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The last of the seven eternal truths of personal finance that ran in the Financial Post in June was “Don’t say no to free money from the government.” After it ran, I heard from a spokesperson for the federal government’s Ministry of State for Social Development. He pointed out that it might have been appropriate to mention the RDSP or Registered Disability Savings Plan, which helps families with disabled family members save in a tax-efficient manner. I agreed it was an omission and offered to run the guest blog that follows. — JC
By Candice Bergen,
Special to the Financial Independence Hub
If you have a disability or if you have a child with a disability, you should know about the Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP).
The purpose of the plan is to help Canadians with disabilities and their families to save for the future. The federal government also provides generous grants and bonds to help with long-term savings if eligible.
Across Canada, approximately 100,000 people are already benefiting from the program; however, estimates show that there are still more than 400,000 people who are eligible but have yet to take advantage of this plan. That’s unfortunate because it’s very easy to set up an account. In fact, all you need is a Social Insurance Number, be a Canadian resident and qualify for the Disability Tax Credit.
Once an RDSP is set up, anyone—friends or family included—can contribute to it. You can open a RDSP at a participating financial institution, such as a bank or credit union.
You can contribute as much as you want to a RDSP each year, up to a lifetime limit of $200,000. The earnings from the Plan build tax-free until taken out of the plan.
Ottawa supplements RDSP in two ways
