# Obtain deduction info?



## CheckingIn (Apr 4, 2009)

Hi all, quick question on how the RRSP deductions work.

I have an accountant who does my taxes, but will be away until next week, so I've been trying to do some homework in the mean time.

Is there a way to view how much I can deduct (from my RRSP) off my income? I know I only deducted a partial amount (not all) from 2009. Would I contact the CRA for this info?

I have my "2010 RRSP Deduction Limit Statement", and I thought this data can be found here, but no luck. I thought it would be "Unused RRSP deduction limit at the end of 2009", but that value next to it doesn't seem right.

Any info would be great.


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## lost_investor (Feb 13, 2011)

On my "2010 RRSP Deduction Limit Statement" there's a line that says "Your RRSP deduction limit for 2010" and marked with a (A). You don't have that line?

You can also find out your deduction limit online if you're registered with that cra my account thing.


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## Rico (Jan 27, 2011)

A quick call to CRA will get you the info.

The statement you got should be correct unless there was an adjustment to your taxes. What doesn't seem right about the number?

Also, this link might be helpful:

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/tpcs/rrsp-reer/cntrbtng/lmts-eng.html


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## CheckingIn (Apr 4, 2009)

lost_investor said:


> On my "2010 RRSP Deduction Limit Statement" there's a line that says "Your RRSP deduction limit for 2010" and marked with a (A). You don't have that line?
> 
> You can also find out your deduction limit online if you're registered with that cra my account thing.





Rico said:


> A quick call to CRA will get you the info.
> 
> The statement you got should be correct unless there was an adjustment to your taxes. What doesn't seem right about the number?
> 
> ...




Thanks lost_investor & Rico for the response.

I do have that Line A on the statement, but the thing is that the value shown ($20K) is way more than what I have total in my RRSP. I don't even have $20K in my RRSP.

I thought that Line A (titled: "Your RRSP deduction limit for 2010") illustrates the max amount I can deduct from my income, and *not* how much I *can* deduct. I was hoping for the actual amount I can deduct.

And yep, I'll contact CRA for this info if I can't figure this out


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## iherald (Apr 18, 2009)

CheckingIn said:


> Thanks lost_investor & Rico for the response.
> 
> I do have that Line A on the statement, but the thing is that the value shown ($20K) is way more than what I have total in my RRSP. I don't even have $20K in my RRSP.
> 
> ...


I may be confused (I usually am) but you can deduct as whatever you put into your RRSP's. So, it looks like you have room to put $20k into your RRSP. So, if you actually put $20,000 into your RRSP, you can deduct $20,000 from your income. If you put $500 into your RRSP by the end of Feb, you can deduct $500, etc.

You don't get to deduct money just because you have an RRSP, you can get a tax refund for the amount you put in (which you've already paid tax on from your employer).

Assuming you've put adding to your RRSP every month or whatever, you usually get a form from the company you have your RRSP with. TD Waterhouse (for me) sends me a form saying how much I put in last year and how much I've put in since the beginning of 2011. I add those two up, and that's how much I can deduct. The CRA would have no idea how much I added to my RRSP this year, I declare that on my taxes and provide proof.


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## CheckingIn (Apr 4, 2009)

iherald said:


> I may be confused (I usually am) but you can deduct as whatever you put into your RRSP's. So, it looks like you have room to put $20k into your RRSP. So, if you actually put $20,000 into your RRSP, you can deduct $20,000 from your income. If you put $500 into your RRSP by the end of Feb, you can deduct $500, etc.
> 
> You don't get to deduct money just because you have an RRSP, you can get a tax refund for the amount you put in (which you've already paid tax on from your employer).
> 
> Assuming you've put adding to your RRSP every month or whatever, you usually get a form from the company you have your RRSP with. TD Waterhouse (for me) sends me a form saying how much I put in last year and how much I've put in since the beginning of 2011. I add those two up, and that's how much I can deduct. The CRA would have no idea how much I added to my RRSP this year, I declare that on my taxes and provide proof.


Hi iherald, thanks for taking the time to help!

Yep, I understand that I can deduct whatever I want. It's just that I've made deductions last year using *some* of my RRSP contributions (but not all). So what I want to know is: how much I still have leftover from last year to deduct (from my income) this year.

So for example, let's say last year I had $20K in my RRSP. I deducted only $5K from my 2009 income. So that will leave me with $15K this year (2010) to deduct. The $15K is what I'm looking for. I should probably know this myself, but I don't know where I can verify it.


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## iherald (Apr 18, 2009)

CheckingIn said:


> Hi iherald, thanks for taking the time to help!
> 
> Yep, I understand that I can deduct whatever I want. It's just that I've made deductions last year using *some* of my RRSP contributions (but not all). So what I want to know is: how much I still have leftover from last year to deduct (from my income) this year.
> 
> So for example, let's say last year I had $20K in my RRSP. I deducted only $5K from my 2009 income. So that will leave me with $15K this year (2010) to deduct. The $15K is what I'm looking for. I should probably know this myself, but I don't know where I can verify it.


Perfect! I'd think either the CRA or if you have a copy of your tax return from last year you should see how much was deducted.


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## OhGreatGuru (May 24, 2009)

CheckingIn said:


> Hi iherald, thanks for taking the time to help!
> 
> Yep, I understand that I can deduct whatever I want. It's just that I've made deductions last year using *some* of my RRSP contributions (but not all). So what I want to know is: how much I still have leftover from last year to deduct (from my income) this year.
> 
> So for example, let's say last year I had $20K in my RRSP. I deducted only $5K from my 2009 income. So that will leave me with $15K this year (2010) to deduct. The $15K is what I'm looking for. I should probably know this myself, but I don't know where I can verify it.


We are still speaking at cross-purposes here. How much you "had" in your RRSP is irrelevant. That is a cumulative amount, including earnings, and is not subject to limits. The limits are on how much you can contribute in any one year. Contribution room is carried over from year to year if it is "unused" (you made no contribution). Also "undeducted" contributions are carried over (you made a contribution, reported it, but chose not to deduct it for that tax year. So the question is, how much did you contribute in 2009; and did you deduct the entire amount, or carrry some of it forward as an undeducted contribution? In parts of your posts I got the impression you were talking about the latter; but now I am in total confusion.

Maybe you should just wait for your accountant to explain it to you in plain english.


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## CheckingIn (Apr 4, 2009)

iherald said:


> Perfect! I'd think either the CRA or if you have a copy of your tax return from last year you should see how much was deducted.


Yeah that's pretty much the route I'll be taking (contact CRA).

Thanks (again)! 




OhGreatGuru said:


> We are still speaking at cross-purposes here. How much you "had" in your RRSP is irrelevant. That is a cumulative amount, including earnings, and is not subject to limits. The limits are on how much you can contribute in any one year. Contribution room is carried over from year to year if it is "unused" (you made no contribution). Also "undeducted" contributions are carried over (you made a contribution, reported it, but chose not to deduct it for that tax year. So the question is, how much did you contribute in 2009; and did you deduct the entire amount, or carrry some of it forward as an undeducted contribution? In parts of your posts I got the impression you were talking about the latter; but now I am in total confusion.
> 
> Maybe you should just wait for your accountant to explain it to you in plain english.


Yeah, I apologize if my posts were a bit confusing, I found it tough (for me) to put out in words what my intentions were. But yes, I was talking about the latter. I carried forward some of the amount, just want to find out how much the "carry-forward" amount is.


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