, which helps when a withdrawal would otherwise push income into a higher bracket or past the OAS threshold. The calculator’s Decision Brief shows that two-year figure for your numbers.

Which RRSP withdrawals have no tax withheld?

Three kinds of RRSP withdrawals have no tax withheld. A Home Buyers’ Plan withdrawal of up to $60,000 for a qualifying first home is not income if it is repaid over 15 years; the Home Buyers’ Plan guide covers the conditions. A Lifelong Learning Plan withdrawal of up to $10,000 a calendar year (and $20,000 each time you participate) for full-time education works the same way. And a direct transfer to another RRSP or to a RRIF is not a withdrawal at all: no tax is withheld on amounts transferred directly to a RRIF or used to buy an annuity; you pay tax later on the payments you receive.

Choose the plan in the calculator to see the difference: within the limit, the withheld and real tax are both zero; above it, only the excess is taxed. A missed repayment under either plan is added to income for that year, so the tax is deferred, not cancelled.

How does the maths work?

The calculator follows the order of the return, in plain English:

1. Withholding. The withdrawal is divided by the number of separate requests. Each request’s size picks its band (up to $5,000; over $5,000 up to $15,000; over $15,000), and that band’s rate applies to the whole request. In Quebec the federal part is 5%, 10% or 15% and Quebec adds 14%.
2. Tax without the withdrawal. The same engine as the Canada income tax calculator works out 2026 federal and provincial tax on the other income, with CPP and EI for employment income.
3. Tax with the withdrawal. The withdrawal is added as ordinary income and the calculation runs again, including the Ontario surtax and health premium, basic personal amount phase-outs and the Quebec abatement where they apply.
4. Age effects from 65. The federal age amount is recalculated at both incomes, and OAS recovery tax is added if OAS is received.
5. Balance at filing. Real tax minus tax withheld: positive is owing, negative is a refund.

The combined marginal rate is measured, not looked up: the calculator taxes the first and last $100 of the withdrawal and reports the change as a rate, so premiums and phase-outs are included.

What are the most common mistakes with RRSP withdrawals?

• Treating the withholding as the tax. The 10%, 20% or 30% is a deposit toward the tax. Spending the whole net amount leaves nothing for the balance owing in April.
• Splitting requests to “save tax”. Smaller requests only move the tax from now to filing time.
• Forgetting the other income. The same withdrawal costs far more in a high-earning year than in a gap year, parental leave year or early retirement year.
• Ignoring age-related costs. From 65 the age amount and OAS recovery tax can add several points to the real rate.
• Assuming the room comes back. The CRA’s deduction limit formula has no term that adds a regular withdrawal back, unlike TFSA withdrawals. The RRSP contribution limit guide explains how room is built.
• Mixing up a withdrawal and a transfer. Moving money to a RRIF or another RRSP by direct transfer is not taxed at the time; cashing out and re-depositing is.

When should you talk to a professional?

A tax professional or a fee-only planner is worth consulting when the withdrawal is large, when it would push income past the OAS threshold, when a spousal RRSP is involved, when you have lived outside Canada during the year, or when you are planning withdrawals across several years before and after 65. The RRSP explained guide and the comparison of a TFSA vs RRSP cover the background. This calculator is an educational estimate, not tax advice; the T4RSP slip and your notice of assessment from the CRA are the final word.