Fill Out CRA Form T2033 Online
Direct Transfer (RRSP, RRIF, SPP, or PRPP)
Canada Revenue Agency
Authorizes a direct tax-deferred transfer of funds between registered plans such as RRSPs and RRIFs.
Reviewed July 2026
How it works
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CRA Form T2033, Direct Transfer, is used to move funds directly from one registered plan to another, for example from one RRSP to another RRSP, from an RRSP to a RRIF, or between RRIFs, without the amount being paid to you first. Because the money moves directly between plan issuers, a properly executed transfer is not treated as income in your hands at the time of the transfer.
You can fill out Form T2033 in the Universal PDF editor, entering your plan details and transfer instructions on screen, then download the completed PDF to give to your financial institution. A clearly typed form helps the two institutions involved process the transfer without back-and-forth over illegible details.
What is Form T2033 used for
The form documents a direct transfer of all or part of the property in a registered plan to another registered plan under the provisions of the Income Tax Act that allow tax-deferred transfers. It covers transfers involving registered retirement savings plans, registered retirement income funds, specified pension plans, and pooled registered pension plans.
Using the form keeps the transfer inside the registered system. If you instead withdrew the funds yourself and re-contributed them, the withdrawal would generally be taxable and the re-contribution would need available contribution room, so the direct transfer route exists to avoid exactly that outcome.
Who files Form T2033
The annuitant or member of the plan, meaning the person whose plan holds the funds, starts the form by requesting the transfer. The financial institution receiving the funds and the institution currently holding them each complete their own portion, confirming the plans involved and certifying the transfer.
Many financial institutions use their own internal transfer paperwork that serves the same purpose, so ask the receiving institution whether it wants a T2033 or its own equivalent before you begin. The form is not sent to the CRA; the institutions keep it to support how the transfer was handled.
How to fill out Form T2033
The form is divided into areas completed by different parties:
- As the applicant, identify yourself and the plan the funds are coming from, including the plan number and the issuer or carrier.
- Specify whether you are transferring all of the property, a specific amount, or specific investments in kind.
- Identify the receiving plan, its issuer or carrier, and the plan type it is registered as.
- Sign and date your section to authorize the transfer.
- The receiving institution completes its area to accept the funds, and the transferring institution completes the final area when it sends them.
Filing context
Give the completed form to the financial institution that will receive the funds; it forwards the paperwork to the institution currently holding the plan. Direct transfers can take some time to settle, especially for investments transferred in kind, so start the process well before any date that matters to you, such as a maturity or conversion deadline. Keep a copy so you can show the transfer was done directly if a slip is ever issued in error.
Frequently asked questions
A direct transfer completed under the form's provisions is not included in your income at the time of the transfer. The funds remain tax-deferred inside the receiving registered plan until they are eventually withdrawn.
No. Moving funds between registered plans by direct transfer does not create a new contribution, so it does not require or consume contribution room.
No. The form is exchanged between you and the two financial institutions involved. Each party keeps its portion as a record of how the transfer was carried out.
Often yes. The form lets you request a transfer in kind, which moves the investments themselves rather than cash, subject to the receiving institution being able to hold them.
Not always. Many institutions have their own transfer documents that accomplish the same direct transfer. Confirm with the receiving institution which paperwork it requires.
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