First Home Savings Account Tax-free high-interest savings for your first home.

Coming soon: a new registered plan designed for first-time homebuyers.

Join our wait list

What are the benefits of an FHSA?

The FHSA combines the advantages of both the TFSA and RRSP:

Contributions reduce your taxable income (like an RRSP)
Interest earned is tax-free (like a TFSA)
Qualifying withdrawals are tax-free¹ and don’t need to be repaid (like a TFSA)

Who’s eligible for an FHSA?

You can open an FHSA if you:

Are a Canadian resident
Are aged 18 - 71
Are a first-time homebuyer²

What are the contribution guidelines?

You can contribute up to $8,000 annually—with a lifetime contribution limit of $40,000. Any unused contribution room can carry forward to the following year up to a maximum of $8,000.

For example, if you contribute $5,000 to your FHSA in 2023, you’ll be allowed to contribute $11,000 in 2024.

Any contributions over the $8,000 annual limit (except for any unused portions from the previous year) will be penalized 1% on the highest excess amount in the month, for each month that the excess remains in your account.

circle graph of annual contribution limit of $8,000 and lifetime contribution limit of $40,000

Ready for your own FHSA? Join our wait list.

If you’d like to be informed as soon as our FHSA becomes available, sign up below.

First name

Last name

Would you like to be the first to know when EQ Bank launches the FHSA?

Yes, please.

By providing the above information, you agree to the terms of our Privacy Agreement.

How does an FHSA compare to a TFSA or RRSP?

An FHSA gives you the best of both tax-advantaged worlds—here’s how:

FHSA	TFSA	RRSP
Contributions are tax-deductible
Withdrawals are tax-free¹
Withdrawals don’t need to be paid back		³

Common questions answered

When will the FHSA become available?

Can I open multiple FHSAs?

Can I transfer funds between an RRSP and an FHSA? What about transferring between FHSAs?

You can transfer funds in either direction between your RRSP and your FHSA without any tax consequences, as long as they are transferred directly between the financial institutions of the plans involved, and as long as the funds you add to your FHSA don’t exceed your unused FHSA contribution room. Withdrawals from an RRSP are subject to taxes.

You can also transfer funds between FHSAs without tax consequences, but it also must be a direct transfer.

How does the FHSA differ from the Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP)?

Do I have to use the funds by a specific date?

What if I don’t end up purchasing a home?

Can I hold investments in an FHSA?

What are the spousal contribution rules?

Footnotes

Footnote 1: To make a “qualifying withdrawal”, you must be a first-time homebuyer who is a resident of Canada, have a written agreement to buy or build a qualifying home in Canada before October 1 of the year following the year of withdrawal, and intend to occupy the qualifying home as your principal place of residence within one year of buying or building it. You must not have acquired the qualifying home more than 30 days before making the withdrawal.

You will be considered to be a "first-time home buyer” for the purposes of a qualifying withdrawal if, at any time in the calendar year before the withdrawal (except the 30 days immediately before the withdrawal) or at any time in the preceding four calendar years, you did not live in a qualifying home (or what would be a qualifying home if located in Canada) as your principal place of residence that you owned or jointly owned.

A "qualifying home" is defined as a housing unit located in Canada. This includes existing homes and those being constructed, such as single-family homes, semi-detached homes, townhouses, mobile homes, condominium units, and apartments in duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, or apartment buildings, but does not include a share that only provides you with a right to tenancy in the housing unit.

^{Return to footnote 1 referrer}
Footnote 2: You will be considered to be a first-time home buyer for the purposes of opening an FHSA if, at any time in the calendar year before the account is opened or at any time in the preceding four calendar years, you did not live in a qualifying home (or what would be a qualifying home if located in Canada) as your principal place of residence that either (i) you owned or jointly owned; or (ii) your spouse or common-law partner (at the time the account is opened) owned or jointly owned.

^{Return to footnote 2 referrer}
Footnote 3: The year you turn 71, your RRSP converts into a Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF) that you can withdraw from. Withdrawals will be taxed as income and do not need to be repaid.

^{Return to footnote 3 referrer}