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Here’s how Canada’s Old Age Security pension works, who’s eligible for OAS, when you can start receiving benefits, and the OAS payment dates in 2026.
If you’re close to retirement or are a pensioner trying to manage your monthly budget, it helps to know when your Old Age Security (OAS) benefits are paid out. The government publishes the payment dates and provides a wealth of information about the program, but you may still have questions. We’ll review eligibility, income limits, payment amounts, and more, so you’re fully prepared to handle your retirement finances.
Old Age Security benefits are monthly payments from the federal government to eligible Canadians aged 65 and older. These payments, along with the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and personal savings, are meant to provide financial support as seniors age out of the workforce.
When you become eligible, Service Canada will automatically enroll you for the OAS pension and notify you by mail.
Although GIS is part of the OAS program, there are distinctions between the two. Like OAS, you’re automatically enrolled in GIS payments if you’re eligible; however, GIS payments aren’t considered taxable income, and only Canadian residents with a low monthly income qualify for the payments.
To qualify for this extra financial assistance, you must file personal income taxes and have a maximum income below a certain threshold (based on how you file your taxes). Your GIS payments are made on the same day as the OAS payments.
If you believe you meet the requirements for OAS or GIS but haven’t been notified, you can apply for both benefits at the same time.
The government lists all of the current (and past) year’s OAS payment dates. For 2026, OAS payments go out on:
The exact amount you receive depends on a few key factors: your age, your citizenship, and how long you’ve lived in the country. And, OAS payments are indexed to inflation, meaning they generally increase each year. If the cost of living decreases, don’t worry—your benefits will never decrease.
Here are the maximum amounts you could receive with OAS:
| Age | Max. monthly payment | Annual net work income requirement (2026) |
|---|---|---|
| 65 to 74 | $742.31 | Less than $148,541 |
| 75 and over | $816.54 | Less than $154,196 |
Source: Government of Canada
You’ll only receive the maximum amount if your annual income is below the threshold, and you’ve lived in Canada for at least 40 years since you turned 18. If you’ve lived in the country for at least 10 years (but less than 40), you may be eligible for a partial OAS payment, but if you’re outside of Canada when you apply, you can only get partial OAS payments if you’ve lived in Canada for at least 20 years after you turned 18.
You’ll also notice that people between the ages of 65 and 74 receive less than those aged 75 and up. This is because Canadians over age 75 receive an automatic 10% increase to their OAS payments.
The Government of Canada provides an OAS benefits calculator on its website. The tool is designed to show you when you can begin receiving benefits, the amount you’ll receive, and how your payments might change depending on your personal situation.
Whether or not you’re eligible for OAS also depends on the same factors that will ultimately determine how much you receive. To be eligible for OAS, you must:
OAS also has residency requirements. If you’re living in Canada when you apply, you must have lived in Canada for at least 10 years since you turned 18. If you’re living outside of Canada, you must have lived in Canada for at least 20 years since you turned 18.
Your employment history doesn’t affect your eligibility. You can receive OAS even if you are still working or have never worked.
Learn more: OAS entitlement and deferral rules for immigrants to Canada
You may be wondering if you should delay your OAS start date after your 65th birthday. The answer will depend on your life and health circumstances, your retirement plans, whether you intend to continue working, and, if so, what your income will be.
By waiting to take your OAS payments, you’ll receive a higher monthly payout since monthly payments increase by 0.6% each month you delay (up until age 70).
| Age | Increase (%) | How much you could get for your OAS pension (Jan. to March 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| 65 | N/A | $742.31 |
| 66 | 12 months x 0.6% = 7.2% | $795.76 |
| 67 | 24 months x 0.6% = 14.4% | $849.20 |
| 68 | 36 months x 0.6% = 21.6% | $902.64 |
| 69 | 48 months x 0.6% = 28.8% | $956.10 |
| 70 | 60 months x 0.6% = 36% | $1,009.54 |
Source: Government of Canada
If you’re not relying on the OAS income because you’re still working, you might decide you’d like to put off the payments and receive a higher amount when you retire. Before making any decisions about when to start taking OAS, consult a financial advisor.
If you’re receiving OAS benefits, but your net income exceeds the income threshold for the year, you might have to repay some or all of your OAS benefits under the pension recovery tax. Whether you will have to repay, and how much, depends on your “net world income” in a given year and the minimum recovery tax threshold for that year.
Each year also has a maximum recovery tax threshold; at that point, the entire OAS amount will be clawed back.
| Recovery tax period | Income year | Min. income recovery threshold | Max. income recovery threshold (Ages 65-74) | Max. income recovery threshold (Ages 75+) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 2025 to June 2026 | 2024 | $90,997 | $148,451 | $154,196 |
| July 2026 to June 2027 | 2025 | $93,454 | $152,062 | $157,923 |
| July 2027 to June 2028 | 2026 | $95,323 | $154,708 | $160,647 |
To avoid having your benefits clawed back, consider using these strategies:
Learn more: Planning for retirement with little or no savings to draw on
The amount you’ll receive depends on your age, how long you’ve lived in Canada, and your income. To give you an idea of how much you might get, use the OAS Benefits Estimator on the government website.
If you’re between the ages of 65 and 74, you cannot make more than $148,451 if you’re hoping to receive OAS payments. Note that the limit may change when the government next adjusts income thresholds and payment amounts.
Yes, because prices in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) trended up, OAS benefits increased by 0.3% in Quarter 1 of 2026. This marks a 2% increase in benefits over the past year.
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I’m inquiring for my sister, she turned 65 years old in May 2024, she only gets about $1300. total for OAS and CPP too. (She hasn’t worked for a very long time). She had asked me:
Why is she getting lower income and would her rent affect how much she gets from either of these sources of income? She had talked to her friends and found out they are getting around $1800/mth.(they are 65 and don’t work either).
Last Aug, seniors 75 & older got a $500 tax free, one time cheque…Do the seniors turning 75 in 2024 get the same $500 ? If so, when ?
My monthly OAS payment has not been received yet, as of Dec. 31st, although my CPP came through as usual. I found a list of OAS payout dates on the Service Canada website, and the planned pay date was Dec. 20 — curiously, also the only date for the year not formatted in strikethrough font style. Has something happened to delay that payment?
We are two 80 age.How can we get?
Hi,
My wife ,59 year old, is not working for more than a decade, due to medical reason. She briefly worked for few months in the span of 15 years, since coming to Canada.. Is she eligible for CPP? Or OAS? Is working and contributing mandatory to avail this benefit? If yes, when is the correct time to apply?
Thanks.
Due to the large volume of comments we receive, we regret that we are unable to respond directly to each one. We invite you to email your question to [email protected], where it will be considered for a future response by one of our expert columnists.
When are we to receive the (OAS) T-4 form?
Since the CPI indexing does not cover many expenditures, the inflation rate is only on a few items. Is that fair, as the MPs, think that getting a 3% mandated raise is just fine for them. Some seniors have limited funds so all types of expenditures should be calculated to get the true picture, it isn’t pretty.
I want to know when do I receive the 10% increase because I turn on 75 years old
on May 15th and my pension remain the same value on May 28th
Thank you for posting your question. It has been answered by a Certified Financial Planner here: https://www.moneysense.ca/columns/ask-a-planner/when-do-cpp-and-oas-pension-payment-increases-happen-around-your-birthday/