The Old Age Security increase at 75
Old Age Security rises by a tenth, without any application, once you have turned 75, and the increase follows you whatever kind of pension you receive.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · Method
Old Age Security rises automatically by 10 % the month after your 75th birthday. From October to December 2026, the full pension is $838.75 a month at 75 or older against $762.50 at 65 to 74, a difference of $76.25 a month or about $915 over a year. Over the four quarters of 2026 the 75+ maximum went from $816.54 to $838.75, following the cost of living. No form is needed: Service Canada describes the increase as automatic. It is a percentage of your own pension, so a partial pension gains a tenth of its partial amount and a deferred pension a tenth of its deferred amount. Service Canada states that the increase does not affect the Guaranteed Income Supplement, which stays at the level set by your income. The recovery tax still applies, with a higher cut-off at 75 or older because the pension is larger. The amount on your Service Canada notice is the one that counts.
Your OAS before and after 75
OAS per month from 75
$838.75
| OAS per month at 74 | $762.50 |
| Increase per month | $76.25 |
| Increase over a year | $915.00 |
October to December 2026 rates, before recovery tax. The increase starts the month after your 75th birthday.
The 2026 amounts, quarter by quarter
| Quarter | Ages 65 to 74 | Age 75 or older | Gap per month | Gap per quarter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January to March | $742.31 | $816.54 | $74.23 | $222.69 |
| April to June | $743.05 | $817.36 | $74.31 | $222.93 |
| July to September | $751.97 | $827.17 | $75.20 | $225.60 |
| October to December | $762.50 | $838.75 | $76.25 | $228.75 |
The gap grows a little each quarter because the 10 % applies to an indexed base. The amounts come from the ESDC quarterly report and the Service Canada payments page, which also notes that a quarterly rate is never lowered when the cost of living falls.
The first increased payment
Service Canada’s rule is short: the increase comes the month following your 75th birthday. The birthday month itself is paid at the old rate. Two 2026 examples, both for a full pension:
- Born in May 1951: 75 in May 2026, first payment at the 75+ rate in June, deposited on June 26, 2026, worth $817.36.
- Born in November 1951: 75 in November 2026, first increased payment in December, deposited on December 22, 2026, worth $838.75.
The deposit days are the usual OAS dates of the federal benefits calendar; the OAS payment dates page lists all twelve.
Partial and deferred pensions
Because the increase is a share of your own pension, its dollar value depends on what you earned. A partial pension of 25 years goes from $476.56 to $524.22 a month at October 2026 rates, a gain of $47.66. A full pension started at 70 rises from $1,037.00 to $1,140.70, a gain of $103.70. Someone who waited until 70 therefore collects the larger bonus five years after starting, which strengthens the case for deferral made in the deferral guide. The years-of-residence fraction is explained on the partial pension page.
Your OAS before and after 75
OAS per month from 75
$838.75
| OAS per month at 74 | $762.50 |
| Increase per month | $76.25 |
| Increase over a year | $915.00 |
October to December 2026 rates, before recovery tax. The increase starts the month after your 75th birthday.
Birthdays close to a quarter change
Service Canada reviews OAS amounts in January, April, July and October, and the rate never drops. When the 75th birthday falls just before one of those months, two raises arrive almost together. Take a full pensioner born in February 1951. The March 2026 payment is the first at the 75+ rate, $816.54 instead of $742.31; the April payment then moves to $817.36 with indexation. Someone born in September 1951 sees the reverse order: October brings the new quarter at $762.50, and the increase follows the month after the birthday, in October as well, so that payment jumps straight to $838.75.
Reading the notice is easier with this in mind. A rise in the month after the birthday is the 10 % increase; a rise in January, April, July or October is indexation, and both can land on the same deposit. A change in any other month usually means something else moved in your file, such as the recovery tax withheld from July on the basis of the previous year’s income. Service Canada can explain any line of the notice, and My Service Canada Account shows the payment history month by month, which makes it easy to spot the first payment at the 75+ rate.
What the increase is not
It is not a new benefit and needs no separate application. It is not tied to income, residence in a province or health, and it does not replace the supplement or any provincial top-up. It is simply a higher rate of the same Old Age Security pension, paid on the same day, under the same recovery rules, from the month after the birthday for the rest of your life.
Guaranteed Income Supplement: no change
On its page about the OAS amount, Service Canada adds a sentence that matters for low-income seniors: the 10 % increase will not affect your Guaranteed Income Supplement payment amount. The supplement is calculated on income other than OAS and paid at the same grid whatever your age, so a single senior with little other income who turns 75 simply receives more OAS and the same GIS. For the $1,138.90 maximum supplement of late 2026 and the income test, see the GIS calculator.
The recovery tax after 75
The clawback starts at the same income for everyone: 15 % of 2025 net income above $93,454. What changes at 75 is the point where the pension is gone, since there is more to recover. Service Canada places it at $157,923 of 2025 income at 75 or older, against $152,062 at 65 to 74. With $150,000 of income, the site’s engine leaves $55.67 a month of a full pension at 74 and $131.92 at 75. For high earners, the increase at 75 mostly shows up as pension that the recovery tax no longer erases. The clawback calculator has a 75+ option.
Tax and budgeting
The increase is taxable like the rest of the pension. On a full pension it adds roughly $915 of income for a full year at the October 2026 rate, which is worth checking against any tax withheld at source, any income-tested provincial program and the recovery threshold. It is also one of the few raises in retirement that can be dated in advance, to the month, which makes it easy to build into a budget or a savings plan.
Couples with different ages
Each spouse’s pension follows that spouse’s own birthday. In a couple where one partner is 76 and the other 72, only the older one receives the 75+ rate, and the younger one moves up three years later. The combined household OAS therefore steps up twice, once for each 75th birthday, and the OAS calculator can be run separately for each spouse.