Making a withdrawal from the Tax-Free First Home Savings Account (FHSA)
A withdrawal is tax-free upon the purchase of a first home if all of the following conditions are met:
- The FHSA holder has a written agreement to buy or build a qualifying home before October 1 of the year following the year of withdrawal and intends to occupy the qualifying home as their principal place of residence within one year after buying or building it.
- The withdrawal is made in connection with the purchase of a first home.
- The withdrawal is made no later than 30 days after the acquisition of a qualifying home.
- The qualifying home is located in Canada.
To make the withdrawal, complete Form RC725, Request to Make a Qualifying Withdrawal from your FHSA, and send it to us using the “Transmission of Documents” function of Online Transactions or by mail.
Helpful information
- The FHSA holder is eligible for the tax-free withdrawal even if their spouse became an owner after the account was opened or if their new spouse is an owner.
- All of your FHSA accounts must be closed by December 31 of the year following the year of the first eligible withdrawal.
- Unlike the Home Buyers’ Plan, there is no requirement to repay the amount withdrawn and there is no minimum number of days that contributions must remain in the FHSA before the holder can use them for a qualifying withdrawal.
- A single withdrawal or a series of qualifying withdrawals can be made for the purchase of a first home. There is no limit to the number of withdrawals that can be made. If multiple withdrawals are made, a separate form must be completed for each withdrawal.
- All products held in the FHSA are redeemable at the time of eligible withdrawal. However, if a Stock Index Bond is withdrawn before its maturity date, only the amount corresponding to its acquisition value will be redeemed without interest.
