Thinking about retirement

Your pension provides important retirement income, but there are other sources of income as well, including RRSPs and government benefit programs.

It is a good idea to regularly review your financial situation to decide if the income available to you in your retirement will be enough to meet your needs and maintain your standard of living.

Your WorkSafeBC pension is one source of retirement income. Your Member's benefit statement and our pension estimator tool in My Account can help you estimate your pension income based on your retirement age and pension options.

While your pension is an important source of retirement income, you may also want to explore other income sources, including:

• Registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs) and personal savings
• Government benefits, such as Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and old age security (OAS)

You can contribute to both an RRSP and the WorkSafeBC Pension Plan. The amount you are allowed to contribute to an RRSP will be adjusted because you are already contributing to a registered pension plan. Any contributions you make to your RRSP are tax deductible. You will have to pay tax when you withdraw money from the RRSP.

You may be eligible for CPP benefits when you retire. You can apply for CPP as early as age 60, although your payments will be reduced compared to applying for CPP at a later age.

You may also be eligible OAS benefits if you meet citizenship and residency requirements.

When you are ready to receive these benefits, you must apply for CPP and OAS.