Changes to your taxes when you retire or turn 65 years old
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Changes to your taxes when you retire or turn 65 years old
Notice to reader
The information on this page replaces the information in Guide P119, When You Retire, which has been cancelled on 2017-01-06.
On this page
- Types of income you may receive when you retire or turn 65 years old
- How to reduce or defer the tax you owe
- How your taxes are affected when living abroad
Types of income you may receive when you retire or turn 65 years old
Here are the most common types of income you may start to receive and have to include on your tax return.
|
Type of income |
How to include it on your tax return |
Details |
|---|---|---|
| Old age security (OAS) pension | Line 113 – Old age security pension (OAS) | The OAS pension is a monthly payment available to most Canadians age 65 or older. |
| Canada Pension Plan (CPP) or Québec Pension Plan (QPP) benefits | Line 114 – CPP or QPP benefits | CPP or QPP provides you or your family with partial replacement of earning when you retire. |
| Retiring allowance | Retiring allowance is an amount you may receive, for example, on or after retirement from office or employement in recognition of long service. | |
| Other pensions and superannuation | Line 115 – Other pensions and superannuation | You may get a pension from a Canadian or foreign pension plan. |
| Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) income | Line 129 – Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) income | You have to include the payments from the plan on your tax return. |
| Annuity payments | Line 115 – Annuity, PRPP, and registered retirement income fund (RRIF), including life income fund payments | An annuity is a plan that makes payments to you on a regular basis. It might be a general annuity, a payment from a registered retirement income fund (RRIF), or a variable pension payment. |
| Pooled registered pension plan (PRPP) payments | Line 130 – Other kinds of income | Payments from a PRPP are considered pension income. |
| Retroactive lump-sum payments | Form T1198, Statement of Qualifying Retroactive Lump-Sum Payment | You may receive lump sum payments from a source, such as benefits from a superannuation or pension plan. You can ask CRA to tax the parts for previous years as if you received them in those years. |
| Other kinds of income | Line 130 – Other kinds of income | This includes payments from a trust or amounts from a retirement compensation arrangement. |
How to reduce or defer the tax you owe
You may be able to reduce or defer some of the taxes you owe with any of the following:
- Tax withheld at source – If your main source of income is from a pension, you can have enough tax withheld at source to pay the tax you owe.
- Paying your income tax by instalments – If you receive investment, rental, self-employment income, or certain pension payments, you may need to pay your income tax by instalments.
- Pension income splitting – You and your spouse or common-law partner can choose to split your eligible pension or superannuation income.
- Carrying charges and interest expenses – You can claim carrying charges and interest you paid to earn income from investments.
- Registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) – Any income you earn in the RRSP is usually exempt from tax as long as the funds remain in the plan.
- Excess registered pension plan (RPP) contributions between 1976 and 1985 – You may have made current service contributions exceeding $3,500 in one or more years from 1976 to 1985 and you could not have fully deducted these excess contributions. Call the CRA at 1-800-959-8281 to help you calculate your deduction and claim these amounts.
- Federal deductions, credits, and expenses – Non-refundable tax credits, such as the age amount, the pension income amount and the amounts transferred from your spouse or common-law partner, reduce the amount of income tax you owe.
- Provincial or territorial credits – You may be able to claim credits that are specific to your province or territory.
- Old age security (OAS) benefits repayment – You may have to repay all or a part of your OAS pension (line 113) or net federal supplements (line 146) when you file your tax return if your income exceeds a yearly threshold. If that is the case, a recovery tax will be deducted by Service Canada on your OAS benefits. You may request a waiver from the CRA so that Service Canada could reduce the tax withheld at source.
How your taxes are affected when living abroad
Find out the different tax obligations regarding retirees and seniors who live outside of Canada.
Forms and publications
- Guide T4040, RRSPs and Other Registered Plans for Retirement.
- General Income Tax and Benefit Guide – 2016
Related links
- Goods and services tax/Harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) credit
- Community Volunteer Income Tax Program
- Paying your 2016 taxes owing
- Seniors Canada
- Individuals – Leaving or entering Canada and non-residents
- Date modified:
- 2017-01-17