A new report shows that more than 10,000 Toronto residents living in poverty are not accessing the old age security pension they are eligible for.
The report, conducted by the Wellesley Institute, a non-profit research group in Toronto, and Open Policy Ontario, a provincial social policy consultancy, compared the rates of seniors eligible for the pension with the rates of those actually receiving it. The report found that new immigrants and people with limited English or French skills are most likely to be missing out on the pension.
According to Statistics Canada data, also referenced in the report, there are more than one million people in Toronto over 65, with seniors making up the fastest growing group in the city.
When comparing the most populated downtown areas across Canada, Toronto has the third highest rate of older-adult poverty in the country, and most of the city’s low-income seniors are immigrants.
“If you take Canada as a whole, 30 per cent of seniors are immigrants and 70 per cent are not,” said John Stapleton, researcher with Open Policy Ontario. “In the Toronto region, it’s literally reversed and 71 per cent of seniors are immigrants.”
Christine Sheppard, a researcher with the Wellesley Institute, said no other city has that same proportion of older immigrants. “That is unique to Toronto.”
Stapleton, who also leads workshops for seniors on “Planning for Retirement on a Low Income” through the Toronto Public Library, said applying for old age security can be particularly challenging, as “there’s no one set of rules that apply to everybody.”
To be eligible for the pension, a senior must be at least 65, and have lived in the country for at least 10 years. “For somebody who’s just come into Canada, at age 63, they wouldn’t be eligible until they’re 73,” he said.
Originally introduced in 1952, the old age security pension, Canada’s first universal pension, provides a monthly income to most Canadians 65 and over. For some, the old age security payments can be worth thousands of dollars annually.
Because the pension is paid out based on the amount of time a person has spent living in Canada, many people may mistakenly think they’re not eligible, said Stapleton. Another barrier to understanding eligibility is the misconception that to receive the pension, people must be Canadian citizens. In fact, permanent residents and landed immigrants in Canada are also eligible for old age security.
Lack of access to technology can be another barrier to eligible seniors applying. Having trouble with online forms, not having access to a computer, the internet or a printer and not knowing they can go Service Canada for forms are all challenges, said Stapleton.
To help bridge the gap for seniors unsure if they are eligible to apply or how to, the Toronto Public Library periodically offers workshops teaching skills in financial literacy, said Vanessa Sparks, senior services specialist for older adults & seniors at the library. “Similar programming is being planned for January to March 2025, and seniors can check out our schedule for more,” said Sparks, referring to www.torontopubliclibrary.ca
These pension programs are there for people to access, especially low-income seniors, said Stapleton. “If they don’t have (old age security) then it means that more seniors are going to be stretched,” said Stapleton.
For the report, data from the 2021 Canadian Income Survey was used to identify 2020 income sources for adults 65 or older in the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area.
Some seniors may have trouble with online forms or not realize they can go to Service Canada for the application forms.
