What order should I withdraw from my RRSP, TFSA and non-registered accounts in retirement?

There is no single right order - it depends on your account sizes and income. Lower-income retirees often benefit from emptying the RRSP before 65 and spending from the TFSA afterward to qualify for GIS. Middle incomes usually do best drawing the RRSP steadily through the bottom tax bracket with the TFSA last. Large RRSPs often call for an aggressive meltdown before 70 to shrink future RRIF minimums and reduce OAS clawback.

Should I take CPP at 60, 65 or 70?

CPP is reduced 0.6% per month before 65 (36% less at 60) and increased 0.7% per month after 65 (42% more at 70). Taking it at 60 can make sense if you are pursuing GIS, because a smaller CPP keeps your income under the GIS cutoff. Deferring to 70 suits retirees with enough savings to bridge the gap who want larger guaranteed, inflation-indexed income for life.

How do I avoid the OAS clawback in 2026?

OAS is reduced by 15 cents for every dollar of net income above roughly $95,000 in 2026. The main defences are drawing your RRSP down before OAS starts so mandatory RRIF withdrawals stay smaller, and spending from your TFSA in high-income years, since TFSA withdrawals do not count as income. If your income is well above the threshold, some clawback is unavoidable - a sign your plan worked, not that it failed.

Can I qualify for GIS if I have savings?

Yes. GIS is tested on taxable income, not assets. TFSA withdrawals do not count against GIS, so a retiree who empties their RRSP before 65, shelters the proceeds in a TFSA, and keeps taxable income under the cutoff (about $22,500 for a single person in 2026, excluding OAS) can collect GIS while holding significant savings.

When does my RRSP have to become a RRIF?

By the end of the year you turn 71, with mandatory minimum withdrawals starting the following year - about 5.4% at 72 and rising each year after. These forced withdrawals are fully taxable, which is why large RRSPs are often drawn down earlier, on your own schedule and in lower brackets.

What is the earliest age I can retire in Canada?

There is no legal minimum - the constraint is whether your portfolio can fund the gap before government benefits begin. CPP starts no earlier than 60 and OAS no earlier than 65, so early retirees fund the bridge years themselves. Note that retiring very early also shrinks your CPP entitlement, since it averages earnings over your whole contributory period.

16 Jul 2026 15 min read Calculators

Calculator - When To Retire And How To Use Your Retirement Savings And Maximize Government Retirement Benefits

You spent thirty years figuring out how to save. Nobody tells you the withdrawal order matters just as much - pull from the wrong account first and you can hand back thousands in OAS clawback, or walk right past GIS money you were entitled to.

After the background work for the recent posts on CPP, OAS, and RRSP withdrawals (also a bit of GIS in that post), and yes, with some AI help on the build, I put together a drawdown calculator to answer the question those posts kept circling - when can you retire, and in what order should you spend? It tests three sequencing strategies against your actual numbers (the GIS play, the bracket smoother, and the clawback defence) and tells you which one wins, plus the earliest retirement age your portfolio can support.

The usual caveat, and I mean it - I'm not a tax expert or a financial planner. Treat this as general guidance and a way to ask better questions - then confirm the plan with a professional before you act on it.

Drawdown Sequencer — Optimized For Freedom

The Drawdown Sequencer

This tool answers the hard question - what order do you spend your retirement savings in, and when do you turn on CPP and OAS so the government programs work for you instead of against you? Everything runs in today's dollars, using 2026 rules.

About you

Current age

Target retirement ageWe'll also test earlier ages for you

Province / territory

Annual spending (after-tax)Today's dollars

Annual savings until retirementTFSA is filled first, then RRSP

Plan to age

What you've built

RRSP / RRIF balance

TFSA balance

Non-registered balance

Non-registered unrealized gain% of the balance that is capital gain

Your CPP at 65 (% of max)Check My Service Canada Account. Retiring very early shrinks this - CPP averages your whole contributory period

Years in Canada by age 6540 = full OAS

Real return (after inflation)% per year

Tests three sequencing strategies and every retirement age down to 30.

Earliest retirement

Take CPP at

Take OAS at

Estate at plan age (after tax)

Lifetime gov't benefits

of which GIS

Lifetime income tax

OAS lost to clawback

Your sequence, at a glance

How the three strategies compare (at your target retirement age)

Strategy	CPP	OAS	Money lasts to	Estate (after tax)	GIS collected	Tax paid

Year-by-year plan (recommended strategy)

Age	RRSP/RRIF out	Non-reg out	TFSA out	CPP	OAS (net)	GIS	Tax	RRSP end	TFSA end	Non-reg end

What this tool assumes (read this part - it matters):

2026 program figures: CPP max at 65 of $1,507.65/mo, OAS of $740.09/mo (65-74) and $814.10/mo (75+), GIS single max of $1,105.43/mo, OAS recovery threshold of $95,323 of 2026 net income. Benefits and thresholds are indexed, so in real terms we hold them flat - a reasonable planning assumption.
CPP adjusts -0.6%/month before 65 and +0.7%/month after 65. OAS defers at +0.6%/month to 70 and gets the 10% bump at 75. GIS shrinks roughly 50 cents per dollar of non-OAS taxable income and requires OAS to be started.
Taxes use 2026 federal brackets (14% bottom rate), your province's basic brackets and personal amount, the age amount, and the $2,000 pension income credit from 65. Provincial surtaxes, health premiums, and dividend credits are not modelled - treat provincial tax as approximate.
RRIF minimums start the year you turn 72 (conversion at 71). Non-registered withdrawals realize capital gains at a 50% inclusion rate on your gain percentage. TFSA re-contributions during the RRSP meltdown are assumed to have room available.
Strategies are ranked by after-tax estate value: remaining RRSP/RRIF is valued at 75 cents on the dollar and non-registered at its value net of deferred capital gains tax, because a TFSA dollar is worth more than an RRSP dollar at the finish line.
This models one person. Couples change the GIS math and unlock income splitting - that's a bigger conversation (and a future version of this tool).
This is a planning model, not advice. Confirm your own numbers in My Service Canada Account and with the CRA before acting.

The Drawdown Sequencer

Your sequence, at a glance

How the three strategies compare (at your target retirement age)

Optimized

You might also like...