Frequently asked questions
How does TimeCard calculate my deductions?
TimeCard uses the CRA's official payroll deduction methodology (T4127, 2026 edition) for federal and provincial tax, CPP/CPP2 and EI, plus Revenu Québec's official 2026 figures for Quebec.
Which provinces does TimeCard support?
All 10 Canadian provinces, each with its own bracket table and Quebec handled separately for its provincial CPP/EI equivalents. The three territories are not yet supported.
Does TimeCard store or send my data anywhere?
No. Everything you enter stays in your browser. There is no account and no login is required.
Is TimeCard free to use?
Yes, TimeCard is completely free with no login and no limits on how many pay periods you calculate. Ads on the page help cover the cost of keeping it free, and they're entirely optional to interact with.
How payroll deductions actually work in Canada
Most people find out how their pay gets calculated the hard way — a paycheque comes in lower than expected, and the paystub has five or six line items with no explanation attached. Here's what each one actually is, using the real 2026 numbers.
CPP: the one that changes partway through most people's paycheques
The base CPP rate is 5.95% of your pensionable earnings, above a $3,500 basic exemption, and it stops entirely once your year-to-date pensionable earnings hit $74,600 (the YMPE). A second deduction, CPP2, applies at 4% on earnings between $74,600 and $85,000, capped at $416 for the year.
EI: simpler, but the rate depends on where you live
EI is a flat 1.63% of your insurable earnings, up to a maximum of $68,900 for the year — a $1,123.07 cap. Quebec employees pay a reduced 1.30% rate instead, since Quebec's own QPIP program covers parental leave separately from EI.
Why income tax on your paystub isn't a simple percentage of what you earn
CRA's payroll formula estimates your full-year income by annualizing the current pay period, calculates tax on that using the real 2026 bracket structure (14% up to 33% federally, plus your province's own brackets), then divides the result back down — which is also why a one-time bonus can get taxed hard in that single paycheque even though it usually evens out at tax time.
How each province's payroll tax actually differs
CPP (or QPP) and EI (or QPIP) are federal programs, so those numbers are close to identical no matter where in Canada you work. Provincial income tax is where your paystub actually diverges from a coworker's in another province — different bracket counts, different basic personal amounts, and in Quebec's case, an entirely separate pension and parental-leave system layered on top.
Ontario: the lowest nominal rates, plus two extra add-ons most people don't expect
Ontario's bottom bracket rate (5.05%) and top bracket rate (13.16%) are both the lowest of any province, but the Ontario surtax (20% then 36% on top of basic Ontario tax past $5,818 and $7,446) and the separate Ontario Health Premium (up to $900/year, banded by income) mean the real bite ends up higher than the headline rate suggests.
Alberta: the highest basic personal amount in the country
Alberta's Basic Personal Amount is $22,769, the highest of any province, across six brackets from 8% up to 15%.
British Columbia: the most brackets outside Newfoundland, and its own low-income credit
BC runs seven brackets from 5.06% up to 20.5%, plus a dedicated low-income tax reduction credit that phases out by $41,722 of annual taxable income.
Manitoba: the only province besides the federal system that claws back the basic personal amount
Manitoba's basic personal amount, unlike every other province's flat BPA, phases down for high earners from its $15,780 maximum starting at $200,000 of net income down toward zero by $400,000.
Quebec: not a variation on the other nine, a separate system
Quebec employees pay into QPP instead of CPP (6.3% combined rate versus CPP's 5.95%), pay a reduced EI rate of 1.30% instead of 1.63% because Quebec's own QPIP program covers parental benefits separately, and get a 16.5% federal tax abatement. Quebec's own brackets run 14% to 25.75% — the highest top marginal rate of any province — with a basic personal amount of $18,952.
Saskatchewan: three brackets, and the second-highest basic personal amount
Saskatchewan's three brackets (10.5%, 12.5%, 14.5%) are matched only by Manitoba for simplicity, with a basic personal amount of $20,381, second only to Alberta's.
Nova Scotia: a flat basic personal amount that used to be anything but
Nova Scotia's basic personal amount of $11,932 used to be calculated on a sliding, income-tested formula; that formula was removed for 2026, so every employee now gets the same maximum BPA regardless of income.
Newfoundland and Labrador: the most brackets of any province, and a top rate that almost nobody hits
NL runs eight brackets, more than any other province, climbing to 21.8% — but that top bracket only starts at $1,141,275 of annual income, so almost nobody actually pays it.
New Brunswick: a straightforward four-bracket climb
New Brunswick runs four brackets from 9.4% to 19.5%, with a basic personal amount of $13,664 and no surtax, health premium, or BPA clawback layered on top.
Prince Edward Island: the one province that doesn't index its own tax system
PEI runs five brackets from 9.5% to 19%. Unlike every other province, PEI's basic personal amount of $15,000 only changes when the legislature passes a specific increase, not through automatic annual indexing.