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Seniors: The government has reduced the minimum required withdrawals from your RRIF by 25%.

General Angela Calla 24 Apr

Reduction in RRIF Minimum Withdrawal

Minimum withdrawals must be made from an individual’s Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF) beginning in the year after the RRIF is established. These minimum withdrawals are based on the individual’s age and are calculated as a percentage of the fair market value of the RRIF assets at the beginning of the year. For 2020 the government is allowing a reduction of the required minimum withdrawals from RRIFs by 25%. Individuals who have already taken out funds will not be able to recontribute.

What this means for you:

  • More tax-deferred growth: If you do not need the full distribution from your retirement account(s), you now have some more time to earn tax-deferred growth before full distributions are required again in 2021.
  • You still may want to take the full distribution:
    • You may still want to review your withdrawal strategies with your financial advisor and tax professional to see if it makes sense to withdraw 100% of the funds this year, depending on your income needs and tax bracket.
    • If you have access to a combination of taxable accounts, traditional retirement accounts, and Tax-Free Savings Accounts, accounts, you may want to review which is the best to take withdrawals from, considering both your current tax situation and your desire to leave assets to your heirs.

If you would like to update your existing payment schedule now or delay a payment later in the year, review and complete the payment request change form with your financial advisor.

Delay in Tax Filing Requirements

The federal income tax filing date has been extended to June 1, 2020 for individuals (other than trusts), while the June 15, 2020 deadline continues to apply for self-employed individuals and their spouses/partners. The deadline to pay any balance due for your individual income tax and benefit return for 2019 has been extended from April 30, 2020 to September 1, 2020, and from April 30, 2020 to September 1, 2020 for self-employed individuals or those who have spouses or common-law partners that are self-employed.

What this means for you:

We recommend the following when considering when to file your taxes.

  • Are you expecting a refund or to owe taxes?
    • If you are owed a refund, it may be best not to wait to file to ensure you receive your refund as soon as possible.
    • If you owe taxes and have more immediate expenses, this gives you additional time to pay. That said, you want to make sure you’ll still be able to pay what you owe come September 1, 2020.
  • If you expect government benefits (such as the Canada Child Benefit or the Goods and Services Tax Credit) you may want to file sooner in order to ensure your benefits are not interrupted.

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Angela Calla is a 16-year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from all sales will be donated to Access Youth Outreach Services. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.