{"id":93071,"date":"2025-08-26T03:34:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-26T03:34:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/93071\/"},"modified":"2025-08-26T03:34:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T03:34:14","slug":"ottawa-plans-to-follow-through-on-gis-rrif-relief-for-retirees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/93071\/","title":{"rendered":"Ottawa plans to follow through on GIS, RRIF relief for retirees"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Secretary of State for Seniors Stephanie McLean, centre, at the SHOAL Community Centre doing a balancing exercise class with community members, Patricia Sembaliuk, left, and Peri Van Alstine, right, in Sidney, B.C., on Aug. 20.Chad Hipolito\/The Globe and Mail<\/p>\n

Canadian retirees have been waiting for months to see whether the Liberals will follow through on relief measures promised during the election campaign<\/a>, and now they have an answer.<\/p>\n

In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Stephanie McLean, secretary of state for seniors, said the government plans to follow through on the proposed policy changes for both guaranteed income supplement payments and registered retirement income fund accounts, though it is not clear when those measures will take effect.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve made these promises to Canadians. We fully expect to need to bring them into play,\u201d Ms. McLean said, adding that the government is waiting to see how negotiations with the U.S. develop, how markets evolve and when the measures are most needed.<\/p>\n

In April, as market volatility and trade<\/a> tensions with the United States unsettled retirees, the Liberals pledged a 25-per-cent reduction in mandatory RRIF withdrawals and a 5-per-cent increase to GIS payments, both lasting one year. The RRIF proposal<\/a> aims to provide Canadians with \u201cflexibility to avoid liquidating their retirement savings in a down market to meet current RRIF rules,\u201d the Liberals said during the election campaign.<\/p>\n

Since then, markets have bounced back, easing some of the initial anxiety. But many retirees have been waiting for clarity<\/a> on the promises as they try to plan their finances.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure that these promises that were made, that they come at the right time,\u201d Ms. McLean said. \u201cMarkets have been stabilizing, but we\u2019ve seen very recently that stabilization can be thrown away very quickly.\u201d <\/p>\n

The government is watching conditions closely, she said, particularly as trade negotiations with U.S. President Donald Trump<\/a> remain unresolved. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think we have seen . . . the full impact either of some of the tariffs that have been put in place,\u201d Ms. McLean said, adding that the federal government wants \u201cto make sure that when inevitably there\u2019s economic impact felt for us at home that we\u2019re there for seniors.\u201d <\/p>\n

Many are expecting the Liberals to provide an update on the proposal in the fall federal budget, though that would leave little time for retirees to make their withdrawal plans for the year.<\/p>\n

Jennifer Watson, a certified financial planner and managing partner at Watson Investments in Oakville, Ont., said seniors who have not made an RRIF withdrawal this year and who don\u2019t need the money immediately should wait until the government shares when the promised policy will be implemented.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat basically buys them time now to wait and see what\u2019s going to happen,\u201d Ms. Watson said.<\/p>\n

This would not be the first time Ottawa has eased RRIF rules. In 2020, at the onset of the pandemic, the government reduced mandatory withdrawals by 25 per cent. However, retirees who withdrew funds before that announcement were not allowed to recontribute excess amounts.<\/p>\n

While many see the proposed policy as a tax break, some financial planners say there\u2019s a potential downside<\/a> for retirees who need more than the minimum RRIF withdrawal to cover day-to-day expenses, as they may be hit with a higher withholding tax.<\/p>\n

Currently, Canadians must either convert their registered retirement savings plans into an RRIF or buy an annuity by Dec. 31 of the year they turn 71. Once an RRSP is converted into an RRIF, individuals must start withdrawing a minimum amount each year, which counts as taxable income.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Secretary of State for Seniors Stephanie McLean, centre, at the SHOAL Community Centre…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":93072,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[84,4176,4174,4175,11749,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-93071","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-personal-finance","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-finance","10":"tag-personal-finance","11":"tag-personalfinance","12":"tag-r-fp","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=93071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/93071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=93071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=93071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=93071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}