RRSP deduction limit
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Your RRSP deduction limit is the amount you can deduct for contributions, not a promise that a particular contribution is right for you. The CRA calculates it from unused room, new room, and pension adjustments. The authoritative number is on your latest notice of assessment or in your CRA account.
New room for a year is generally the lesser of two amounts: 18% of earned income from the previous year, and the annual RRSP dollar limit. The pension adjustment on a T4, and a past-service pension adjustment, reduce room. A pension adjustment reversal can increase it. For 2026 the dollar limit is $33,810.
The CRA page that states the 18% formula still uses $32,490, the 2025 dollar limit, as its example. The 2026 cap is the one in the registered-plans limits table. The RRSP calculator uses $33,810.
Earned income is a defined list
Employment income is the common case. The legal definition also includes some other amounts and subtracts others. This site does not rebuild that definition. If your income is mostly self-employment, rental, or a mix, the 18% sketch can be off.
The first 60 days
Contributions made in the first 60 days of a calendar year can be deducted for the previous tax year, if you have room. This guide does not pin that deadline to a specific day in 2026. Check the CRA for the date that applies to the return you are filing.
Methodology
The 18% factor and the dollar limit are cited above. The calculator subtracts only the pension adjustment you type in. It does not read a notice of assessment.