The Survivor's Tax Cliff

Most retirement plans model two people living to 90. Almost none model the year one of you does not. When the first spouse dies, the survivor keeps at most 60% of the deceased's CPP (often far less, because of the combined-benefit cap), loses their OAS entirely, loses pension income splitting, and files as a single taxpayer on the consolidated income — with the OAS clawback now measured against the single threshold. This calculator shows you the size of that cliff in dollars and as a percentage, whether the survivor's income still covers the spending, and what the remaining RRIF costs on the final return. Enter your numbers to see yours.

Your household today

Enter what each of you receives now, before tax. The calculator models one representative year with both of you alive, then the same year with one of you gone.

Spouse 1

Age

72

5595

CPP (per year)

What they receive now. The 2026 maximum at 65 is about $18,092.

$

OAS (per year)

Enter 0 if not started yet. Full OAS at 65 to 74 is about $8,917.

$

Other pension income (per year)

Workplace or defined-benefit pension, before tax.

$

RRSP / RRIF balance

$

RRSP / RRIF withdrawal (per year)

Automatically raised to the RRIF minimum from age 72.

$

Spouse 2

Age

70

5595

CPP (per year)

What they receive now. The 2026 maximum at 65 is about $18,092.

$

OAS (per year)

Enter 0 if not started yet. Full OAS at 65 to 74 is about $8,917.

$

Other pension income (per year)

Workplace or defined-benefit pension, before tax.

$

RRSP / RRIF balance

$

RRSP / RRIF withdrawal (per year)

Automatically raised to the RRIF minimum from age 72.

$

Household and scenario

Model the first death of

Run it both ways. The answer is usually different depending on who goes first.

Spouse 1Spouse 2

Non-registered investment income (per year)

Optional. Interest, dividends, realized gains. Treated as fully taxable.

$

TFSA withdrawals (per year)

Optional. Tax free, and the TFSA rolls to the survivor intact.

$

Household spending today (after tax, per year)

$

Survivor pension continuation

How much of the deceased's workplace pension keeps paying. 60% is a common default. Some pensions pay nothing.

60%

0%100%

Survivor's spending

One person rarely spends half of what two did. 70% to 80% is the usual range.

75% of today

40% of today100% of today

The CliffWhat DisappearsLockedThe Second DeathLockedAssumptions

After-tax income together

$108,801

$9,067 a month

After-tax income for Spouse 2

$77,524

$6,460 a month

The cliff

-$31,278

A 28.7% drop

What this means

Spouse 2 keeps 71.3% of the household's after-tax income

Household spending almost never falls by the same amount. One person still heats the same house, pays the same property tax, and drives the same car. That gap between a 28.7% income drop and a much smaller spending drop is the survivor's tax cliff.

Income after tax$77,524 a year

Spending assumed$71,250 a year (75% of today)

Surplus$6,274 a year

Both alive

Taxable income

$123,954

Income tax

$15,153

OAS clawed back

$0

Tax-free TFSA withdrawals

$0

After-tax household income

$108,801

Effective tax rate

12.2%

Spouse 2 alone

Taxable income

$97,129

Income tax

$19,605

OAS clawed back

$551

Tax-free TFSA withdrawals

$0

After-tax income

$77,524

Effective tax rate

20.2%

Worth knowing

• •The survivor's consolidated income crosses the OAS recovery threshold that the couple stayed under. That clawback is included in the after-tax number above.
• •Part of the CPP survivor's pension is lost to the combined-benefit cap. A survivor already at the maximum CPP receives no survivor top-up at all.

three of the 57 Checks

with your numbers, Marc would look at these next

1. 1

   Planning for when one spouse passes

   household income drops. we plan for it ahead of time.

2. 2

   Managing the withdrawals the government forces later

   so mandatory minimums in your 80s do not push you into a higher-tax zone.

3. 3

   Evening out both spouses' future income

   so neither of you crosses into a higher-tax or benefit-clawback zone.

the survivor lands over the OAS line that you stayed under as a couple. i would even out both incomes now and look at the RRIF minimums that cause it.

you have built something worth planning around.

at your stage the big wins are in how the money comes out: the order you draw it down, when CPP and OAS start, and how much tax your family keeps. on a free fit call Marc goes through your numbers with you and tells you honestly if he can help.

see Marc's open times

those are three of the 57 Checks. the other 54 are what the plan runs.

send me these three checks + the full 57

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Based on 2026 CPP and OAS maximums from Canada.ca and combined federal plus Ontario tax rates from TaxTips.ca. One representative year, in today's dollars. Age and pension credit amounts for 2026 are indexed estimates. The CPP survivor's pension uses the age 65-plus rule. See the Assumptions tab for the full list. This is an educational tool, not financial advice. For a personalized plan, book a fit call with Marc.