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Why Your Grocery Bill Keeps Rising — And What You Can Do About It

  It's not just gas. Canada's food inflation hit its highest pace in over a year in May 2026 — and produce prices are leading the charge. MoneySavings.ca  |  June 27, 2026 If your grocery receipts have been giving you sticker shock lately, you're not imagining things. Canada's official inflation figures, released by Statistics Canada on June 22, confirm that food prices are climbing faster than the overall cost of living — and have been for 16 consecutive months . If you're trying to figure out why your weekly shop costs so much more than it did a year ago, here's a plain-English breakdown — and some practical steps you can take to soften the blow. By the Numbers — May 2026 (Statistics Canada) Overall CPI: +3.2% year over year (highest since December 2023) Grocery prices (food purchased from stores): +4.3% year over year Fresh vegetables: +9.0% year over year Fresh fruit: +5.3% year over year Tomatoes: +45.2% year over year Lettuce: +10.7% year over year G...
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TFSA contribution limit increases to $6,500 for 2023


If you are looking for a way to save money without paying taxes on the income or growth, you may want to consider opening or adding to a tax-free savings account (TFSA). A TFSA is a registered account that allows you to earn tax-free income and capital gains on your investments. You can also withdraw money from your TFSA at any time, for any reason, without paying taxes or affecting your government benefits and credits.

The amount that you can contribute to your TFSA each year is limited by your TFSA contribution room. This is the maximum amount that you can deposit to your TFSA without paying a penalty tax of 1% per month on the excess amount. Your TFSA contribution room is based on your age, your residency status, and the annual TFSA dollar limit set by the government.

For 2023, the annual TFSA dollar limit has increased to $6,500, up from $6,000 in 2022. This is the second year in a row that the limit has risen, following a period of four years when it remained at $5,500. The annual TFSA dollar limit is indexed to inflation and rounded to the nearest $500. The increase reflects the higher cost of living and the need for Canadians to save more for their future needs.

If you have never contributed to a TFSA before, or if you have withdrawn money from your TFSA in the past, you may have unused TFSA contribution room that you can carry forward to future years. The cumulative TFSA contribution room for 2023 is $81,500, assuming that you were 18 years or older in 2009, when the TFSA was introduced, and that you have been a resident of Canada for tax purposes ever since. You can find out your exact TFSA contribution room by checking your latest notice of assessment from the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), logging into your My Account on the CRA website, or calling the CRA’s Tax Information Phone Service (TIPS).

A TFSA can be a great tool for saving for various goals, such as retirement, education, home purchase, travel, or emergency fund. You can choose from a variety of investment options for your TFSA, such as cash, mutual funds, stocks, bonds, GICs, and ETFs. However, you should be aware of the rules and restrictions that apply to TFSA investments, such as the prohibition of non-qualified and prohibited investments, and the tax consequences of holding foreign funds or earning an advantage within your TFSA.

To learn more about the TFSA and how it can benefit you, you can visit the CRA website or consult a financial advisor.

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