Statistics Canada reported that Canadian taxfilers increased their contributions to RRSPs in 2005 for the third year in a row.

RRSP contributions totalled nearly $30.6 billion, up 6.2% from 2004. This was the highest total ever. Also, the number of contributors rose to its highest level in four years. Over 6.1 million people contributed to an RRSP in 2005, up 2.2% from 2004. This was the highest level since 2001 when more than 6.2 million people contributed to an RRSP.

Almost 86% of taxfilers were eligible to contribute for the 2005 tax year. Of these, about 31% actually made contributions. The $30.6 billion represented only about 7% of the total room available to eligible taxfilers, StatsCan noted.

StatsCan suggested that the growing number of contributors and the continuing increase in contributions may have been the result of increases in the maximum annual RRSP contribution limit.

Total contributions rose in all provinces and the Yukon but fell in Nunavut (-1.9%) and the Northwest Territories (-1.2%). Taxfilers in Prince Edward Island recorded the largest percentage increase in total contributions at 21.8%, followed by those in Yukon (+13.3%) and Alberta (+12.8%).

The number of contributors fell marginally in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut, but there were increases in all the other provinces and Yukon. The largest percentage increase was in Alberta, where the number of contributors rose 6.0%.

Nationally, the median contribution increased slightly to $2,630. As in previous years, the median contribution in the three territories exceeded those in all the provinces. The highest median was in Nunavut at $4,300, followed by the Northwest Territories at $3,490 and Yukon at $3,170.

Among metropolitan areas, the highest median contribution occurred in Calgary where it was $3,270, followed by Toronto at $3,190 and Vancouver, where it was $3,160.

Calgary and Edmonton posted the largest percentage growth in the number of contributors, with 5.9% more people in each of these cities making a contribution in 2005 than the previous year. Total contributions in Calgary increased 12.6% over 2004, followed by Edmonton with 11.9%, the largest gains among cities.

Data came from income tax returns filed in the spring of 2006.