RRIFs Explained: Converting Your RRSP at 71
An RRSP has an expiry date. By 31 December of the year you turn 71, it must be turned into income — and for most people that means converting it into a registered retirement income fund, a RRIF. A RRIF pays you a minimum amount every year for the rest of your life, the amount is set by a table, and everything you receive is taxed as income. Miss the deadline and the CRA deregisters the whole RRSP at once.
In short
Your RRSP must mature by 31 December of the year you turn 71: convert it to a RRIF, buy an annuity, or withdraw it all and pay tax on the whole balance. In a RRIF there is no minimum in the year you open it, and the first minimum is due the following year. The minimum is the 1 January fair market value multiplied by the prescribed factor for your age — 5.28% at 71, rising to 20% at 95 and over.
The age-71 deadline
The last contribution you can make to an RRSP is 31 December of the year you turn 71. By that same date the RRSP must be matured: converted to a RRIF, used to buy an annuity, or withdrawn in full. If you do nothing, the CRA deregisters the RRSP and the entire balance becomes taxable income in that year — the worst possible outcome. Your financial institution will usually write to you well before the deadline, but the responsibility is yours.
The minimum withdrawal
A RRIF must pay you a minimum amount each year, starting in the year after you open it. The minimum is the fair market value of the RRIF on 1 January, multiplied by a prescribed factor for your age at the start of that year. The factors have been unchanged since 2015:
| Age | Minimum factor |
|---|---|
| 71 | 5.28% |
| 72 | 5.40% |
| 75 | 5.82% |
| 80 | 6.82% |
| 85 | 8.51% |
| 90 | 11.92% |
| 95 and over | 20% |
Before age 71 the factor is 1 divided by (90 minus your age). You can elect to use a younger spouse's age instead, and that election is fixed when you apply. One detail is contested: two 2026 guides disagree on whether the first minimum after converting at 71 uses the 5.28% (age-71) or the 5.40% (age-72) factor. This guide states the factor table and the "age at the start of the year" rule only, and does not assert either first-year figure — confirm it with your carrier.
Tax on RRIF payments
There is no withholding tax on the minimum amount itself. Amounts above the minimum are withheld at the same tiers as RRSP withdrawals — 10% up to $5,000, 20% from $5,001 to $15,000, and 30% above $15,000 outside Quebec. All RRIF payments are taxable income, and the slip you receive is a T4RIF. Earnings inside the RRIF stay tax-free, just as they did inside the RRSP.
RRIF vs annuity
A RRIF keeps your money invested and lets you take more than the minimum whenever you want. An annuity gives the money to an insurer in exchange for a guaranteed payment for life, and there is nothing left when you die. A RRIF is flexible and leaves an estate; an annuity is certain and leaves nothing. Many people convert to a RRIF first and buy an annuity later, or split the RRSP between the two.
Related guides
Sources: Canada Revenue Agency, RRIF.