HR glossary · Pay and payroll

TD1 form

A TD1 form tells you which tax credits a new employee claims, so you can work out how much income tax to take off their pay. Collect it when they start.

Also called: TD1, TD1 Personal Tax Credits Return, tax credit form, TD1 provincial form

What TD1 form means

The TD1, Personal Tax Credits Return, is a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) form an employee fills in so you know which tax credits they are claiming. You use the total claim amount to work out how much income tax to deduct from each pay.

There is a federal TD1 and a provincial or territorial version for the province where the employee works. The federal and provincial claim amounts are used separately in the payroll tables.

Most employees simply claim the basic personal amount. Others may claim more (for example, for a dependant or a disability) or less (for example, if they have a second job and do not want the basic amount counted twice).

How it works

Give every new employee the federal TD1 and the provincial or territorial form for where they work as part of your onboarding paperwork, and keep the completed forms with your payroll records.

Enter the claim codes or amounts in your payroll software, or use them with the CRA's payroll deductions tables (T4032). The higher the claim, the less tax you deduct each pay.

For 2026, the federal basic personal amount is up to $16,452, with a minimum of $14,829 for higher earners. These amounts are indexed each year; for 2026 the indexing factor was 2.0%. Employees get the indexing increase automatically, whether or not they file a new TD1, 2026 Personal. They only need to fill in a new TD1 if their situation changes, such as a new dependant or a second job.

Common mistakes: forgetting the provincial form, using last year's forms for a new hire, and not asking an employee with two jobs how they want to claim. The TD1 itself has instructions for people with more than one employer.

Is it the same in every province?

The federal TD1 is the same everywhere. Each province and territory has its own personal amounts, built into the CRA tables for that province. Quebec has its own provincial tax system, so check Revenu Québec's form for Quebec employees.

Example: Onboarding a second-job employee

Sofia runs a 10-person bakery café in Lethbridge, Alberta. She hires Marcus for weekend shifts. He already has a full-time job where he claims the basic personal amount.

On his first day, Sofia gives Marcus the 2026 federal TD1 and the Alberta TD1 with the rest of his new hire forms. Marcus reads the instructions for people with more than one employer and fills in both forms on that basis, so enough tax is taken off across his two jobs. Sofia files the forms with his records and enters the claim in payroll.

Onboarding checklists in Staffkin

Staffkin's onboarding checklists for new hires let you add the federal and provincial TD1 forms as items to collect in the first week.

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Questions about TD1 form

Does every new employee need to fill out a TD1?

Employees fill out a TD1 when they start so you know which tax credits to apply. Give them both the federal form and the provincial or territorial form for where they work.

Do employees need a new TD1 every year?

Not just for indexing. Employees get the yearly increase in the basic personal amount automatically. They should fill in a new form if their situation changes.

What is the basic personal amount for 2026?

The 2026 federal basic personal amount is up to $16,452, reducing to a minimum of $14,829 for higher earners. Provincial amounts are separate.

Official sources

General information for Canadian employers, not legal advice. Rules differ by province and territory and change over time, so check with your provincial employment standards office (or the federal Labour Program if you are federally regulated) before you rely on it. See employment standards by province.

Checked against official sources on 4 November 2026.