If you made RRSP contributions in January, February, or early March and cannot find the right place to enter them in your current tax return, you are not alone. Many Canadians are confused by how CRA treats these contributions and when they should be entered.
What Are First 60 Days RRSP Contributions
In Canada, RRSP contributions made during the first 60 days of the year belong to a special reporting period. For example, contributions made between January 1 and early March 2025 are generally tied to the previous tax year reporting cycle.
This does not mean you must claim the deduction right away. You can report the contribution in the prior year and choose to use the deduction later when it benefits you more.
Reporting vs Claiming an RRSP Deduction
One of the biggest misunderstandings is thinking that reporting and claiming are the same thing.
Reporting means telling CRA that you made the contribution.
Claiming means using that contribution to reduce your taxable income.
You can report an RRSP contribution in one year and claim the deduction in a future year.
Why You May Not See Jan to Feb Contributions in Your Current Return
If you are preparing your current tax return and do not see an option for January to February contributions, this is usually expected.
Those early year contributions are not treated as new contributions for the current return. Instead, they should already exist as unused RRSP contributions carried forward from a prior year.
If they were never reported before, they will not appear automatically.
How To Check If You Have Unused RRSP Contributions
Before entering anything in your current return, review your Notice of Assessment from the prior year.
This document shows:
Unused RRSP contributions available to deduct
Your RRSP deduction limit
Any amounts carried forward
Your Notice of Assessment is the best source to confirm what CRA already recognizes.
How To Enter Unused RRSP Contributions in CloudTax
If your January to March contributions were reported on a previous return but not deducted, enter them when you see the question:
Do you have unused RRSP contributions previously reported and available to deduct for this year?
This section is meant for amounts already acknowledged by CRA. Once entered, you can choose how much of the deduction to apply to your current tax year.
What To Do If You Never Reported the Contribution
If you made first 60 days RRSP contributions but never added them to your prior year tax return, you may need to update that previous filing first.
After the contribution is properly reported and reflected on your Notice of Assessment, you can include the unused amount in a future return.