The Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) is the perfect account for long-term investments. Why? The TFSA protects you from paying tax on any income earned inside the account. You don’t pay any tax when you withdraw from the account either.
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You don’t want to pay any tax on a 10X, 20X or 50X gain
The ideal investment is one that multiplies and compounds many times over the course of years and decades. Tax is a major drag on investment returns outside of a registered account. You don’t want to be paying a tax bill on a stock that increases by 10 times, 20 times, or 50 times.
Luckily, the TFSA protects you from worrying about that. It is the best account to build your investment net worth because it is easy to open, easy to manage, and there are only a few rules you need to follow to maintain its tax-free status.
If you are looking for Canadian stocks that you can hold for decades in a TFSA, Descartes Systems Group (TSX: DSG) and Aritzia (TSX: ATZ) are the kind of stocks you’d want.
Descartes System: A long-term TFSA stock
While Descartes stock is down 15% in the past year, it is up 300% in the past 10 years and 2,548% in the past 20 years. Descartes is the image of a high-quality business that you want to buy and hold for a long time.
IThe supply chain giant operates the largest inter-enterprise supply chain network in the world. That is complimented by a software suite that helps customers save time, effort, and money.
The company earns an elevated stream of recurring revenues and high profit margins (around 25%). It generates around $100 million of cash every quarter. In 2026, it has been opportunistically deploying that cash into acquisitions.
It has deployed over $275 million into five acquisitions in calendar 2026. These have drastically expanded its AI capabilities. With its large data set from its network, it could become an AI leader in the logistics space.
Descartes still has tonnes of cash for further acquisitions. This stock is trading close to its lowest valuation in the past 10 years. It’s a bargain to swipe it up here into a TFSA today.
Aritzia: Still a long runway despite the pullback
The other stock I’d contemplate buying in a TFSA is Aritzia. This stock is down 18% in the past three months. No doubt, momentum is not in its favour. However, this stock is up 411% in the past three years and 592% in the past 10 years.
Aritzia has always been a volatile stock. A 20% drop is not unheard of in any year owning Aritzia. It is the longer-term trend you want to follow.
The company has been posting incredible growth. Over the past three years, revenue and earnings per share have respectively grown a 21% and 37% compounded annual growth rate (CAGR).
Aritzia still has a huge market to take. It has 76 boutiques in the U.S. However, it could easily double that. It has yet to expand internationally. That will be another major leg of growth.
After the pullback, the stock looks like a reasonable bargain. If you like the long-term trajectory of this business, it looks like the right time to add it to a TFSA.
