Understanding The Tax Slips from Your Investment Accounts

As we approach the 2023 tax season in Canada, we often get questions about what is taxable and what isn’t, and when you can expect to receive various types of tax slips.

Like most income earned in Canada, most investment income and capital gains on investments are taxable. The tax payable on investments varies by the type of investment and the type of account the investment is held in. This article provides a high-level summary of the more common tax slips, income tax reporting requirements, and some planning tips. Please consult your accountant or tax specialist for information specific to your needs.

Common Tax Slips for Investment Accounts

Registered Plans

Tax Slip	Description	Target Mailing Date
RRSP Contribution Receipts (March 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023)	Shows personal and spousal contributions made to an RRSP	Late January 2024
RRSP Contribution Receipts (January 1, 2024 to February 29, 2024)	Shows personal and spousal contributions made to an RRSP	Late March 2024
First Home Savings Account Statement (T4FHSA)	Shows contributions made to an FHSA in 2023	End of February 2024
T4RSP	RRSP withdrawal	Mid – February 2024
T4RIF	RRIF or LIF withdrawal	Mid – February 2024
T4A	RESP withdrawal	Mid – February 2024
Note: TFSAs are not taxable thus no tax slips are issued

Non-Registered Accounts

Tax Slip	Description	Target Mailing Date
T5	Shows interest and dividends earned on holdings during the past year	End of February 2024
T3	Shows income allocated during the past year from Trust Units	End of March 2024
T5013	Shows income or losses reportable during the past year from Limited Partnership Units	End of March 2024
T5008	Shows redemption proceeds for investments or sold to assist with calculating capital gains/losses during the past year	End of February 2024

Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs)

We can describe RRSPs as being both tax-sheltered and tax-deferred. You can deduct your RRSP contributions from your earned income each year until the year that you turn 71 (or if your spouse is younger than you, the year they turn 71 if you are contributing to a spousal RRSP). The money earned on your RRSP investments is not taxed while it stays in the plan. RRSPs do not generate any tax slips related to annual investment earnings, rather slips are issued for any contributions and withdrawals. You will receive an RRSP Contribution Receipt for any contributions made in the prior year’s contribution period, allowing the full amount to be deducted from your taxable income up to your available deduction limit. For contributions made in the first 60 days of the following year, you will receive a separate RRSP Contribution Receipt for each contribution. Any withdrawals are fully taxed as income. You will receive a T4RSP for the exact amount withdrawn from an RRSP. If you do not contribute to or make a withdrawal from an RRSP during the year you will not receive a slip.

Registered Retirement Income Funds (RRIFs)

A RRIF is essentially a continuation of an RRSP as in most cases you just keep the same investments you had in your RRSP and simply transfer them. The difference is you may not make any new tax-deductible contributions to a RRIF, and you must receive at least a minimum amount from your RRIF beginning the year after you open it. Like RRSPs, RRIFs are tax-sheltered and tax-deferred. While you do not pay tax on the annual investment earnings in your RRIF, the full amount of any RRIF withdrawals is reported as taxable income on a T4RIF. Once you convert your RRSP to an RRIF, you can expect to receive an annual T4RIF.

Tax Free Savings Accounts (TFSAs)

TFSAs started in 2009 and provide Canadians with a variety of financial planning and income tax benefits. The important thing to remember about TFSAs is that you will not receive a tax slip for this account. However, you should be careful not to overcontribute as that can result in expensive penalties. It doesn’t matter if you contribute, withdraw, earn 15% or lose 20%, the investment earnings (or losses) in your TFSA are not taxable.

First Home Savings Accounts (FHSAs)

New in 2023, The FHSA is a new type of registered account that allows first-time home buyers to save to buy or build a qualifying first home tax free. The FHSA allows eligible individuals to deduct contributions on your income tax return, similar to an RRSP. The income earned on any investments in the account isn’t subject to tax, and neither are qualifying withdrawals. There are annual contribution limits to be aware of.

Non-Registered Accounts

Sometimes referred to as an Open or a Cash account, this is a regular investment account. It doesn’t have any special income tax deferral benefits. Unlike RRSPs, RRIFs, and TFSAs, Cash accounts can be held in joint names. This allows the taxable income to be split among the account owners generally according to the amount they have contributed to the account. There are a variety of tax slips generated by Cash accounts with the T5008, T5013, T3, and T5 being the most common.  The T5008 or “Statement of Securities Transactions” lists every sale or disposition of investments that occurred in the year. You use the T5008 to report the capital gains (or losses) triggered by those transactions, sometimes there will be an accompanying gain/loss report with a T5008. T5008s are only issued if there are dispositions to report. T5013s are issued for limited partnership investments. T3s and T5s report income from various funds, pools, trusts, GICs, stocks and bonds. Mutual funds can generate T3s or T5s depending on their structure. The Alitis pools (other than the Alitis Private Real Estate Limited Partnership) generate T3s. “Unrealized” growth in the pools such as an increase in the value of investments that have not been sold, is not taxable, thus only part of the total return of your investment account is reported on these slips. Tax slips for non-registered accounts do not report your investment return for the year, they only show the taxable portion of it. Because of the timing of transactions and your ownership in the pool during the year, it is possible to have income reported on a tax slip when there was a negative total return for the year.

Registered Education Savings Plans (RESPs)

RESPs are also tax-sheltered and tax-deferred. However, there is no deduction available for contributing to a RESP, so they do not have contribution receipts. A T4A is generated when withdrawals are made from the account. This tax slip reports the accumulated investment growth and the government grant money that is paid out in each withdrawal. Both the grants and the growth are taxable to the RESP beneficiary (the student). This generally works to the family’s advantage as their child, now a student in post-secondary school, is likely to be in a low to nil tax bracket when they make their withdrawals.

Additional Reading => What are alternative investments.