Quebec QPP Payment Dates 2023: Benefits & Amount

The Quebec Pension Plan is a CCP style pension program for the province of Quebec. This post covers the QPP benefit program for Quebec retirees.

We’ll start off with the QPP payment dates for 2023, its eligibility, how to apply, how much you can receive and how the amount is calculated.

QPP Payment Dates 2023

The payments for the retirement pension, disability or death benefits are combined and paid on the same dates, usually the last business day of each month.

So the Quebec Pension Plan, QPP payment dates for 2023 are:

Benefit Month	QPP Payment Dates
January	January 31, 2023
February	February 28, 2023
March	March 31, 2023
April	April 28, 2023
May	May 31, 2023
June	June 29, 2023
July	July 31, 2023
August	August 31, 2023
September	September 29, 2023
October	October 31, 2023
November	November 30, 2023
December	December 28, 2023

Like all other benefit payments, you may choose to receive the QPP payments as cheque or as direct deposit in your bank account.

Direct deposit is fast and secure, and ensures you’ll receive your retirement pension on the QPP payment dates above.

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What is the Quebec Pension Plan?

The Quebec Pension Plan was started in 1966 with the aim of providing pension to those in retirement in the province. It is the equivalent of the federal pension program, Canada Pension Plan (CPP).

QPP payments can start as early as age 60, but those that wait till the normal retirement age of 65 will receive a higher amount. Also, the payments are guaranteed for life and inflation protected.

The available benefits under the Quebec Pension Plan include:

• Retirement Pension
• Disability benefits
• Survivors’ benefits
• Death Benefit

How Much QPP Can You Get?

Your monthly QPP payments is based on how much you have contributed to the plan and your age when you apply for it.

The earliest age to start receiving the QPP retirement pension is 60. But the longer you wait to apply, the higher the amount you’ll get.

For example, a retiree that applies at age 60 will only receive 64% of the maximum pension amount for someone aged 65.

On the other hand, if the retiree waits till 70 before they start receiving QPP, they can receive 142% of the maximum amount.

For 2023 payment period, the QPP maximum monthly amounts for retirement pension are shown in the table below:

Age at Application	% of Max Pension	QPP Maximum Monthly Amounts
Age 65	100%	$1306.57
Age 60	64%	$836.20
Age 70	142%	$1855.33

To estimate how much you can receive, you can use the CompuPension tool here to simulate your retirement income. Another useful tool from the Quebec government is SimulR.

The Statement of Participation in the Quebec Pension Plan will also show you how much you have contributed to the plan and what you can expect to receive.

Here are a few things to note about your retirement pension:

• You can apply and start receiving your retirement pension the month after you turn 60. However, waiting till age 65 or after will increase your pension amount
• If you apply at age 65, you can expect the pension payment to replace 25-33% of your average monthly earnings for your contribution period. Months with low or nil income can be excluded from the average, meaning you’ll get a higher amount.
• If you’ve contributed to the plan and you’re over age 60, you can start receiving your pension even if you’re still working full-time or part-time

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Is QPP Taxable?

The retirement pension amount is taxable. Your tax liability depends on your total income for the year that is made up of your retirement pension and income from all other sources.

However, you can reduce the tax payable on your QPP amount by sharing your pension with your spouse. Both spouses must be above age 60 for them to share the pension.

And if they’ve both contributed to QPP, then both of them must have started receiving their pension for the strategy to work.

QPP income sharing with a spouse is not automatic. You must apply to Retraite Québec to take advantage of the option. Check here for more information.

Additional QPP Benefits

There are a few other benefits available under the Quebec Pension plan in addition to the retirement income. These include:

Disability benefit

Persons below age 65 with a disability that have made sufficient contributions to the Quebec pension plan can receive disability benefits under QPP.

The benefit includes a disability pension for the QPP contributor, pension for their child and additional amount for disability.

Disability pension pays a maximum monthly benefit of $1,362.27 in 2023 and $79.46 for the disabled person’s child.

Finally, the additional amount for disability for retirement pension beneficiaries is capped at $496.36 per month in 2023.

Survivors’ benefit

The survivors’ benefit provides financial assistance to the family of a deceased QPP beneficiaries if they “contributed sufficiently to the Quebec Pension Plan”.

It includes a surviving spouse’s pension and an orphan’s pension.

The surviving spouse’ pension pays a monthly benefit of $605.68 to a beneficiary aged 45 and below with no dependent children and up to $995.92 a month to beneficiaries aged 45 to 64.

Orphan’s pension on the other hand is a maximum monthly benefit of $264.53 that is paid until the child turns 18.

Death Benefit

This is a lump sum payment of a maximum $2,500 to the heirs of a QPP recipient or to someone or charity that paid the funeral expenses at their death.

The person that paid the funeral expenses is given the priority in determining who gets the benefit. If the actual funeral expenses are not up to $2,500, the difference can be paid to the heirs.

Note that the death benefit is taxable and must be included in the income of the estate.

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Quebec Disability Pension Payment Dates

The disability pension benefits are paid on the same day as QPP retirement income, usually the last business day of each month. For 2023, the Quebec disability pension payment dates are:

Benefit Month	Quebec Disability Pension Payment Dates
January	January 31, 2023
February	February 28, 2023
March	March 31, 2023
April	April 28, 2023
May	May 31, 2023
June	June 29, 2023
July	July 31, 2023
August	August 31, 2023
September	September 29, 2023
October	October 31, 2023
November	November 30, 2023
December	December 28, 2023

Like the retirement pension payments, you can enroll for direct deposit to have the benefits received in your bank account on the Quebec disability payment dates.

QPP Increase 2022

QPP benefit amounts are indexed to inflation so recipients will always see an increase each year. For 2022, the retirement income for someone aged 65 increased by $45.33 from $1,208.26 in 2021 to $1,253.59.

Disability benefits also increased from $1,416.45 to $1,463.83 – an increase of $47.38. The survivors’ benefit increased too but the lump-sum death benefit of $2,500 remain unchanged.

The table below shows a summary of the QPP increases in 2022:

Benefit	2021 Amount	2022 Amount
Max. Retirement Income	$1,208.26	$1,253.59
Max. Disability Income	$1,416.45	$1,463.83
Surviving spouse’s pension (age 45 – 64)	$958.40	$995.92
Orphan’s pension	$257.58	$264.53

Besides the regular annual increase, there’s no any official announcement on QPP increase for 2023 yet.

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QPP Contributions

To be eligible to receive retirement income under QPP at retirement, recipients would have to make contributions to the plan over the course of their careers.

Those earning less than $3,500 are exempted from contributing to the Quebec pension plan. The base contribution rate is 12.8% of earnings up to the Maximum Pensionable Earnings of $66,600 for the 2023 contribution year.

That means the maximum that can be contributed under the base plan is 8,524.8. Employees can only contribute half of this amount, while their employer contributes the other half. On the other hand, Self-employed workers will have to contribute the full amount themselves.

There’s an additional plan that allows a maximum contribution rate of 1.5% to 2% for those interested in contributing extra to QPP.

When Does QPP payment end?

QPP is a guaranteed retirement income source for beneficiaries. It is paid for life and does not end until after the death of the retiree.

So what happens to QPP at death?

At death, the retiree’s survivors get a lump sum, one-time death benefit of $2,500. Also, the surviving spouse and the deceased’s children may qualify for the monthly Surviving spouse’ pension and Orphan’s pension.

For 2023, these benefits pay a maximum of $1064.81 and $281,72 respectively.

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Some FAQs: Quebec Pension Plan

At what age can you apply for QPP?

Application for QPP retirement income can start at age 60. But the longer you wait to apply, the higher the amount you’ll get. For example, a retiree that applies at the age of 60 will only receive 64% of the maximum pension amount for someone aged 65.

How much can you receive as disability in Quebec?

You can receive up to a maximum of $1537.13 monthly as a disability benefit under QPP. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you can also get $558.71 as an additional amount, and $83.99 for each child.

Will QPP benefits increase in 2023?

QPP is indexed to inflation so there’s always an annual increase. For 2022, the QPP retirement income for a recipient aged 65 increased by $30.96 from $1,208.26 in 2021 to $1,253.59. All the other benefits also had slight increases.

What date is Quebec pension paid?

The Quebec pension benefits are paid on the last business day of each month. In 2023, the QPP payment dates all fall on the last working date of the months except for December with a payment date of December 28 – a day before the last business date.

Related: Quebec Family Allowance Dates