T4 box 16A: second CPP contributions (CPP2)

Box 16A holds your second additional CPP contributions for the year, usually written CPP2. It has appeared on T4 slips for 2024 and later years. It is empty for most people, because it only starts once your earnings pass the first ceiling.

The 2026 numbers#

The band is CA$10,400 wide. Four per cent of CA$10,400 is CA$416, so CA$416 is the most any employee can pay. Your employer pays the same again.

Where it goes on your return#

CPP2 is a deduction, not a credit. The whole of box 16A is claimed on line 22215, together with the enhanced part of the ordinary CPP contributions from box 16. The CRA routes it through Schedule 8, or Form RC381 where more than one plan is involved.

A deduction comes off your income before tax is worked out. A credit comes off the tax afterwards. That is why CPP2 and the enhanced CPP portion sit on line 22215 while base CPP sits on line 30800. Read CPP contributions on your return.

Two employers can overcharge you#

Each employer applies the ceilings on its own, so two jobs in the same year can push your total CPP and CPP2 above the annual maximum. Schedule 8 works out the excess and returns it to you. Hypertax does this whenever you enter more than one T4. Read more than one job or slip.

If you worked in Quebec#

The Quebec equivalent is QPP2 in box 17A. Hypertax handles it: a Quebec resident's federal return reports QPP rather than CPP, and the provincial tax goes on a separate TP-1. Read filing a Quebec return.