What this site is
KnowYourPension.ca is an independent education resource covering Canadian government retirement programs — OAS, GIS, CPP, and related benefits. We explain how these programs work, who qualifies, and how to get the most out of them.
We are not a financial advisor. We don't sell financial products. We don't receive commissions or referral fees. Our only purpose is to give Canadians clear, accurate information they can act on.
Why we built it
Canada's retirement benefit programs are among the most important financial resources available to older Canadians — yet they are explained almost exclusively through government publications written by bureaucracies, for bureaucracies.
Most Canadians approaching retirement don't know when they should take CPP, whether they qualify for GIS, or what happens to their OAS if they earn too much in a given year. That's not because the information doesn't exist — it's because no one has bothered to explain it plainly.
This site exists to fix that. We write the guides we wish existed when we first started asking these questions.
Who writes here
Editorial standards
Every article published on KnowYourPension.ca goes through a structured review process before it goes live:
- Research and drafting — all primary sources are Canada.ca, Service Canada publications, and the Income Tax Act where applicable.
- Dollar amount verification — all benefit amounts, income thresholds, and contribution figures are verified against current government publications and anchored to the year they reflect. These figures change annually and are updated each year.
- Professional review — every article is reviewed by a licensed Canadian financial professional before publication to verify accuracy and flag anything that requires correction.
When government figures change — which they do every year for OAS, GIS, and CPP — we update the relevant articles and note the date of the update.
What we are not
We are not a licensed financial advisor or planner. Nothing on this site constitutes financial advice for your specific situation. Benefit amounts depend on your individual contribution history, income, residency, and other personal factors that we cannot account for.
If you're making a significant decision about when to take CPP, whether to defer OAS, or how to structure your retirement income, please speak with a licensed Canadian financial advisor.
A note on government benefit amounts
OAS, GIS, and CPP amounts are indexed to inflation and change quarterly (OAS/GIS) or annually (CPP). Every article that references specific dollar amounts includes the year those figures reflect and directs readers to Canada.ca to verify current numbers before making any decisions.
Contact
For editorial inquiries or corrections, you can reach us at: hello@knowyourpension.ca
If you notice an error in any article — a wrong dollar amount, an outdated rule, a missing nuance — please let us know. We take accuracy seriously and correct errors promptly.