The OAS increase at 75 that many people only notice on a statement

Dear reader,

Some changes to a pension are announced with a letter and a new amount in bold. This one tends to slip by. The month after an Old Age Security pensioner turns 75, the pension goes up by 10%, permanently, without a form or a phone call. The Government of Canada describes it in one sentence: you will get an automatic 10% increase of your OAS pension the month following your 75th birthday.¹

Because it is automatic, people often discover it the following February, when the T4A(OAS) slip shows a larger total than they expected. This letter explains where the increase came from, how it appears, and what it does and does not affect.

Where it came from

The increase for pensioners aged 75 and over took effect in July 2022. Everyone who was already 75 at that point received it, and everyone who has turned 75 since receives it the month after their birthday.² It is not a one-time payment or a temporary top-up; it is a permanent change to the pension rate for that age group.

It sits on top of the ordinary indexation. OAS amounts are reviewed four times a year, in January, April, July and October, to reflect increases in the cost of living, and they do not go down if prices fall.¹

What it looks like in dollars

For October to December 2026, the maximum OAS pension is $762.50 a month for people aged 65 to 74 and $838.75 for people aged 75 and over.³ The difference, $76.25 a month at the maximum, is the 10%.

Worked example · illustrative

Situation	Before 75	From the month after 75
Full pension started at 65	$762.50	$838.75
Partial pension, 30 years of residence (30/40)	$571.88	$629.06
Full pension deferred to 70 (+36%)	$1,037.00	$1,140.70

Calculated on the October to December 2026 rates. Real amounts change each quarter, depend on residence and income, and can be reduced by the OAS recovery tax. Arithmetic only, not an amount any reader will receive.

The increase is a percentage, so it follows whatever pension you already have. Someone who took a partial pension gets 10% of a partial pension; someone who deferred OAS to 70 gets 10% of the larger, deferred amount.

Why people notice it on a statement

The month-to-month change is modest and arrives the month after a birthday, often in a deposit that already moved because of a quarterly adjustment. The year-end total is where it becomes visible. Box 18 of the T4A(OAS) shows the taxable pension paid in the year, and in the year someone turns 75 it mixes months at both rates.⁴

The birthday year · illustrative

Pensioner born in May, full pension	Months	Rate	Total
January to May, age 74	5	$762.50	$3,812.50
June to December, age 75	7	$838.75	$5,871.25
Year total	12		$9,683.75

For simplicity every month uses the October to December 2026 rates. Without the increase the same year would total $9,150.00. Real slips reflect each quarter’s actual rate.

The following year, all twelve months are at the 75-plus rate, so the jump on the slip happens twice: once in the birthday year and again, more gently, the year after.

What it does not change

The Guaranteed Income Supplement. The government states that the increase at 75 does not change your GIS amount.¹ The supplement is calculated separately, from income on the tax return.

The income threshold. OAS is reduced by the recovery tax above a certain net income, and the upper limit at which the pension is fully recovered is higher for people aged 75 and over. For 2025 income, the payments page gives less than $152,062 for ages 65 to 74 and less than $157,923 for 75 and over.³

The tax. The extra amount is taxable like the rest of the pension. If you have tax deducted at source, it may be worth checking whether the deduction still suits your income.

Important

There is nothing to apply for, and no one can “unlock” or speed up the increase for a fee. A message offering to do so is not from the government; see the scam letters and texts that imitate Service Canada.

How to see that it happened

You do not have to wait for the slip. My Service Canada Account shows OAS payment information, so you can compare the payment for the month of your 75th birthday with the one after.⁵ If a quarterly adjustment fell in the same month, both changes will appear together, and the increase will look slightly larger than 10%. If the higher amount has not appeared within a couple of months of the birthday, call Service Canada and ask; the increase is automatic, but records can be wrong, for example when a date of birth was entered incorrectly years ago.

Who this matters for

• Anyone turning 75 this year or next, who will see the change on next February’s slip.
• Anyone on a partial pension, for whom the increase is 10% of a smaller amount.
• Anyone who files for a parent aged 75 or over and compares one year’s slip with the last.
• Anyone close to the recovery-tax threshold.

The takeaway

The increase at 75 is automatic, permanent and quiet. If the T4A(OAS) total jumps in the year of a 75th birthday, that is the reason, not an error. Keep the slip with the return, as set out in the letters worth keeping in a folder, and check the payment history in My Service Canada Account if the figures need explaining.

P.S. The next letter goes out on Tuesday. If it does not reach you yet, the reply card is below.