Maple RootsProject
A newcomer's money guide to Canada

Small steps today for a stronger future in Canada.

You've already done the hard part. Canada has programs that give families free money, tax savings, and a head start, but many only work if you know about them. We explain them, one small step at a time.

Start with the first-year checklist Browse the 7 modules

The roots you grow in your first years hold up everything that grows after.

Free, alwaysWritten for newcomers2026 figures
Why this matters, especially now

Time does more of the work than money

Money that sits in cash slowly loses value. Money that's invested early has time to grow. You don't need a big salary, just an early start.

Read the 5-minute intro

$200 a month, growing at 5% a year until age 65

Starts at 30about $227,000
Starts at 40about $119,000
What you put inGrowth

Illustration only. Investments rise and fall, and returns are never guaranteed.

Where are you right now?

Pick the step that fits your life today

You don't need to do everything at once.

I just arrived

Get the basics in place so everything else is easier.

I'm settling in

Build credit and a safety net, and claim what your children are owed.

I'm planning ahead

Let your savings grow tax-free toward a home and retirement.

Start here

Your first-year checklist

Everything in the guide, in order. Tick these off one at a time. There's no rush.

Open the checklist
  • Get a SIN for every adult in your family, and for each child.
  • Open a bank account and ask what it costs after the promotion ends.
  • Apply for benefits: RC66 (with children who qualify) or RC151.
  • Open an RESP for each child and ask for every grant and the Canada Learning Bond.

17 steps across four stages · See all

Learn

Seven short modules

Each one ends with a single next small step.

1

Your first 90 days with money

Bank accounts, budgeting, and sending money home

8 min readStart →
2

Taxes: your key to benefits

Why filing unlocks thousands of dollars a year

10 min readStart →
3

Building Canadian credit from zero

The score that affects renting, loans, and more

7 min readStart →
4

Investing in your children's future

Free government money for their education

9 min readStart →
5

Growing your savings tax-free

TFSA, FHSA, and RRSP in plain language

12 min readStart →
6

Protecting your family

Emergency savings, insurance, wills, and scams

8 min readStart →
7

Your long-term goals

Retirement and buying a home

8 min readStart →
✓

Your First-Year Checklist

Everything above, in order

17 stepsOpen →
The numbers for 2026

Money many newcomers leave on the table

Government amounts change each year. Always confirm on canada.ca.

$15,040A year in Canada Child Benefit for a family with children aged 3 and 7, at the maximum
20%Added by the government to what you save in an RESP, up to $7,200 per child
$2,000Canada Learning Bond for lower-income families, with no saving needed
$7,000TFSA room you get in the year you become a resident, even if you arrive late in the year
Why "Maple Roots"?

A maple tree spends its first years growing roots underground, where nobody can see them. Those roots are what let it stand tall for a hundred years. Your first years in Canada work the same way: the small, quiet steps you take now hold up everything that grows after, for you and for your children.

You don't have to figure this out alone

Free help is closer than you think

All free help
Free

Settlement agencies

Government-funded help with banking, taxes, jobs, and more, often in your own language.

Free

Free tax clinics

Volunteers file tax returns for people with modest incomes.

Official

Report a scam

The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre helps you check and report fraud.