Retirement Pension Paid under the Québec Pension Plan

The retirement pension is one of the basic sources of income that individuals can start receiving as early as age 60, provided they have contributed to the Québec Pension Plan. However, the amount payable is reduced for individuals under age 65 and increased for those who begin to receive it after age 65.

Retirement pension and work
You do not have to stop working to apply for a retirement pension. The Québec Pension Plan provides for measures allowing a person to receive a retirement pension while gradually working toward retirement.

Retirement pension and disability
The beneficiary of a retirement pension who is deemed to be disabled by the Retraite Québec within the first six months following the first payment of his or her retirement pension may ask that it be cancelled in order to receive a disability pension. In that event, retirement pension amounts must be reimbursed.

If it is not possible for the person to have his or her retirement pension cancelled, he or she could be entitled to the additional amount for disability.

Cancellation of a retirement pension
To cancel a retirement pension within six months following the first payment, the beneficiary must write to Retraite Québec. All retirement pension amounts must then be reimbursed.

As the clientele and conditions may vary based on the services, this information is provided under each service.

The amount of the retirement pension is calculated based on

• the number of years a person contributed to the Québec Pension Plan,
• the employment earnings on which a person contributed to the Plan, and
• the person’s age at the time payment of the pension begins.

If payment of the retirement pension begins when the person is age 65, the amount corresponds to about 25% of the monthly earnings on which contributions were made.

The retirement pension is paid until the beneficiary’s death.

Pension where payment begins when the beneficiary is 60 or over, but under 65
For beneficiaries born before January 1, 1954
If a person starts receiving his or her pension before the age of 65, the pension will be reduced by 0.5% for each month between the month in which payment begins and the month in which the person turns 65 (reduction of 6% for each year). The maximum reduction is thus 30% for a pension paid as of the month of the beneficiary’s 60th birthday. The reduction will apply for as long as the pension is paid.

For beneficiaries born on or after January 1, 1954
If a person starts receiving his or her pension before the age of 65, the pension will be reduced based on an adjustment factor applied to each month between the month in which payment begins and the month in which the person turns 65. The reduction varies according to the year of retirement and the amount of the pension and ranges from 0.5% to 0.53% for pensions paid starting in 2014, from 0.5% to 0.56% for pensions paid starting in 2015 and from 0.5% to 0.6% for pensions paid starting in 2016.

Pension where payment begins when the beneficiary is age 65
The normal retirement age is 65. If a person starts receiving a retirement pension in the month of his or her 65thbirthday, the pension is neither reduced nor increased.


Pension where payment begins when the beneficiary is 65 or over, but under 70
If a person starts receiving a retirement pension after the month of his or her 65th birthday, the pension is increased by 0.7% for each month between the 65th birthday and the month in which payment of the pension begins, up to a maximum of 42% at age 70. This increase applies for as long as the pension is paid.

Pension where payment begins when the beneficiary is 70 or over
If a person starts receiving a retirement pension at age 70 or later, the pension is increased by 42% compared to the amount that would have been payable at age 65. That is the maximum increase.

Maximum monthly amounts in 2017

Retroactive payment
A person over 65 who has not yet applied for a retirement pension can receive a retroactive pension. Retroactive payments cannot exceed 12 months from the date of the application or begin before the person’s 65th birthday. However, a person cannot receive both the retroactive payment and the increase of 0.7% each month for the same period.

Tax treatment
The retirement pension is subject to income tax.

You may ask the Régie to deduct income tax at source.

Indexation
The retirement pension is indexed annually.

Terms of payment
The retirement pension is paid on the last working day of the month, either by cheque or by direct deposit.

Dates of monthly payments
Monthly payments of a retirement pension in 2017 take place on the following dates:

Retirement pension and other income
The retirement pension paid under the Québec Pension Plan is never reduced because the beneficiary is receiving payments under another public or private plan. However, the amount of the retirement pension is taken into account in calculating the amount of social assistance and social solidarity benefits, Employment Insurance benefits and the Income Security Supplement. Individuals should contact the government departments and agencies concerned for information.

Pension sharing between spouses
To save on income tax, spouses can share their retirement pension under certain conditions. Pension sharing is calculated based on the number of years the spouses have been married, been in a civil union or been living together and on the number of years included in the contributory period. This means that the pension will not necessarily be shared equally between the spouses.

• Beneficiary's Guide: Retirement Pension: Québec Pension Plan (PDF, 458 KB)
• Calculation of the Retirement Pension under the Québec Pension Plan (PDF, 91 KB)
• Welcome to the Québec Pension Plan! (PDF, 272 KB)
• When You Retire (PDF, 487 KB)

• An Act respecting the Québec Pension Plan , CQLR, chapter R-9

• International Social Security Agreements