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Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA)

Frequently Asked Questions on TFSA Return

A) Originals vs. amendments vs. cancellations

Caveat: The answers to the questions below are intended for general guidance and are by no means meant to be the exact course of action for every scenario.

Note: For the purposes of TFSA, an individual record is the equivalent to an information slip.

1. Can Tax Free Savings Account (TFSA) issuers manually adjust on paper, figures reported to the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) on previous individual records?

There is no manual process via paper method to amend a previous individual record. An amended individual record with the corrected amounts must be submitted electronically via Internet.

2. When amending a previous individual record, what data must be submitted?

When submitting an amended individual record, all the original data on the previous individual record that remains unchanged as well as the modified data must be submitted. In essence, you are sending us a new "snapshot" of what the original individual record should have contained.

3. When a previous individual record is rejected (original or amended) and the financial institution corrects the data and re-files it with the CRA, is it submitted as an original or as an amendment?

It is submitted as an amendment.

If an original or amended record has already been submitted to the CRA, and information on that record needs to be amended, then an amended version of that individual record must be sent to the CRA. Even if the CRA has advised you that an individual record has been rejected, we have retained it in our databases and are awaiting a corrected individual record. For TFSA, the original individual record is essentially the first one you submit for that particular reporting year. Anything after that is an amendment to the original. There cannot be two original records in the same reporting year.

Note: The only exception to this is if a mistake was made on the contract number; If so, a cancelled individual record must be submitted to cancel the original contract (with the incorrect contract number) and that would need to be followed by a new original with the correct contract number.

4. Where the TFSA issuer is not advised of the holder's date of death (DOD) until after December 31 or after the holder's individual record has been submitted to the CRA, does an amended record need to be filed for the previous year?

For example: A client passes away on December 1st 2009, but the TFSA issuer doesn't receive notification of the client's death until April 2010. At this point, the individual record for this individual was already filed in February 2010.

Yes, this would require an electronically amended individual record to be filed for the previous year.

General rule for amendments and cancels:

The only situation where you should use a cancel to change a previous individual record is if you need to modify the contract number or cancel the contract. There may be a couple different reasons for this, such as an incorrect contract number originally submitted, or where the CRA does not accept the arrangement as a valid TFSA. The contract number is a critical element being used to target and identify the individual record. If you were to send an amended individual record with an amended contract number, the CRA would not know which individual record needs to be amended.

Note: When cancelling an individual record, you must resend the identical record and only change the slip type code to "C".

For example:

For all other situations where you need to amend information provided on a previous individual record (except contract number), you must submit an amended individual record, whether amending an original or a previous amendment.

When submitting an amended individual record, you need to provide the CRA with a new "snapshot" of that previous individual record containing the original data and the modified data.

Note: If you are amending a record, you must change the slip type code to "A" and then change the data you are modifying.

For example:

Simplified example of an amendment
Note: These are examples with general guidelines and should not be used as the exact course of action for every amendment scenario.

Original individual record filed in 2010:

Reporting year: 2009
Holder's name: John Smith
Holder's SIN: 123456789
Contract number: ABCD-789
Contribution on January 1, 2009 = $1,500.00 (assuming the holder only made one contribution all year)
Withdrawals on October 30, 2009 = $250.00 (again, assuming only one withdrawal all year)
Fair market value (FMV) at December 31, 2009 = $1,250.00 (assuming no growth on the investment)

Let's now assume that in 2010, after the individual record was filed with the CRA, an error on the January 1 contribution was noticed. The contribution should have been $2,500.00 instead of $1,500.00. An amended individual record with just that amended data showing must not be submitted. The amended individual record must contain all the data from the original individual record, including the change to the contribution and the FMV.

Amended individual record submitted in 2010:

Reporting year: 2009
Holder's name: John Smith
Holder's SIN: 123456789
Contract number: ABCD-789
Contribution on January 1, 2009 = $2,500.00 (assuming they only made one contribution all year)
Withdrawals on October 30, 2009 = $250.00 (again, assuming only one withdrawal all year)
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,250.00 (assuming no growth on the investment)

B) Successor reporting and marriage breakdown

1. A successor holder may be designated by the original holder of the TFSA at the time of registration of the contract. How is this reported on the TFSA Annual Information Return?

Upon opening a TFSA account, an applicant may designate a successor holder and if one is designated, the TFSA issuer would capture/store this information in their database. Therefore, when the individual record is filed by the last day of February in the year following the year of death of the holder, the successor holder details to be reported include the name and social insurance number (SIN). Therefore, when the individual record is filed by the last day of February in the year following the year of death, under the name and social insurance number (SIN) of the successor holder, the name and the date of death of the original holder must also be included.

2. Where the TFSA issuer is not advised of the holder's date of death (DOD) until after December 31 or after the holder's individual record has submitted to the CRA, does an amended record needs to be filed for the previous year? What do we report on the amended record when no successor exists on the account? What do we report when a successor exists on the account?

For example: A client passes away on December 1st 2009, but the trusteed TFSA issuer doesn't receive notification of the client's death until April 2010. At this point, the individual record for this individual was already filed in February 2010.

If there is no successor holder, an amended individual record must be filed to indicate the date of death and FMV at death. If any contributions were made after the date of death, those contributions should be withdrawn from the account. Those contributions and withdrawals would not be reported on the amended individual record. However, all withdrawals (except the ones to remove the contributions after death) made from the date of death to the end of the exempt period, should be reported.

If it is a successor holder account, an amended individual record must be filed, for the year of death, to report all transactions for the entire year under the successor holder's name and SIN. The deceased's information would be reported and the field "Successor Holder Account:" would indicated "YES".

3. When a trusteed TFSA holder passes away, and no designated successor exists on the account, how are post-death gains to be treated?

For a trusteed TFSA, please refer to the following publication: RC4477 Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) Guide for Issuers 2009 now available on the Web site and the TFSA page for issuers.

4. Must the successor flag and the deceased holder information continue to be reported to CRA for as long as the TFSA remains open?

No, this information is not continuously required.

5. Can the successor holder also name a successor of their own when they assume the TFSA contract?

Yes, if it is permitted by the terms of the contract. A May 1, 2009 Comfort Letter from the Department of Finance recommends that the definition of "holder" be amended to allow a survivor who is a successor holder to designate a subsequent successor holder. Issuers can amend their TFSA specimens in order to enable them to administer contracts under that specimen in accordance with the comfort letter.

Issuers can also continue to administer arrangements in accordance with the existing legislation. Under existing legislation, if certain conditions are met, the spouse or common-law partner of the holder can become the successor holder at the date of the holder's death. Only one successor holder can be named per contract. If the successor holder wants to name a new spouse as successor holder, they must first transfer the funds to a TFSA under which they are the original holder, and then designate their new spouse as the successor holder.

6. When does the field "FMV at date of death" apply?

This field is only required to be completed upon death of the last holder. If a successor assumes the account, no FMV at date of death is required to be reported. When the successor, as the last holder, dies, then that field will need to be completed.

7. Can the successor (who has no other TFSA account) then start making contributions to this deceased account contract?

Yes, for the purposes of determining the existence of any excess amounts in the deceased's TFSA and computing the successor holder's unused contribution room, the CRA will update contributions and withdrawals up to the date of death under the deceased's SIN and the contributions and withdrawals after the date of death under the successor's SIN.

8. Where the successor has another TFSA account, the transfer of the deceased's assets does not impact the contribution room of the successor holder. How should this be reported to the CRA?

Qualifying transfers between the same holder's TFSAs do not have to be reported to the CRA. It would not be reported as a contribution or a withdrawal. However, even if a qualifying transfer is made, an individual record under the successor holder's SIN must be filed.

Please see the simplified example following question #12.

9. Since the CRA requests the reporting under the initial TFSA account holder's contract, will this be reflected in CRA's records as under the original TFSA account holder even though it has been taken over by the successor account holder?

No. If the successor holder information is provided, along with the date of the original holder's death and a "Yes" flag indicating a succession, CRA will be able to recognize the change in ownership.

Please see the simplified example following question #12.

10. If the successor holder information has already been provided on a previous individual record, does the CRA expect the successor holder information to be reported every subsequent year? Which of the following is acceptable?

Successor holder account field is flagged as "N" and no deceased holder information is provided
or
Successor holder account field is flagged as "Y" and deceased holder information is provided.

It is not required and either way is acceptable.

11. In a case where a successor holder opts to close an inherited account by transferring the balance to another existing TFSA, will CRA accept two separate records; one to reflect the death of the original holder of the account and one to reflect the account being under a new holder? Will the successor's account record contain all of the deceased's information or will CRA only accept the filing of a single record whereby the same contract contains just the successor information?

Where a successor to the account has been designated the succession takes place automatically, the moment the original holder dies, and does not depend on the processing of registration documents. Consequently, when the original holder dies, the individual record for that account will be filed under the successor's name and SIN. If the funds are subsequently transferred to another account under which the successor is the holder, it would be considered a qualifying transfer between two accounts, each of which is under the successor's name and SIN. Once this transfer is complete, then the empty account can be closed. While these transactions can be carried out in a short period of time they are still considered as three clearly separate transactions: (1) the succession, (2) the transfer of funds, and (3) the closing of the account.

12. Marriage breakdown

a) For savings and term deposits, are transfers already at FMV since it would be the net amount transferred to the spouse? For example, a withdrawal of $2,550.00 is made from one TFSA contract and the same amount is deposited into another TFSA contract at the full market value of the transaction.

Yes.

b) Are the name and SIN of the former spouse/common law partner mandatory if a marriage breakdown amount is reported?

When a FMV is entered, the name and SIN of the former spouse should be provided.

c) If multiple transactions are made on one or more dates to transfer monies due to a marriage breakdown, do these get consolidated into one amount/transaction on the record?

No, they would be reported as separate transactions, even if they occurred on different times of the same day.

For example:
If the court order were to require that 50% of the balance of a TFSA be transferred to a former spouse, due to a marriage breakdown, this transfer can be effected in different ways. For example, if the account is simply cash then the holder can request the issuer to directly transfer ½ of the balance directly to their former spouse's TFSA, but if the account is tied up in various investments, there could be multiple transfers on different days; first, to transfer the available cash, and then at a later time when some investments have been converted to cash, subsequent transfer to complete the 50% requirement.

Simplified example relative to questions #8 and #9 above

In this example, both partners have their own TFSAs. One of the partners dies:

John Doe Contract 1234
Jane Doe Contract 5678

John Doe passes away on July 15, 2009
Jane Doe is the successor holder

The CRA would expect to see the following in the individual records for the 2009 reporting year (filed by last day of February 2010):

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Contract = 1234
Successor holder account = Y
Name of deceased holder = John Doe
SIN of deceased holder = 999 999 999
Date of death = July 15, 2009

It would also expect to see a second record for Jane's original TFSA:

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Contract = 5678
Successor holder = N

C) Transfers between institutions

1. Where a TFSA holder has died and a request is received to "transfer the TFSA" to another institution, can a new TFSA be opened by the receiving institution so that a transfer between TFSAs can be made and, if so, does CRA require the sending institution to report a "withdrawal" and the receiving institution a "contribution"?

After the holder's death, if the trustee transfers the funds out of a TFSA it would be transferred into a regular holding account for distribution purposes to beneficiaries. Only the TFSA holder can authorize a transaction involving his or her account, even a transfer between accounts. If the holder is deceased and there is no successor to take over the account, no further transactions can be made on that account. Consequently, the trustee would not be able to transfer the funds from one TFSA of the deceased into another TFSA of the deceased, even to consolidate two TFSAs. After the holder's death, a TFSA cannot be opened in the deceased's name or on its behalf and no transfer is allowed between TFSAs of the deceased.

After the date of death, any amounts paid out or transferred from the deceased TFSA to another account would be reported as a regular withdrawal under the deceased's SIN. The financial institution receiving the funds would have to deposit those funds into a regular holding account.

2. If an individual client wishes to transfer funds from a TFSA at one institution to a TFSA at another institution, how is this reported?

Direct transfers between individual's TFSAs do not get reported - either as contributions or withdrawals.

D) Non-residents

1. Where an individual, who is a Canadian resident, opens an account and subsequently becomes a non-resident before the end of the year how is that change of residency reported?

Only one individual record would be filed and it would be reporting the last known address. CRA would use the date of the transaction as well as the known date of departure to determine if the contribution was made while a resident.

2. Do TFSA issuers need to flag contributions made to a TFSA while the holder was a non-resident? Does this need to be identified on the XML file?

No, this is not required.

If you are aware that the client is a non-resident, you should advise them that they should not contribute to their TFSA while a non-resident as they may be subject to tax.

E) File submission, transmission and reporting

1. Does the CRA require each on-line submission to have one XML file and can one XML file have only one return?

A submission can have more than one XML file and an XML file can contain multiple TFSA returns.

Is a TFSA ID required for each transaction? i.e.

Policy 111111 shows a contribution of $1,000 on Jan. 1
Policy 222222 shows a contribution of $2,000 on Jan. 1
Policy 333333 shows a contribution of $3,000 on Jan. 1

For the January 1 entry on our return, are only the contribution amounts to be reported or does the CRA want the contract numbers associated with those transactions included as well?

The structure of the XML schema allows for reporting the TFSA ID in one field on the TFSA return summary. This ID is associated to each individual record submitted in that return.

Therefore, if a TFSA issuer has three TFSA IDs, a separate return would be required for each TFSA ID.

2. If an account has no activity over the course of a full calendar year, does an individual record for that account need to be filed to the CRA?

Once a TFSA is opened, an annual record must be filed, regardless of activity on the account.

3. For accounts with no activity, should a zero value be provided instead of a blank transaction?

If there are no transactions, there is no need to report any, so zero value does not have to be reported. For FMV, it must be reported even if it has a zero value, the instance that someone opens a TFSA and doesn't deposit any funds in it.

4. Since records with no values in "Mandatory" fields will be rejected, would it be acceptable to the CRA if values for "Required" fields (e.g. address field) were not available?

Any required information should be provided except the ones indicated "if any". For example, if any contributions were made during the year, the contributions field would be updated; if none were made, then it would not be updated.

5. Archived

6. Does a third party provider require an RZ account to electronically file TFSA returns on behalf of their client?

An RZ account is not required to use the Internet file transfer service to file TFSA returns via the Internet to the CRA. To use the Internet File Transfer service, all that is required is a CRA Business Number and a Web Access Code. However, the TFSA return(s) must contain the RZ account of the TFSA issuer. For further details on the Internet File Transfer service, please visit Filing Information Returns Electronically

7. Does CRA require that a separate RZ sub account (four digit number following the RZ account, 123456789RZ0001) be set up for each registered TFSA plan, meaning there would be a one to one relationship between the RZ business number/sub account and the TFSA identification number? Can multiple TFSA plans registered by a given issuer be reported under the same RZ sub account number?

CRA does not require a one to one relationship between the TFSA ID and the RZ program account. Multiple returns with different TFSA IDs can be reported under the same RZ program account. However, if it is an operational requirement for your organization, you may register a separate RZ account for each TFSA ID.

If you were to only open only one RZ account and had 5 TFSA IDs, you would have to file five separate TFSA returns. A TFSA return can only have one RZ account and one TFSA ID.

Example 1:
ABC company is the TFSA issuer:

ABC company = TFSA specimen plan holder with TFSA ID #11111111, has five authorized agents, whom ABC company has authorized to sell TFSAs under TFSA ID #11111111. The five agents are:

Jane Doe, financial planner #1;
Jane Doe, financial planner #2;
Jane Doe, financial planner #3;
Jane Doe, financial planner #4;
Jane Doe, financial planner #5

If these are five independent businesses from ABC company, then each could be responsible for filing its own TFSA return. Therefore, each would need its own RZ account, unless ABC company expects these agents to report back to them so it could consolidate and report on their behalf.

Example 2:
If ABC company has 50 branches across Canada that are all selling TFSAs separately under the same TFSA ID, the following could be true, meaning each one would have its own RZ account.

TFSA ID # 11111111
Branch #1: 123456789rz0001
Branch #2 987654321rz0001
........ and so forth
Branch #50: 456789123rz0001

or

If they are not separate and they all have to report to one central office, all these branches may report their data to a central office, which in turn would have one TFSA ID and only one RZ account and file a single return on behalf of all these offices.

8. Can a TFSA return be filed on CD, DVD or any other electronic media?

No. TFSA returns can only be submitted electronically via the Internet using one of the three following options:

1. Internet file transfer service. For details on this service, please visit Filing Information Returns Electronically

2. My Business Account. For details on this service, please visit My Business Account

3. Represent a client. For details on this service, please visit Represent a Client

9. Are there still plans to perform tests with financial institutions for electronic transmission of XML files?

At this time, it is not possible as our systems are still under development and testing.

If you would like to test the format and layout of your XML file to ensure that it complies with our XML specifications, you may do so by using a parser. Please visit Filing Information Returns Electronically for further details.

10. Will the CRA accept compressed files via the Internet file transfer service?

Yes. However, a compressed file must only contain one XML file. If it contains more, we will reject the submission.

F) XML file preparation (XML specifications)

1. Does the CRA require the total of all individual transactions on the record?

Yes, we require separate totals for contributions, withdrawals, etc.

2. When we file amendments, does the filer need to provide both return summary level information and individual record information?

Yes, both must be provided.

3. What secure electronic means are to be used when sending the file to the CRA?

TFSA returns can only be submitted electronically via the Internet using one of the three following options:

1. Internet file transfer service. For details on this service, please visit Filing Information Returns Electronically

2. My Business Account. For details on this service, please visit My Business Account

3. Represent a client. For details on this service, please visit Represent a Client

4. For the T619 - Electronic Media Transmittal:
Submission reference identification: What format or structure does the CRA require? For example, should it be a different number for a different year? Any sequence? Total number of summary records: How is this number determined?

Submission reference identification
This is really up to the transmitter's discretion as the CRA does not have a standard format or structure. It is for the transmitter's benefit in the event the CRA had to provide them with a reference (for instance, we may need to contact them if we had problems opening an XML file).

Total number of summary records: How is this number determined?

Total number of summary records
Example: If you were to submit an XML file which had five TFSA returns (each TFSA return consists of one summary and all individual records), then the total number of summaries would be five. Only one T619 is needed with each submission, regardless of the number of TFSA returns in that submission.

5. Is there only one record per TFSA contract? For example, the one record could contain regular contributions and withdrawals, marriage breakdown transactions, successor or survivor information, etc.

Yes. If a person opened two TFSA accounts, you would have to submit two separate individual records per reporting year. You can have only one individual record per TFSA contract or account number per year.

6. What do we do if the file exceeds the 150 MB bandwidth of CRA's Internet file Transfer service?

If you were to exceed the bandwidth, you would have two options:

Option #1
You will need to create more than one XML file and create separate returns. For example: if you had a total of 100,000 individual records in one return, which exceeded the 150 MB limit, you could split it up as follows: return #1 would have 75,000 records and the summary would reflect a total of 75,000 records. Return #2 would have 25,000 records and the summary would reflect that as well.

Option #2
You can send your files in a compressed format. The CRA will accept compressed files.

G) Additional questions

1. How should account consolidations be reported?

Example
Mr. Smith opens two accounts on January 15, 2009: Account #123 with a contribution of $4,000 and Account #456 with a contribution of $1,000. He then consolidates Account #123 into Account #456 on July 15, 2009.

The consolidation of the two accounts should be reported as follows:

Account 123
Contribution: January 15, 2009: $4,000.00
FMV as at December 31, 2009: $0.0

Account 456
Contribution: January 15, 2009: $1,000.00
FMV as at December 31, 2009: $5,040.00

Note:
The record for account #123 would indicate:

The record for Account #456 would indicate:

2. If a filer reports that a TFSA was closed within the reporting year, where would the FMV of the account be reported? Is it reported in the "FMV at year-end" field or on the date the account was closed?

It should be at December 31, so if the account was closed in September, the FMV at December 31 would be 0. You would not report the FMV just before account closure. If you close an account, the FMV would be 0 at the time it is closed as the account should no longer have any funds in it.

Simplified examples

Example #1

Scenario 1
A TFSA holder dies in November of year 2009 and the financial institution that holds the Trusteed TFSA account does not find out about the death until May of year 2010.

Note: The assumption is that there are no transactions in year 2009 and only a transfer out to close the account in May of year 2010. There is no successor on the account.

The 2009 individual record will not indicate that the TFSA holder has passed away because at the time of the filing, this information was not known. When the 2010 individual record for the TFSA holder is filed, it will indicate that the TFSA holder passed away in November of 2009. Since all the relevant information has been provided, does this meet the CRA's filing requirements or is an amended individual record required for year 2009 to indicate the death?

An amended individual record for year 2009 indicating the date of death and FMV at time of death and any previous information that was on the original record must be sent to CRA. An Individual Record for the reporting year 2010 would also be required to indicate the withdrawal (transfer out).

Scenario 2
The same as scenario 1 but there is a successor on the account. Once again, there are no financial transactions in 2009. Is an amended 2009 individual record required or should the information be provided in the 2010 individual record?

An amended individual record needs to be submitted for 2009 to report the name and SIN for the successor holder. In addition, you would report the deceased information for the 2009 individual record in the field "Successor Holder Account:": "Yes".

Scenario 3
The same as scenario 2, but this time there are automatic contributions from the original holder and his wife's (the successor) joint account, and there are year 2009 contributions both before and after the date of death. Again, does the record for year 2009 need to be amended or should the information be provided in the year 2010 record?

An amended individual record needs to be submitted for 2009 to report the name and SIN for the successor holder. In addition, you would report the deceased information for the 2009 individual record in the field "Successor Holder Account:": "Yes".

Example 1 a)

In this example, each spouse has a TFSA.
John Doe Contract 1234
Jane Doe Contract 5678

John passes away on July 15, 2009.
Jane is the successor holder.

Note: we have added artificial figures for the transactions for illustration purposes.

For the 2009 individual records:

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Contract = 1234
Successor holder account = Y
Name of deceased holder = John Doe
SIN of deceased holder = 999 999 999
Date of death = July 15, 2009
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $5,040

Then a second record for Jane's original TFSA:
Name of TFSA holder= Jane Doe
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Contract = 5678
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $5,060

No individual record for John Doe

Example 1 b)

In this example, each spouse has a TFSA.
John Doe Contract 1234 (spouse named as successor)
John Doe Contract 9999 (no successor)
Jane Doe Contract 5678

John passes away on July 15, 2010.
Jane is the successor holder of the first account only.
The estate is not settled at the end of 2010; it is settled in 2011 and the deceased's account is closed on February 10, 2011.

Note: all accounts were opened in 2009

Note: we have added artificial figures for the transactions for illustration purposes.

Year 1

Name of TFSA holder = John Doe
Contract = 1234
John's SIN: 999 999 999
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
Contribution January 2, 2009 = $3,000
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $3,200

Name of TFSA holder = John Doe
Contract = 9999
John's SIN: 999 999 999
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y Contribution January 2, 2009 = $2,000
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,050

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Contract = 5678
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
Contribution January 2, 2009 = $5,000
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $5,200

Year 2

Name of TFSA holder = John Doe
Contract = 9999
John's SIN: 999 999 999
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
Contribution January 5, 2010 = $5,000
Date of death = July 15, 2010
FMV at death = $7,500
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $7,400
Account closed = N

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Contract = 1234
Successor holder account = Y
Name of deceased holder = John Doe
SIN of deceased holder = 999 999 999
Date of death = July 15, 2010
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $3,700

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Contract = 5678
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,900

Year 3

Name of TFSA holder = John Doe
Contract = 9999
John's SIN: 999 999 999
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
Withdrawal February 10, 2011 = $7,900
Date of death and FMV at death = YYYY-MM-DD $7,500 (could be blank or repeat the same amount as in year 2, either way is good)
FMV at December 31, 2011 = $0.00
Account closed = Y
Date closed = February 10, 2011

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Contract = 1234
Successor holder account = Y (If Y, must provide the deceased information. If N, must leave the deceased information blank)
Name of deceased holder = John Doe
SIN of deceased holder = 999 999 999
Date of death = July 15, 2010
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $3,900

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Doe
Contract = 5678
Jane's SIN: 000 000 000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $6,200

Example #2

John Pitt has a TFSA account # 456123 and dies September 15, 2009.
Jane Pitt has no TFSA account and is the successor on John Pitt's TFSA #456123.

Note: we have added artificial figures for the transactions for illustration purposes.

Individual record for Jane for 2009:

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN: 111 111 111
Contract = 456123
Contribution March 15, 2009 = $1,000
Contribution April 10, 2009 = $2,000
Withdrawal June 12, 2009 = $500
Successor holder account = Y
Name of deceased holder = John Pitt
SIN of deceased holder = 888 888 888
Date of death = September 15, 2009
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,600 (assuming an increase in value from June 12 to December 31)

When you have a successor holder account, you must always file an individual record under the successor holder in the year of death, regardless of when the succession is settled. Only one individual record is filed the entire year in the year of death and it is under Jane's SIN.

If Jane is the successor holder of John's account, file the individual record under Jane's name and report the successor information: the deceased's name, SIN and date of death. Do not report the FMV at death.

Example 2 a)

In this example, each spouse has a TFSA.

John Pitt
Contract 456123
He made a March 15 contribution of $1,000, an April 10 contribution of $2,000 and a June 12 withdrawal of $500.

Jane Pitt
Contract 987654
She made only one contribution in the amount of $5,000 when she opened her TFSA on March 15, 2009.
FMV on December 31, 2009 = $5,400

John passes away on September 15, 2009. FMV at death = $2,550 and FMV on December 31, 2009 = $2,600 Jane is the successor holder of John's account 456123.

Note: we have added artificial figures for the transactions for illustration purposes.

Do not file any individual record for John Pitt for the 2009 individual records.

Individual records for Jane for 2009:

1st record
Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN: 111 111 111
Contract = 456123
Contribution March 15, 2009 = $1,000
Contribution April 10, 2209 = $2,000
Withdrawal June 12, 2009 = $500
Successor holder account = Y
Name of deceased holder = John Pitt
SIN of deceased holder = 888 888 888
Date of death = September 15, 2009
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,600

2nd record
Then a second record for Jane's original TFSA:
Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN: 111 111 111
Contract = 987654
Contribution March 15, 2009 = $5,000
Successor holder account = N
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $5,400

Example 2 b)

In this example, John has two TFSAs, both of which were opened in 2009. He made a contribution of $2,500 on February 15, 2009 into each TFSA.

John Pitt
Contract 456123 (Jane named as successor) FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,600
On March 15, 2010, he made a contribution of $1,000, on April 10, 2010 a contribution of $2,000, on June 12, 2010 a withdrawal of $500
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,200

John Pitt
Contract 258765 (no successor)
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,300
He made a contribution of $2,000 on March 15, 2010
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,600

Jane Pitt
Contract 987654
She made only one contribution in the amount of $5,000 when she opened her TFSA on March 15, 2009
FMV on December 31, 2009 = $5,400 and FMV on December 31, 2010 = $5,700

John passed away on September 15, 2010. FMV at death for account 456123 = $5,100 and FMV at death of account 258765 = $4,400
Jane is the successor holder of the first account only.
You are notified of John's death in June 2011 and the deceased's account 258765 is closed on June 10, 2011

Note: we have added artificial figures for the transactions and some of the FMVs for illustration purposes.

Year 2009
Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 258765
Contribution February 15, 2009 = $2,500
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,300

Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 456123
Contribution February 15, 2009 = $2,500
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $2,600

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN
Contract = 987654
Contribution March 15, 2009 = $5 000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = Y
FMV at December 31, 2009 = $5,400

Year 2010 At the time of filing in February 2011, you were not aware of John's death so you would have filed:

Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 258765
Contribution March 15, 2010 = $2,000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,600
Account closed = N

Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 456123
Contribution March 15, 2010 = $1,000
Contribution April 10, 2010 = $2,000
Withdrawal June 12, 2010 = $500
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,200
Account closed = N

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN
Contract = 987654
Successor holder account = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,700

In June 2011 when you are notified of John's death, you would be required to file amended individual records for John and Jane:

Amendment for year 2010

Amendment:
Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 258765
Contribution March 15, 2010 = $2,000
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at death = $4,400
Date of death = September 15, 2010
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,600
Account closed = N

Amendment:
Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN
Contract = 456123
Contribution March 15, 2010 = $1,000
Contribution April 10, 2010 = $2,000
Withdrawal June 12, 2010 = $500
Successor holder = Y
Deceased name = John Pitt
John's SIN
Date of death = September 15, 2010
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2010 = $5,200
Account closed = N

Year 2011
Name of TFSA holder = John Pitt
John's SIN
Contract = 258765
Withdrawal June 10, 2011 = $4,400
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
Date of death = September 15, 2010 FMV at death = $4,000 (may be blank or enter the same amount as in year 2010)
FMV at December 31, 2011 = $0.00
Account closed = Y
Date closed = June 10, 2011

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN
Contract = 456123
Successor holder account = Y
(may be N; if so, do not provide deceased information)
Name of deceased holder = John Pitt
(may be blank if you answered N; if you answered Yes, enter the same information as in year 2010)
SIN of deceased holder (John) = 999 999 998
(may be blank if you answered No; if you answered yes, enter the same information as in year 2010)
Date of death = September 15, 2010
(may be blank if you answered No; if you answered yes, enter the same information as in year 2010)
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31, 2011 = $5,600

Name of TFSA holder = Jane Pitt
Jane's SIN
Contract = 987654
Successor holder = N
New account this year = N
FMV at December 31,2010 = $6,200

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