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The last day on which tax practitioners can electronically file clients’ returns for tax years 2017 to 2024, as well as amended T1 returns for 2021 to 2024 using ReFILE services, before an annual month-long pause, is January 30, 2026. But there are important reasons for late T1 filers to add tax p.... More »
RRSPs: Your Essential Questions Answered + MORE Jan 18th
At this time of year, it seems like the financial world is awash with information on what is a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP), the benefits of having one, and how to start one. But there are still a few planning points that Canadians either aren’t aware of or don’t know how to fully .... More »
Downloadable RRIF withdrawal rates chart 2024 May 7th
The minimum age at which you can convert a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) to a registered retirement income fund (RRIF) varies by province: it’s 50 in some, and 55 in others. But starting the year after conversion, you must begin to make minimum withdrawals from your RRIF. The table bel.... More »
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Tax changes you need to know for 2017
– moneysense.ca
MONTREAL — Canadians will ring in the new year with a number of tax changes that will affect the bottom line of federal and provincial governments. Here’s a look at some of them:
Nationally:
The federal government is ending four child tax credits this year: arts, fitness, education and textbooks.
It is also cancelling income splitting for families, a tax reduction measure that allowed someone to transfer up to $50,000 of income to a spouse with lower income if they had a child under 18 years of age. The tax credit for income splitting was capped at $2,000.
Offsetting those changes are the Canada Child Benefit and changes to Employment Insurance benefits introduced in 2016.
Nationally:
The federal government is ending four child tax credits this year: arts, fitness, education and textbooks.
It is also cancelling income splitting for families, a tax reduction measure that allowed someone to transfer up to $50,000 of income to a spouse with lower income if they had a child under 18 years of age. The tax credit for income splitting was capped at $2,000.
Offsetting those changes are the Canada Child Benefit and changes to Employment Insurance benefits introduced in 2016.
How the federal budget will affect income tax
“High income earners in most provinces will pay more but for the majority of Canadians, these two changes will mean more money in their pockets,” Canadian Taxpayers Federation federal director Aaron Wudrick said Wednesday in a news release.
Several other changes at the federal level will affect life insurance, business owners selling their companies and some mutual funds…
Do I really need life insurance?
– moneysense.ca
Q: I am a single 70-year-old woman with a reasonable mortgage of about $115,000 on my home. I have no family and no dependents. On my limited budget I find life insurance on my mortgage is a cost I would rather do without. Do I need life insurance? And if so, then what for?
—Katerina, Halifax
A: You raise a good point Katerina. In general, life insurance is most necessary when you have dependents who would be impacted financially by your death. Typically, life insurance is used as a way to pay off a large debt, such as a mortgage on a home that you want to leave to your heirs. In many of these cases, a term life insurance policy is often the most inexpensive choice and the full face value of the policy pays out on the policy holder’s death. (This is also a great option for many families who often get mortgage life insurance instead, which is more expensive than term life and the payout declines as the face value of the mortgage declines.) Other popular reasons for having life insurance include: Income replacement for dependents; to pay off debt like a mortgage or a line of credit; to create an emergency fund; to cover final expenses incurred upon your death; for estate planning reasons or to leave money to a favourite charity…


