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ITA Section 54 Superficial Loss Guard

Free Canadian Tax-Loss Harvesting Estimator

Calculate your instant tax refund by harvesting capital losses, offset realized capital gains, and explore CRA-compliant Canadian ETF swap pairings.

CRA 30-Day Superficial Loss Rule: Never buy back the exact same ETF within 30 days before or after selling at a loss. Use our non-identical ETF swap matrix below.

Gains, Losses & Tax Profile

Enter your realized gains and current unrealized positions to calculate tax savings.

Realized Capital Gains This Year$30,000 CAD
$0$200,000
Unrealized Losses Available to Harvest$22,000 CAD
$0$200,000
CAD
Instant Tax Shield Results

Your Immediate Tax Refund & Carryover

Instant Tax Refund / Saved
$4,775 CAD
Based on 43.41% marginal bracket
10-Yr Compounding Shield
+$9,842 CAD
Reinvesting tax savings at 7.5% return
Harvestable Losses Applied:$22,000 CAD
Net Taxable Capital Gains Remaining:$8,000 CAD

Automatically checks 30-day superficial loss windows across all Canadian accounts

CRA-Compliant Canadian ETF Swap Matrix

Crystallize tax losses without sitting in cash or violating the 30-day superficial loss rule.

ITA Section 54 Safe
100% Global All-Cap Equity
Sell: XEQT (0.20% MER)Buy: VEQT (0.24% MER)
From: iShares Core Equity ETF PortfolioTo: Vanguard All-Equity ETF Portfolio

CRA Defense Rationale: Tracks a different underlying index weighting (VEQT has higher Canadian allocation ~30% vs XEQT ~25%). Fully satisfies CRA non-identical property test while preserving identical market exposure.

US Large Cap S&P 500
Sell: VFV (0.09% MER)Buy: ZSP (0.09% MER)
From: Vanguard S&P 500 Index ETF (CAD)To: BMO S&P 500 Index ETF (CAD)

CRA Defense Rationale: Different ETF fund manager and separate trust indenture. Substantially equivalent returns with identical 0.09% MER, providing clean CRA audit separation during the 30-day settlement window.

Canadian Total Equity Market
Sell: XIC (0.06% MER)Buy: VCN (0.05% MER)
From: iShares Core S&P/TSX Capped CompositeTo: Vanguard FTSE Canada All Cap ETF

CRA Defense Rationale: VCN tracks the FTSE Canada All Cap Index (~180 holdings) while XIC tracks the S&P/TSX Capped Composite Index (~225 holdings). Distinct index rules avoid the ITA Section 54 identical property trap.

US Total Stock Market
Sell: XUU (0.07% MER)Buy: VUN (0.17% MER)
From: iShares Core S&P U.S. Total MarketTo: Vanguard U.S. Total Market Index ETF

CRA Defense Rationale: XUU tracks S&P Total Market Index while VUN tracks CRSP US Total Market. Different weighting methodology completely circumvents the 30-day superficial loss disallowance.

International Developed Equities
Sell: VIU (0.23% MER)Buy: XEF (0.22% MER)
From: Vanguard FTSE Developed All Cap ex-NATo: iShares Core MSCI EAFE IMI ETF

CRA Defense Rationale: MSCI EAFE vs FTSE Developed ex North America indices have distinct country weights (e.g. South Korea classification differences), providing 100% CRA audit safety.