Government of Canada announces a new Canada Pension Plan benefit for students

The Voice of Canada News:

Minister of Seniors, Joanne Thompson, announced new benefits for part-time students whose parents are disabled or deceased and contributed to the Canada Pension Plan (CPP). As of January 1, 2025, eligible part-time students aged 18–24 will receive 50 percent of the amount paid by the CPP to full-time students. For 2025, this is a monthly flat rate of $150.89 for part-time students who qualify for the benefit. Students will need to show a minimum school attendance threshold to qualify for the benefit.

CPP children’s benefits are there to provide financial support to dependent children under the age of 18 that would normally be provided by their disabled or deceased parent. For children aged 18 to 24, these benefits help cover some of the cost of their education. It is estimated that this new benefit will immediately help 6,712 beneficiaries in 2025.

This change is part of the CPP reforms announced in the Fall Economic Statement and Budget 2024 following the agreement of ministers of finance to conclude the 2022–2024 CPP Triennial Review. Other CPP amendments took effect on January 1, 2025, including adding a top-up to the death benefit for certain contributors, extending eligibility for the Disabled Contributor’s Child’s Benefit when the parent reaches age 65, and ending the entitlement to a survivor’s pension following a CPP credit split. In addition to the Triennial Review changes, the package included a change to the CPP legislation that was already in effect: extending the incapacity provisions to protect the Disabled Contributor’s Child’s Benefit.

Quotes

“The rising costs of living are affecting us all. No child should have to choose between caring for their parents and going to school. By regularly evaluating the impact of the CPP on Canadians, we are taking the needs of students seriously and providing them with the tools they need to have a secure future.”
– Minister of Seniors Joanne Thompson 

Quick facts

• Every three years, federal, provincial and territorial ministers of finance meet to review the CPP to make sure it is financially healthy and that it is still meeting the needs of Canadians. 
• The Triennial Review process is the primary mechanism used to make changes to the CPP. Finance Canada leads the Triennial Review for the Government of Canada, with support from ESDC. 
• The Triennial Review ensures that the CPP remains one of the top-ranking public retirement plans in the world and continues to provide protection to disabled contributors and their families as well as to the families of deceased contributors.
• As part of the Triennial Review process, the Chief Actuary of Canada confirmed in their report that the CPP is financially sustainable for the next 75 years at the current level of contributions. 
• Each Triennial Review officially begins with the release of a report by the Office of the Chief Actuary of Canada that assesses the financial sustainability of the CPP and is tabled in Parliament by the Minister of Finance. The latest report was tabled on December 14, 2022.
• These reforms were agreed upon by federal and provincial ministers of finance during the CPP Triennial Review.