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CoastFIRE Calculator
CoastFIRE is the point where your portfolio is projected to grow, on its own, into everything you'll need for retirement: no further contributions required. Once you're there, you can "coast": cover today's expenses while your accounts do the rest. This calculator walks through your Canadian and US accounts, government benefits, and assumptions to estimate when you'll get there.
Verified against CRA, IRS & SSA sources, August 2026Your cross-border CoastFIRE results
Account balances stay in their native currency below; only the totals are converted, at the exchange rate you set.
Combined portfolio today
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Required at retirement
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To sustain your monthly expenses
CoastFIRE number today
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What you'd need right now, untouched
Years until CoastFIRE
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What this means for you
Your roadmap
Where your money sits today
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combined today
Progress to your CoastFIRE number (today)0%
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Retirement drawdown assumptions
Used only to extend the Projection chart below through retirement spend-down:
for the full year-by-year strategy comparison, see the Drawdown
Optimizer.
Combined portfolio
CoastFIRE number
Randomized volatility around your preset scenario, showing a spread of likely outcomes.
Retirement income sources
From retirement to 20 years later: how much of your annual expenses comes from your portfolio versus CPP/OAS/Social Security once claimed.
Government benefits
Funded from portfolio
Inspect the math
CoastFIRE #= Required at retirement ÷ (1 + Return rate)Years to retirement
= —
= —
"Required at retirement" folds in your expenses (inflated to your retirement date) minus any CPP/OAS/Social Security that reduces the gap once each benefit starts: see the Government Benefits section above for how those claiming ages factor in.
Exchange-rate sensitivity
Same underlying CAD and USD balances: just re-converted at different exchange rates, so
you can see how much currency swings actually move your numbers, including how much sooner or later you'd
hit CoastFIRE.
| 1 CAD = | Combined portfolio | CoastFIRE number | CoastFIRE date |
|---|
Stress test: income gap during a move
Cross-border moves often come with a gap most calculators don't ask about: a visa
transfer, a licensing delay, a notice period while paperwork clears. See what a rough gap costs your plan.
Modeled as a lump-sum draw from your non-registered/taxable savings, sized at your
entered monthly expenses × the gap length, a simplification that doesn't also pause your regular
contributions during those months, so the real impact would likely be somewhat larger.
Goal seek
Solve backward from a target instead of forward from your inputs.
Keeps the mix between accounts the same and scales every contribution field
above by the same factor to find the total needed.
Uses the contribution amounts you've already entered
above. No need to change anything first.
Cross-border considerations
General information, not tax or legal advice: rules below are commonly cited but you
should confirm current treatment with a cross-border specialist.
Good news
Watch out: could cost you
Action / reporting required
Good to know
RRSP Treaty-protected
Under the Canada–US tax treaty, the IRS treats your RRSP as a tax-deferred retirement
account: growth generally isn't taxed annually as a US person, similar to a traditional IRA.
TFSA Not tax-free to IRS
The US doesn't recognize the TFSA's tax-free status. Growth can be taxable each year, and
depending on structure it may trigger extra reporting (e.g. Form 3520/3520-A). Many cross-border planners
advise against actively contributing to a TFSA while a US resident.
PFIC exposure Non-reg & RRSP holdings
Canadian-domiciled mutual funds and ETFs held by a US person can be classified as PFICs,
which carry punitive US tax treatment. US-domiciled funds are typically used instead once you're a US
resident.
FBAR & FATCA reporting Required
Canadian accounts above reporting thresholds generally need to be disclosed annually via
FBAR (FinCEN 114) and possibly Form 8938, separate from your regular tax return.
Currency risk
Your CAD balances move in USD terms every time the exchange rate moves. This tool
applies one static rate you set: real results will vary with the market rate at withdrawal time. See the
sensitivity table above.
Totalization Agreement CPP/OAS/Social Security
The Canada-US Totalization Agreement can help you qualify for CPP, OAS, or
Social Security by combining your work/residency periods from both countries: for example, using US
residency to meet OAS's 20-year minimum for payments abroad. It does not increase the benefit amount
itself; that's still based on your actual contribution history or Canadian residency years in each country
separately.
WEP/GPO repeal As of Jan 2025
The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset used to reduce a US
Social Security benefit for people who also received a foreign pension like CPP. The Social Security
Fairness Act repealed both, retroactive to January 2024, so this calculator assumes your Social Security
estimate no longer needs a CPP-related reduction. Confirm your own Social Security statement reflects
this.
OAS recovery tax Clawback
OAS is income-tested: for 2026, it starts getting clawed back once net world income
passes roughly $95,300, at 15 cents per dollar above that, fully eliminated somewhere in the $155,000–
$161,000 range depending on age. If your retirement income (including RRSP/RRIF withdrawals) will be high,
your real OAS may be lower than the flat figure you enter here.
FHSA No IRS guidance yet
Canada's First Home Savings Account is too new for the IRS to have issued any formal
guidance on it: unlike the RRSP, there's no treaty provision covering it. Most cross-border preparers
treat it cautiously, potentially as a foreign trust requiring Form 3520/3520-A, until clearer rules
emerge. If you have one, this is worth a direct conversation with your accountant.
RESP Not tax-free to IRS
Like the TFSA, the RESP isn't recognized as tax-deferred by the IRS: growth can be
taxable annually and may trigger foreign trust reporting. The Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG, 20% of
contributions up to $500/year) is a real benefit worth keeping, but it doesn't change the US tax
treatment of the account itself.
Pre-tax targets
This calculator doesn't model cross-border taxes, so treat "Required at Retirement" as a
pre-tax figure and build in a margin for tax drag on both sides of the border.
Roth conversion window 401(k)/IRA only
Pooled household accounts Spouse mode
Accounts are modeled as one combined household balance per type, not tracked per
spouse: this tool doesn't enforce per-person contribution limits (RRSP/TFSA room, 401(k)/IRA limits) or
model each spouse's RMDs separately. Treat balances and contributions above as household totals.
Survivor benefits not modeled Spouse mode
Household benefit income doesn't step down at the first death the way it would in
reality: Social Security's survivor benefit is the higher of the two checks, not the sum; CPP
converts partly into a survivor pension rather than continuing unchanged; OAS simply ends for the
deceased spouse. This tool models both spouses' benefits as continuing in full for the life of the plan:
treat post-claiming income as an upper bound, not a guarantee, after either spouse's death.
Yearly breakdown
Every account, year by year: for when you want to see exactly how the numbers add up.
| Year | Age | RRSP | TFSA | Non-Reg (CAD) | CAD Total | 401(k) | IRA | Roth IRA | Taxable (USD) | USD Total | Combined | CoastFIRE # | Notes |
|---|
Guide: How to use this tool & interpret your numbers
How to Use the Tool
- Enter personal details: Current age, retirement age, and contribution frequency (monthly or annual).
- Log your accounts: Input balances and ongoing contributions for both Canadian (CAD) and US (USD) accounts in their native currencies.
- Set assumptions: Investment returns, inflation, SWR (Safe Withdrawal Rate), and target retirement expenses in your reporting currency.
- Include government benefits: Input projected CPP, OAS, and US Social Security claims and select the claim start age.
- Calculate: View your CoastFIRE year, growth trajectory, and detailed yearly breakdown.
Understanding Your Results
- CoastFIRE Number Today
- The amount your portfolio needs to have right now so that, with no future contributions, it will grow to support your retirement expenses by your retirement age.
- Required at Retirement
- The total pre-tax portfolio size needed at your retirement age. This factors in the "bridge years" before pensions start and the "gap years" after.
- Bridge Years vs. Gap Years
- Years between retirement and receiving government benefits are "bridge years" (100% funded by your portfolio). "Gap years" are post-benefit, where you only cover the difference between expenses and combined pensions.
- Exchange-Rate Sensitivity
- Shows how currency fluctuations affect your target milestones based on CAD vs. USD strength. This demonstrates how much currency swings shift your planning numbers.
- Pre-Tax Planning
- No cross-border tax drag (e.g. TFSA taxability, PFICs) is modeled; all totals are pre-tax planning targets.
Key Concepts (Cross-Border Basics)
- CoastFIRE
- The point where your portfolio is projected to grow (with no further contributions) into everything you'll need by retirement. Once you're there, you can "coast": cover today's expenses while your accounts do the rest.
- RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan)
- Canada's tax-deferred retirement account. Recognized by the IRS as tax-deferred under the Canada-US treaty: growth isn't taxed annually as a US person, similar to a Traditional IRA.
- TFSA (Tax-Free Savings Account)
- Tax-free in Canada, but the IRS doesn't recognize that status: growth can be taxable annually to a US person and may carry extra reporting requirements.
- FHSA (First Home Savings Account)
- A newer Canadian account with no IRS guidance yet at all: treat its US tax treatment as unresolved until you've talked to a cross-border specialist.
- RESP (Registered Education Savings Plan)
- Canadian education savings with government matching (CESG). Like the TFSA, not recognized as tax-deferred by the IRS.
- Departure Tax (Canada) vs. Exit Tax (US)
- Two different taxes from two different countries. Canada's departure tax is a deemed disposition: most property is treated as sold at fair market value the day you cease Canadian residency. The US exit tax is a separate rule under IRC 877A that can apply to US citizens who renounce citizenship, or long-term Green Card holders (8+ of the last 15 years) who formally end their status. Leaving Canada doesn't trigger the US exit tax, and vice versa.
- Totalization Agreement
- Lets you combine work/residency periods from both countries to qualify for CPP, OAS, or Social Security: for example, using US residency to meet OAS's 20-year minimum for payments abroad. It doesn't increase the benefit amount, only helps you qualify.
- RRSP/RRIF Withholding Tax
- Canada withholds tax at the source when a non-resident withdraws from an RRSP or RRIF: 25% for a lump-sum RRSP collapse, or 15% for periodic RRIF payments under the treaty. This is generally the final Canadian tax on that withdrawal.
- PFIC (Passive Foreign Investment Company)
- A punitive US tax classification that can apply to Canadian-domiciled mutual funds and ETFs held by a US person. US-domiciled funds are typically used instead once you're a US resident, to avoid this.
My Scenarios
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Figures current as of 2026
- 2026: CPP, OAS & Social Security maximums, HSA contribution limits, the capital gains inclusion rate, and moving-back thresholds are all updated for 2026.
- Jan 2025: Social Security Fairness Act repeal of WEP/GPO reflected in the Benefit Timing amounts.
- Last independently verified: August 2026, CPP/OAS/SS figures, RRSP withholding rates, and the 2026 US tax brackets checked directly against CRA, IRS, and SSA publications.
- Full sourcing & citations for this page →