RRSP
A Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) is a savings plan, registered with the Canadian federal government that you can contribute to for retirement purposes.
When you contribute money to a RRSP, your funds are “tax-advantaged”, meaning that they’re exempt from being taxed in the year you make the contribution. Any investment income earned from investments held within the RRSP can then grow tax-deferred, as long as the money remains within the RRSP, until it’s withdrawn.
RRSP contributions are tax-deductible, meaning that they can be deducted on your current year tax return, potentially reducing the total amount of taxes you pay.
TFSA
A tax-free savings account is an account available in Canada that provides tax benefits for saving.
Investment income, including capital gains and dividends, earned in a TFSA is not taxed in most cases, even when withdrawn.
RESP
A Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is a government-registered savings plan that helps you save for your child’s post-secondary education.
The money that you invest in an RESP grows tax-deferred, and the federal government helps contribute to your savings along the way in the form of education grants.
When your child enrols at a qualifying post-secondary institution and you are ready to withdraw the funds for educational purposes, the payments made using these funds are known as Educational Assistance Payments (EAPs).
Tax is applied to the investment income and government grants received when withdrawn from the RESP, not on the contributions you made using your own funds. These amounts are taxed in the hands of the student, and this usually means little or no tax will be paid, because students typically fall into the lowest tax bracket.
- The sooner you start an RESP for your child, the more time your contributions will have the chance to grow.
- The Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG) matches 20% of annual contributions, up to $500 per year
- The matching contributions can continue until the lifetime limit of $7,200 per child has been reached
- Investing your Canada Child Benefit could help you save enough to qualify for the maximum CESG amount
RDSP
A registered disability savings plan (RDSP) is a savings plan that is intended to help parents and others save for the long term financial security of a person who is eligible for the disability tax credit (DTC).
Contributions to an RDSP are not tax deductible and can be made until the end of the year in which the beneficiary turns 59. Contributions that are withdrawn are not included as income to the beneficiary when they are paid out of an RDSP. However, the Canada disability savings grant (grant), the Canada disability savings bond (bond), investment income earned in the plan, and the proceeds from rollovers are included in the beneficiary’s income for tax purposes when they are paid out of the RDSP.
NRSP
Set aside additional savings
The non-registered savings plan (NRSP) is a plan that lets investors set aside additional savings for retirement.
FHSA
A First Home Savings Account (FHSA) is a registered savings plan designed to help first-time homebuyers save for purchasing or building their first home.
Individuals can contribute up to $8,000 annually, with a lifetime limit of $40,000, and enjoy tax-deductible contributions while their investments grow tax-free. When you’re ready to buy your first home, withdrawals are tax-free, making it an excellent tool for growing your home savings more quickly. To qualify for an FHSA, you must be a Canadian resident aged 18 or older and a first-time homebuyer (meaning you haven’t owned a home in the current or previous four calendar years). If you don’t use the funds, they can be transferred to an RRSP or RRIF without penalties.
Segregated Funds
How Segregated Funds Can Help Business Owners
You’ve built your business. Segregated funds can help protect you.
Who is this for?
As a business owner, you’ve put a great deal of time, money and passion into establishing and growing your business. Segregated funds – which are professionally managed pools of money spread across different investments – can help protect your money should you run into tough financial times.
How will this help me?
A segregated fund policy is an insurance policy. For that reason, it may be protected from creditors – not only for your personal registered assets, but also your non-registered assets. The potential for creditor protection may be available where the beneficiary shares a specific type of relationship with the annuitant; for example, if they’re a spouse, child or parent. This level of protection is not available with mutual funds.
Estate Planning
Protect what you leave behind
An Estate Protection policy is designed to safeguard the wealth you’ve worked so hard to build, ensuring that it’s passed directly to your loved ones with ease and security. This private policy helps your beneficiaries avoid unnecessary fees, taxes, and probate delays, allowing them to receive the full benefit of your legacy without added costs. Additionally, it provides opportunities for your assets to grow in the market, maximizing the value you leave behind for future generations.
The best way to leave an inheritance is with careful planning to secure your family’s future, and we’re here to guide you every step of the way. With our support, you can have peace of mind knowing your estate will be transferred smoothly, efficiently, and exactly as you intended.
RRIF
A Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF) is an account registered with the federal government that gives you a steady income in retirement.
Before, you were putting money into your RRSP to accumulate savings for retirement. Now, you withdraw that money from your RRIF as retirement income.
LIF
A life income fund (LIF) or locked-in retirement income fund (LRIF, RLIF, PRIF) is like a RRIF, but is for money that originally came from a pension plan.
The funds are held in either a locked-in retirement account (LIRA) or a locked-in RRSP and then converted to a LIF.
While different provinces have different rules, both LIFs and LRIFs have both minimum and maximum annual withdrawal amounts.
Annuities
Annuities are contracts issued and distributed (or sold) by financial institutions where the funds are invested with the goal of paying out a fixed income stream later on.
They are mainly used for retirement purposes and help individuals address the risk of outliving their savings. Upon annuitization, the holding institution will issue a stream of payments at a later point in time.