Make contributions and watch savings grow

On this page

• Different people can contribute to the plan
• How much you can contribute every year
• Lifetime contributions limits
• Money transferred from retirement and education plans

Different people can contribute to a plan

Anyone can contribute to the plan, as long as they have permission from the plan holder. Contact your financial organization to find out how to provide permission.

How much you can contribute every year

There is no annual limit on how much you can contribute to your plan until you reach the lifetime limit. Once you reach the lifetime contribution limit, you can no longer make contributions to your plan.

Depending on your income, contributions over a certain amount will not receive a matching grant nor a bond.

Every February up to and until you turn 49, you will receive a Statement of Entitlement in the mail. This statement details how much grant you could receive in that year and how much to contribute to get that grant.

Your Statement of Entitlement will include carry-forward amounts from previous DTC approved years that you are eligible for.

After December 31 of the year you turn 49, you can continue making contributions until December 31 of the year you turn 59. During this time, you will not receive a matching grant.

Lifetime contributions limits

The maximum you can ever put into the plan is $200,000. All contributions (including transfers and rollovers from other retirement or education savings plans) count towards that limit.

Grants, bonds, and interest earned on investments don't count towards the $200,000 limit.

Money transferred from retirement and education plans

You may be able to transfer amounts from registered retirement and education savings plans to an RDSP. This is called a rollover. To do a rollover, contact your financial organization.

There are two situations where you can transfer money into a plan:

Death of a caregiver parent or grandparent

Amounts from certain retirement plans may be transferred (tax-free) to an RDSP.

For this to be possible, these conditions must be met:

• the beneficiary is DTC-approved at the time of the rollover
• the beneficiary is a resident of Canada
• the beneficiary is 59 or less on December 31 of the year that the rollover is made
• the beneficiary has to be financially dependent on their parent or grandparent
• that parent or grandparent passes away
• that parent or grandparent had money in an eligible plan

  Eligible plans include:

  • Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)
  • Registered Retirement Savings Income Fund (RRIF)
  • Registered Pension Plan (RPP)
  • Pooled Registered Pension Plan (PRPP)
  • Specified Pension Plan (SPP)

For more information, go to the RDSP guide for financial organizations.

To roll over amounts from a retirement plan, contact your financial institution.

Transferring from a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP)

In certain situations, interest accumulated in an RESP can be transferred to an RDSP.

For this to be possible, these conditions must be met:

• the beneficiary is DTC-approved at the time of the rollover
• the beneficiary is a resident in Canada
• the beneficiary is 59 or less on December 31 of the year that the rollover is made
• you are in one of the eligible situations

  Eligible situations are:

  • the beneficiary has a severe and prolonged mental impairment that can reasonably be expected to prevent them from pursuing post-secondary education
  • the RESP account has existed for at least 10 years and all the beneficiaries are at least 21 years of age and are not pursuing post-secondary education
  • the RESP has been in existence for more than 35 years

For more information, go to the RDSP guide for financial organizations.

To roll over amounts from an RESP, contact your financial institution.

The maximum amount that can be transferred

The maximum you can ever put into the RDSP is $200,000, including transfers and rollovers from other savings plans.

For example, if there is already $50,000 in private contributions in an RDSP, the amount rolled over from a retirement or education plan cannot exceed $150,000.

The Government of Canada will not pay a matching grant on the money transferred from retirement or educations savings plans.