Why turning 65 sets off several changes at once

Sixty-five no longer marks the end of working life for many Canadians, but the public system still treats it as a hinge. On or around that birthday Old Age Security becomes available, the Guaranteed Income Supplement opens up for people on low incomes, two federal tax credits switch on, provincial drug coverage changes in several provinces, and a working CPP recipient gains the right to stop paying in.

Some of this happens automatically. Some of it happens only if someone applies, elects or remembers to claim. Seen together on one calendar, it is easier to tell which is which.

Old Age Security: a letter first, then a choice

Service Canada enrols many people in OAS automatically. If it has enough information about you, an enrolment letter arrives around your 64th birthday. If a month has passed since your 64th birthday and no letter has come, Service Canada asks you to get in touch, because you may need to apply. Online applications can be made once you are at least one month past your 64th birthday.

OAS can begin the month after you turn 65, but it does not have to. You can delay it for a larger payment: 0.6% more for each month after 65, up to 36% at 70. In October to December 2026 the maximum monthly OAS for ages 65 to 74 was $762.50. The trade-off for low-income households is significant: you cannot receive the GIS while you defer OAS, and the GIS does not grow with the deferral.

The Guaranteed Income Supplement

The GIS is paid on top of OAS to people with low incomes. For October to December 2026 the maximum for a single, widowed or divorced person was $1,138.90 a month, for annual income below $23,112; couples have their own thresholds based on combined income. Online GIS applications have a stated processing time of 14 days. Once it is in payment, the GIS is reviewed every year from the tax return, which is why April 30 matters more once GIS is involved.

Two tax credits that start in the year you turn 65

The age amount. If you are 65 or older on December 31, you can claim the federal age amount. For 2026, the CRA's personal tax credits form sets it at $9,208 for net income of $46,432 or less, with a partial amount for net income between $46,432 and $107,819. It applies for the whole year in which you turn 65, even with a December birthday.

The pension income amount. Up to $2,000 of eligible pension income can be claimed for this credit. At 65 or older, the list of eligible income widens to include RRIF payments and annuity payments, which before 65 qualify only in limited cases such as the death of a spouse. CPP, QPP and OAS do not count. For people who have converted savings to a RRIF, this is often the first year the credit applies; the RRIF itself is covered in what has to happen before December 31 of the year you turn 71.

Provincial drug coverage

Drug plans are provincial, and the rules vary widely, so check your own province's health ministry. Ontario is a clear example of how a birthday can switch coverage on. The province sends a letter about three months before your 65th birthday, and Ontario Drug Benefit coverage begins on the first day of the month after you turn 65. You pay the first $100 of prescription costs each program year, which runs from August 1 to July 31 and is reduced in the first year, then up to $6.11 for each prescription filled. Lower-income seniors can apply to the Seniors Co-Payment Program, which removes the deductible and lowers the co-payment.

CPP: contributions become optional for working recipients

If you are receiving your CPP retirement pension and still working, contributions are compulsory until 65. From 65 until 70 you can choose to stop. Employees do it by completing Form CPT30, giving a copy to each employer and sending the original to the CRA; the election takes effect on the first day of the month after the employer receives it. Self-employed people make the election on Schedule 8 of their return instead.

Whether to stop is a genuine choice. Contributions made while receiving CPP go toward the post-retirement benefit, which adds to retirement income. Stopping keeps more of each pay cheque now. Either way, contributions end for everyone at 70, as described in what changes at 70.

Who this matters for, and what to check

• Anyone turning 64 or 65 in the next year. Watch for the OAS letter, and decide whether to take OAS at 65 or defer, bearing in mind the GIS rule.
• People on lower incomes. Make sure a GIS application has been made, and that the tax return is filed every year.
• Anyone starting CPP around the same time. The application should go in well before the chosen month; see when to apply for CPP so the first payment isn't late.
• Everyone with a new set of deposits. CPP and OAS are paid together near the end of the month, on the dates in the payment calendar.

The short version

Sixty-five switches on OAS, opens the GIS, adds the age amount and widens the pension income amount, can start provincial drug coverage, and lets a working CPP recipient stop contributing. Only some of it is automatic. A single page listing the five items, with a tick against each, is the most useful thing to make in the year before the birthday.

This is private sponsored information published by NIVO Consultancy OÜ on caethe.com. It is not a Government of Canada, Service Canada or Canada Revenue Agency website and has no affiliation with them. Nothing here is financial, tax or legal advice, and no figure in this article is a promise, quotation or entitlement for any reader; amounts and dates were checked against the official sources above on 22 October 2026 and can change. There are no applications, registrations or fees on this website. Never give your Social Insurance Number, banking details or My Service Canada Account or CRA credentials to a website. For anything about your own payments, use My Service Canada Account or contact Service Canada.