First Home Savings Account (FHSA)

The FHSA is a registered account introduced by the Canadian government in 2023 to help first-time homebuyers save for a down payment. It combines some of the best features of a TFSA and an RRSP: your contributions are tax-deductible (like an RRSP), and qualifying withdrawals to buy a home are completely tax-free (like a TFSA).

How it works

You can contribute up to $8,000 per year, with a lifetime maximum of $40,000. Unused contribution room carries forward, but only up to $8,000 per year. The account can stay open for up to 15 years. If you don’t end up buying a home, you can transfer the funds into your RRSP without affecting your RRSP contribution room.

You can hold the same types of investments inside an FHSA as you would in a TFSA or RRSP: stocks, ETFs, bonds, GICs, mutual funds.

Why it matters

If you’re a first-time homebuyer in Canada, this account gives you a tax break going in and a tax break coming out. That’s a combination no other registered account offers. Even if you’re not sure whether you’ll buy a home, it can be worth opening one early to start building contribution room. The sooner you start, the more time your investments have to grow before you need them.

To qualify, you must be a Canadian resident, at least 18 years old, and you can’t have owned a home in the current year or the previous four calendar years. For a full walkthrough, see our FHSA guide.

In Greenline

Greenline supports FHSA accounts alongside TFSAs, RRSPs, and all other Canadian account types.