A Reference Guide - Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan

Old Age Security Program

The Benefits

The Allowance and the Allowance for the survivor

The Allowance and the Allowance for the survivor are benefits for 60- to 64-year-old low-income seniors who meet the eligibility requirements. They are designed to lessen the financial difficulties faced by couples living on a single pension and by seniors whose spouse or common-law partner has died.

The Allowances are not automatic. They must be applied for. Once a person has applied for an Allowance, they do not need to reapply to maintain their eligibility as long as they file an income tax return each year.

Benefits are not included in income for tax purposes. Allowance benefits are not payable outside Canada beyond a period of six months after the month of departure, regardless of how long the person resided in Canada.

To qualify: The Allowance may be paid to the spouse or common-law partner of an OAS pensioner who is eligible for the GIS, and the Allowance for the survivor to a senior whose spouse or common-law partner has died.

To qualify, an applicant must be between 60 and 64 and have resided in Canada for at least 10 years after turning 18. He or she must also have been a Canadian citizen or a legal resident of Canada on the day before approval of the application. His or her annual income, combined with that of the pensioner (or on its own in the case of a surviving spouse/common-law partner), cannot exceed certain limits, which are set annually. OAS and GIS benefits are not included when calculating income for the Allowance.

The Allowance stops when the recipient becomes eligible for an OAS pension at 65, leaves Canada for more than six months, or dies. For a couple, the Allowance stops if the recipient of the OAS pension ceases to be eligible for the GIS, if the couple separates or divorces, or when the OAS recipient dies.

The Allowance for the survivor stops if a survivor remarries or enters into a common-law relationship for more than 12 months, leaves Canada for more than six months, or dies.

Retroactive benefits: People who apply for the Allowance or the Allowance for the survivor after the age of 60 can, if eligible, receive a retroactive payment covering up to 11 months. The period of retroactivity is calculated from the month the application is received. (They would at the same time receive payment for the month in which the application was received.)

The period of retroactivity cannot go back beyond the month following the applicant′s 60th birthday or, in the case of the Allowance, beyond the date of the OAS pensioner′s effective date for the GIS.

Sponsored immigrants: A spouse/common-law partner of an OAS pensioner, with fewer than 10 years of residence in Canada after the age of 18, is not eligible for the Allowance for the period of his or her sponsorship (up to a maximum of 10 years), or until they have lived in Canada for ten years, whichever comes first.

Non-sponsored immigrants: A pro-rated benefit may be paid to a non-sponsored immigrant who has not resided in Canada for 10 years after reaching 18 if he or she qualifies under a social security agreement with another country and meet all other eligibility requirements. The Allowance entitlement grows gradually over 10 years, paid at the rate of one tenth of the benefit for each year of residence in Canada.

Amount of benefit: Allowance benefits are income-based. The maximum amount payable to a pensioner's spouse/common-law partner is equal to the combined full OAS pension and the maximum GIS at the «married/common-law» rate. The maximum amount for a survivor is higher.

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