Registered account

Registered accounts are the Canadian federal-government-approved wrappers that shield investments from certain taxes. The trade-off is a set of rules — how much can go in, when it can come out, what happens at the end — that non-registered accounts don't carry.

Each registered type has its own rules:

• TFSA — contributions are after-tax; growth and withdrawals are tax-free.
• RRSP — contributions reduce current-year taxable income; growth defers tax until withdrawal.
• FHSA — contributions are deductible like an RRSP; qualified first-home withdrawals are tax-free like a TFSA.
• RESP — contributions are after-tax; government grants supplement; withdrawals are taxed in the student-beneficiary's hands.
• RRIF — the RRSP's mandatory-withdrawal successor after age 71.
• Non-registered isn't a registered account — it's just the residual category when none of the above apply.

allocate tracks each holding's account type so the portfolio X-ray can show which gains are taxable now vs. later.