For parents of 13 to 17 year olds
Three years left, and a tuition bill that has not moved
Starting late is not the problem. Not knowing the size of the gap is. This calculator shows the grant your teenager can still claim before it expires, what four years of school actually costs, and the monthly number that closes the difference.
Show me the gapYour numbers
Your result
- Projected value at 18
- $29,281
- Four-year cost you are aiming at
- $88,000
- Shortfall
- $58,719
- Contribution years left for grantGrants stop at the end of the year they turn 17.
- 3
- Grant still claimable
- $3,000
- Monthly to capture every grant dollarUsing the catch-up rule where room exists.
- $417
- Monthly to fully fund schoolFrom today until they turn 18.
- $5,000
At $250 a month the plan reaches $29,281 by 18 — about 1.3 of 4 years covered — leaving a $58,719 shortfall. $5,000 a month closes it, and $3,000 of grant is still on the table.
Estimates only, built on the published federal RESP and Canada Education Savings Grant rules. Growth is an assumption you set, not a guarantee. Not advice.
The four moves that still work this late
1. Claim every grant year you can
$5,000 in a year claims $1,000 of grant where carry-forward room exists. Check the catch-up rules and deadlines before another calendar year closes.
2. Cut the fee drag while it still matters
Three years of a two percent fee on a $40,000 plan is real money. Compare what your institution charges, then move the plan without losing the grant if the gap is wide.
3. De-risk the first two years of tuition
Money needed in eighteen months should not be exposed to a bad quarter. Segment the plan by the year each dollar gets spent.
4. Fund the rest outside the RESP
Once grant room is exhausted, additional savings usually belong elsewhere. Compare an RESP against a TFSA for the dollars that no longer earn a grant.
Common questions
- When does the RESP grant stop?
- Basic CESG is paid up to and including the end of the calendar year the beneficiary turns 17, and only if specific contribution history rules were met in the years they turned 15 and 16. Practically, contributions made before the end of the year they turn 15 matter most.
- Can I catch up on missed RESP grant years?
- Partly. You can claim one extra year of grant room per year, so up to $1,000 of grant on $5,000 of contributions in a single year. Unused room beyond that keeps carrying forward, but time runs out at 17, so it is rarely possible to recover all of it once a teenager is 15 or 16.
- Is it too late to start an RESP at 15?
- No, but the rule to watch is this: for a child who has never had an RESP, contributions of at least $2,000 must be in the plan before the end of the year they turn 15 for any grant to be paid at 16 or 17. Miss that and contributions still grow tax-sheltered but earn no grant.
- How should a teen's RESP be invested?
- Very differently from a toddler's. With three years to first withdrawal, sequence risk matters more than growth. A glide toward short-term, low-volatility holdings for the money needed in years one and two is usually appropriate.