TFSA withdrawal and re-contribution confusion | Tax Free Savings Accounts | Discussion forum

If your contribution room as of January 1 2016 was $25K then, yes, you still have $19K you can put in this year.
And, yes, any amounts withdrawn in a year get added to your contribution room for next year.

littlepie said

First of all, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to all the participants on this website/forum. Y'all have been incredibly helpful in guiding my poor financial sense and where to put my first chunk of savings.

I have a pretty basic question regarding TFSA - as this is my first time having saved a significant amount in TFSA.
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I've saved up $27,000 in my TFSA account (from the beginning of time to March 2016), all of which I withdrew recently.

Now, my 2016 contribution room is $25,000. And so far this year, I've contributed $6000, leaving a $19,000 contribution limit for 2016.

Question 1: I understand that I can't recontribute the $27,000 that has been withdrawn, but can I still contribute the remaining limit of $19,000? Will this be over-contribution?
Question 2: If I contributed the $25,000 maximum in 2016, can I then withdraw all of it in December? Will that increase my 2017 contribution room?

Thanks so much in advance!

What month and year did you withdraw the $27,000?

Rick, Bill did not say that, kanaka did. Bill says don't look at MyAccount unless you only want to see activity up to Dec 31 2014. Institutions have until Feb 29 2016 to report your 2015 TFSA activity so it should be there too but you never know with government. It will certainly not show any 2016 activity.

Litlepies info is a little vaque.

LP says:
I've saved up $27,000 in my TFSA account (from the beginning of time to March 2016), all of which I withdrew recently.

I ask:
What was the date of withdrawal. All taken out of the TFSA and placed into a non registered account or cash to LP.

LP says:
Now, my 2016 contribution room is $25,000. And so far this year, I've contributed $6000, leaving a $19,000 contribution limit for 2016.

I ask:
Is your $25,000 contribution based on your records or CRA? And what is the status of the other $2,000?

LP says:
Question 1: I understand that I can't recontribute the $27,000 that has been withdrawn, but can I still contribute the remaining limit of $19,000? Will this be over-contribution?

I say:
$19,000 possibly yes and if you have your records I would check and verify "my account" as it should FULLY reflect all of your TFSA transaction up and till the end of 2105. If my account does not match your records you have some work to do. You may have to get the FI to resubmit your withdrawal and in that case it WILL update on my account.

LP says:
Question 2: If I contributed the $25,000 maximum in 2016, can I then withdraw all of it in December? Will that increase my 2017 contribution room?

I say:
Yes and yes. But only if.........