Ottawa hikes Old Age Security pension rates

(March 27, 2003) Canada’s seniors will see a slight increase in their government pensions next month. The federal government announced yesterday that Old Age Security benefits will rise 0.6% on April 1, bringing the basic OAS monthly pension to $456.08.

Human Resources Development Canada adjusts OAS rates for inflation every three months. The change is based on a comparison between the current three-month Consumer Price Index rate and the previous quarterly average. Last week, Statistics Canada reported that the CPI rose 4.6% in February, compared to the previous year. Compared to January, inflation was up 0.7%, mostly due to higher energy prices, such as gasoline.

The OAS system is funded through general tax revenues and provides a basic minimum income to the majority of Canadians over the age of 65. It also provides additional benefits to eligible low-income seniors and their partners through the Guaranteed Income Supplement and the Allowance. In 2001-02, four million seniors collected more than $25 billion under the OAS program.

Filed by Doug Watt, Advisor.ca, dwatt@advisor.ca