{"id":7604,"date":"2025-03-26T22:05:56","date_gmt":"2025-03-27T02:05:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.paulrioux.ca\/?page_id=7604\/"},"modified":"2026-05-25T10:34:37","modified_gmt":"2026-05-25T14:34:37","slug":"retirees-quebec-pension-plan-qpp","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.paulrioux.ca\/en\/guide\/retirees-quebec-pension-plan-qpp\/","title":{"rendered":"Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wpb-content-wrapper\">[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718818933{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]\n<h2 class=\"blog-single-title\">Fiscal and Financial Planning Guide 2024-2025<\/h2>\n<h3>Retirees &gt; Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP)<\/h3>\n<p><strong>History<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) came into effect in 1966. The contribution rate at the time was 1.8% for employees and 1.8% for employers. The maximum salary on which employees could contribute was $5,000.<\/p>\n<p>As we&#8217;ll see later, things have changed a lot since then, as the government has made numerous modifications and improvements over the years of the plan&#8217;s existence. Indeed, in 2025, the contribution rate is 6.3% for employees and 6.3% for employers up to a maximum salary of $ 74,600 and 4% on the salary bracket between $ 74,600 and $ 85,000.<\/p>\n<p>The successive increases in the contribution rate, whose main aim was to ensure the sustainability of the plan in the context of an aging population, have given rise to much debate over the years.<\/p>\n<p>Indeed, the government wants to act like a good head of family by forcing workers to save for their retirement. But for many workers having an average income, compulsory QPP contributions reduce the personal saving amounts available for their RESPs, RRSPs, TFSAs or TFFHSA, which could enable them to adopt a savings strategy better suited to their personal situation.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Contributions<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Contribution period<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Starts at age 18, calculated on earned income<\/li>\n<li>Ceases when workers stop working and no later than January 1 of the year in which the worker reaches age 73 if he continues to work.<\/li>\n<li>It is possible to stop contributing at age 65 when receiving a QPP pension.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Contribution rates<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The following table illustrates the QPP contribution rate in 2025.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9254&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718868341{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]As you can see, contributions for a self-employed worker (maximum $9,790) are significantly higher than those for an employee (maximum $4,895), i.e. twice as much. Note that in the case of an employee, the employer pays the other half (maximum $4,895).<\/p>\n<p>This is the case, for example, of an incorporated professional whose company pays him a salary. He will personally contribute $4,735 to the QPP, while his company will pay another $4,735.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pension<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Pension commencement<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The QPP pension can be claimed no earlier than age 60 and no later than age 72, subject to a reduction of 6% per year of anticipation before age 65 and an increase of 8.4% per deferral year after age 65.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pension amount<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The normal retirement age under the QPP is 65. To be entitled to the maximum QPP pension of <strong>$ 17,196 in 2025<\/strong>, workers must generally:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Have contributed for at least 35 years since the age of 18. Note that a mother with children under age 7 and earning less than $3,500 can subtract these years when calculating the 35 years required by the QPP so they won&#8217;t be penalized;<\/li>\n<li>Have earned the maximum QPP-eligible salary throughout their 35-year career since the age of 18. It should be noted that the QPP salary requirement of $74,600 in 2026 was $11,700 in 1979, the year in which a person aged 65 in 2025 was 18 (age at which contributions begin).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9258&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718946494{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]<strong>Maximum pension<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The following table illustrates the maximum pension at age 65 ($17,196 in 2025) and the effect of the 7.2% annual reduction when claiming the pension before age 65 or the 8.4% annual increase when choosing to defer the pension after age 65.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9261&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718998758{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]Notes :<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>These projections are in constant dollars (without indexation).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Increase in QPP maximum pensionable earnings<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>An additional component was added to the RRQ\u2019s basic plan in 2024, under which employees contribute at a rate of 4% on an additional salary bracket ranging from $74,600 to $85,000, which is the maximum eligible earnings (MPE) (114% of the basic plan\u2019s salary).[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9263&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719056247{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]Workers earning more than the MPE will thus be entitled to receive higher pensions, and will also benefit from the gradual increase in the pension percentage from 25% to 33.33%. At maturity, younger workers earning $85,000 or more could therefore expect a pension of around $28,000 in today&#8217;s dollars (33% x $85,000), provided they have contributed enough years, generally 35 years.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Gradual increase in pension from 25% to 33% of pensionable earnings<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Since its creation, the pension paid at retirement has corresponded to 25% of the average worker&#8217;s salary, subject to the maximum pensionable earnings ($74,600 in 2026).[\/vc_column_text][vc_cta h2=&#8221;&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;]The annuity rate will gradually increase from 25% in 2019 to 33.33% in around 40 years.[\/vc_cta][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1743470628187{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]Younger workers will benefit most from the increase in the rate based on the number of years of contributions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Few workers are entitled to the maximum pension<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It is to be noted that only 2.8% of workers are entitled to the maximum QPP pension, as shown in the table below:[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9266&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719547998{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]There are two main reasons for this:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The maximum salary used by the QPP is the average industrial salary for large companies in Canada (200 employees or more) published annually by Statistics Canada. The average wage in Canada is about $10,000 lower than the average industrial wage used by the QPP. As a result, a majority of workers earn less than the salary required to obtain the maximum QPP pension.<\/li>\n<li>It is difficult to reach the required 35 years of contributions (late start of career after university, illness, remuneration in the form of dividends rather than salary by incorporated professionals, etc.).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>To postpone the pension or not?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We could determine the ideal age from a financial point of view to claim the QPP pension if we could predict the future (e.g. age of death, inflation rate, effect of the pension on tax credits and other social programs).<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, there are too many imponderables. This is a situation where forecasts can vary widely. In such a situation, it&#8217;s best to rely on certain basic principles.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Consider the number of years to recuperate deferred years<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Another angle is to consider the number of years required for the higher pension obtained through deferral to recover the pension amounts sacrificed during the deferral period. Thus, as illustrated in the last column of the table, if we choose to take the pension at age 67, for example, it will take 11.4 years to obtain the same pension accumulation, i.e. at age 78. This is known as the pay back method.<\/p>\n<p>It is important to note that:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The previous projections shown in the table are intended as trends only. They do not take into account factors such as pension indexation, maximum increase in pensionable earnings, potential return on pension and tax implications.<\/li>\n<li>The table and examples have been prepared using QPP maximum pension amounts. As previously mentioned, few workers are entitled to the maximum pension. However, the reasoning remains the same for pensions below the maximum.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Consider the impact of annual annuity increases<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_cta h2=&#8221;&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;]It&#8217;s interesting to consider the pension increase in terms of the percentage increase of the pension for each deferral year. For example, as shown in the previous schedule showing the maximum pension according to age at the beginning, if the pension is taken from age 61 ($12,882) instead of age 60 ($11,579), it will be 11.25% higher. It can also be seen that the annual deferral gain gradually decreases from 11.25% to 5.59% from age 61 to 72.[\/vc_cta][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719598242{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]<strong>Insuring survival risk<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Delaying the start of your pension helps hedge against longevity risk\u2014that is, it ensures a stable income if you are fortunate enough to live to an advanced age. As a guide, the table below shows the probability that a woman or man aged 65 in 2023 will reach a certain age. For example, a man aged 65 in 2023 has a 25% chance of reaching age 94.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;7744&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1743470723230{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]Source : CFFP Universit\u00e9 de Sherbrooke, Septembre 2023, Quand d\u00e9buter ses prestations de retraite, les Avantages de la flexibilit\u00e9 p.14 IQPF Normes d\u2019hypoth\u00e8ses de projection.[\/vc_column_text][vc_cta h2=&#8221;&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;]While each situation is unique, generally speaking, the best age to start claiming QPP benefits is probably 67 or 68.[\/vc_cta][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719652864{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]<strong>Pension protection at age 65<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>A retiree who chose to defer his or her pension after age 65 could suffer a negative impact on pension calculation due to the fact that he or she earned no work income during the deferral period and did not benefit from the full annual pension increase of 7.2% per year of deferral.<\/p>\n<p>As of January 1, 2024, years of low or zero earnings during the deferral period after age 65 will no longer negatively affect the pension calculation. The retiree will also be able to benefit from the full annual pension increase of 8.4% per deferral year.<\/p>\n<p>It is likely that, thanks to this new measure, more pensioners will differ the start of their pension after age 65.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Few retirees differ their QPP pension after age 65<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Despite the recent increase in the deferral bonus to 8.2% per year after age 65, only 8% (6% + 2%) of retirees had chosen to defer their pension after age 65 in 2022. However, this proportion is higher than in 2017, when only 4% (3% + 1%) of retirees deferred the start of their pension after age 65.[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;7745&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text margin_bottom=&#8221;0&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719712986{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]One might even think that those who claimed it after age 70 had simply forgotten to claim it, since the option of deferring the annuity from age 70 to 72 was only introduced in 2024.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Pension cancellation<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The pension can be cancelled within six months of the first payment if you change your mind and decide to defer it.<\/p>\n<p>Enclosed is a link to form B-003, which must be used to submit the cancellation request :<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rrq.gouv.qc.ca\/en\/services\/formulaires\/regime_rentes\/Pages\/b-003.aspx\">https:\/\/www.rrq.gouv.qc.ca\/en\/services\/formulaires\/regime_rentes\/Pages\/b-003.aspx<\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Combined Public Pensions (OAS and QPP)<\/strong>[\/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=&#8221;9271&#8243; img_size=&#8221;full&#8221; alignment=&#8221;center&#8221; css=&#8221;&#8221;][vc_column_text margin_bottom=&#8221;0&#8243; css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779719768078{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;]Many years ago, public pensions were often considered a relatively marginal element in retirement planning.<\/p>\n<p>However, following the many improvements made to these plans over the years, they have become an increasingly important factor to consider.<\/p>\n<p>Par exemple, une personne qui r\u00e9clamerait les rentes \u00e0 l\u2019\u00e2ge de 68 ans et qui aurait droit aux rentes maximum, recevait une rente annuelle de l\u2019ordre de 33\u00a0000 $ (potentiellement le double pour un couple).<\/p>\n<p>Please note that OAS amounts are those of 2025 and QPP amounts are those of 2026.[\/vc_column_text][mk_button dimension=&#8221;two&#8221; corner_style=&#8221;rounded&#8221; size=&#8221;large&#8221; icon=&#8221;mk-icon-arrow-left&#8221; url=&#8221;\/en\/fiscal-and-financial-planning-guide\/&#8221;]Back[\/mk_button][\/vc_column][\/vc_row]\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718818933{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;] Fiscal and Financial Planning Guide 2024-2025 Retirees &gt; Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP) History The Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) came into effect in 1966. The contribution rate at the time was 1.8% for employees and 1.8% for employers. The maximum salary on which employees could contribute was $5,000. As we&#8217;ll see later, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":124,"featured_media":0,"parent":7402,"menu_order":71,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-7604","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP) | Paul Rioux CA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.paulrioux.ca\/en\/guide\/retirees-quebec-pension-plan-qpp\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP) | Paul Rioux CA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text css=&#8221;.vc_custom_1779718818933{margin-bottom: 0px !important;}&#8221;] Fiscal and Financial Planning Guide 2024-2025 Retirees &gt; Qu\u00e9bec Pension Plan (QPP) History The Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) came into effect in 1966. The contribution rate at the time was 1.8% for employees and 1.8% for employers. The maximum salary on which employees could contribute was $5,000. 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The contribution rate at the time was 1.8% for employees and 1.8% for employers. The maximum salary on which employees could contribute was $5,000. 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