CPP deferral means waiting until after age 65 to start your Canada Pension Plan (CPP) retirement pension. Instead of receiving payments at the standard starting age, you postpone them in exchange for a permanently higher monthly pension once you start.
- How CPP Deferral Increases Your Pension
- The CPP Deferral Increase Is Permanent
- When Does Deferring CPP Make More Sense?
- CPP at 65 vs. 70: A Simple Break-Even Comparison
- When Should You Apply If You Are Deferring CPP?
- CPP Deferral Should Be Considered With Your Other Retirement Income
- Other Questions About CPP Deferral
For 2026, delaying CPP after age 65 increases your pension by 0.7% for each month you wait, equal to 8.4% for each full year. The increase reaches a maximum of 42% at age 70. There is no additional age-related increase for delaying CPP beyond 70.
How CPP Deferral Increases Your Pension
The CPP deferral adjustment is calculated monthly. Someone starting exactly one year after turning 65 receives an 8.4% increase, while waiting two years produces a 16.8% increase. Because the calculation works monthly, you can start between birthdays and receive the corresponding increase for the number of months you delayed.
| CPP starting age | Increase from age-65 amount |
|---|---|
| 65 | 0% |
| 66 | 8.4% |
| 67 | 16.8% |
| 68 | 25.2% |
| 69 | 33.6% |
| 70 | 42% |
These percentages apply to the pension calculated from your own CPP record, not automatically to the published maximum pension. If your pension at 65 were $1,000 per month, starting exactly at 67 would increase it to $1,168. Waiting until 70 would increase the same amount to $1,420 per month. Your starting amount depends on factors such as your earnings and contributions, which are covered in how CPP is calculated.
The CPP Deferral Increase Is Permanent
Once your deferred pension starts, the higher amount is not a temporary bonus. The age adjustment permanently increases your retirement pension. A 42% increase earned by delaying from 65 to 70, for example, remains part of the pension after payments begin.
CPP payments can subsequently change through annual cost-of-living adjustments, but those increases are separate from deferral. CPP retirement pensions already being paid are adjusted each January for changes in the Consumer Price Index. The higher pension created by deferral therefore becomes the starting point for future CPP payments.
When Does Deferring CPP Make More Sense?
The 42% maximum increase makes deferral attractive on paper, but the larger monthly payment comes at the cost of giving up payments between 65 and your eventual start date. The decision therefore depends on more than the percentage increase. Your health, expected longevity, current income, retirement savings and need for cash all matter.
Deferral may fit someone who can comfortably cover expenses from employment, savings or other retirement income and wants a larger lifelong CPP payment later. Someone expecting a long retirement may also place more value on the higher monthly income. By contrast, a person who needs CPP for current living expenses has less flexibility to postpone it. The goal is not simply to reach the highest possible monthly payment, but to consider what you give up while waiting.
Working after 65 adds another factor. If you continue working without starting CPP, earnings after age 65 can replace lower-earning periods from before 65 when doing so increases your pension. That effect is separate from the 0.7% monthly deferral increase, so continued employment can affect the eventual pension in more than one way.
CPP at 65 vs. 70: A Simple Break-Even Comparison
A break-even calculation puts the tradeoff into dollars. Assume your CPP would be $1,000 per month at 65. Starting immediately gives you $60,000 during the five years from 65 to 70. Deferring until 70 produces no CPP during those five years, but the 42% increase raises the pension to $1,420 per month.
After 70, the deferred pension pays $420 more each month. Recovering the $60,000 of payments given up takes about 143 months, putting the simple break-even point at approximately age 81 years and 11 months. Before that age, the age-65 option has produced more cumulative CPP in this simplified example. After that point, the age-70 option has produced more.
| Example | Start at 65 | Start at 70 |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly CPP | $1,000 | $1,420 |
| Received from 65 to 70 | $60,000 | $0 |
| Monthly difference after 70 | $420 more | |
| Approximate break-even age | 81 years, 11 months | 81 years, 11 months |
The calculation is useful for understanding deferral, but it is not a universal break-even age. It ignores taxes, investment returns, continued CPP contributions and differences in individual contribution records. Your own comparison should start with your CPP pension estimate and Statement of Contributions, rather than the $1,000 example.
When Should You Apply If You Are Deferring CPP?
Deferring CPP does not mean applying at 65 and asking for the pension to be held until later. You generally leave the retirement pension unclaimed, choose when you want it to begin and apply for that start date. You can apply for CPP up to 12 months before your chosen start date, so someone planning to start at 70 does not need to wait until their 70th birthday to submit the application.
Applying after 65 also gives you some flexibility over the start date. Under the 2026 CPP rules, you can generally request a start date as early as 11 months before the month your application is received, but not earlier than the month after your 65th birthday. A retroactive start changes the deferral calculation because the increase is based on when the pension actually starts, not when you submit the application. Someone applying at 70 and backdating the pension by 11 months therefore would not receive the full 42% age-70 adjustment.
There is no advantage from the age adjustment to waiting beyond 70. If your intention is to receive the full 42% deferral increase, your pension needs to start at 70 rather than being backdated to an earlier month. Applying ahead of your desired start date can make that easier. The application process itself is covered separately in how to apply for CPP.
CPP Deferral Should Be Considered With Your Other Retirement Income
CPP does not need to start at the same time as your other retirement income. CPP and Old Age Security (OAS), for example, have separate starting rules. Workplace pensions, registered savings and employment income can also affect how much immediate need you have for CPP.
Cash flow therefore deserves as much attention as the larger future payment. If postponing CPP would require drawing heavily from savings or carrying expensive debt, the higher pension later is only one side of the calculation. Conversely, someone whose existing income comfortably covers expenses may be able to defer without putting pressure on current finances.
There is no additional age-related increase after 70, so waiting beyond that point does not improve CPP through deferral. Once you know your estimated pension at different starting ages, compare those amounts with the income you expect to have while waiting, your current expenses and how long you may depend on retirement income. Our separate look at when to take CPP covers that broader decision.
Other Questions About CPP Deferral
Can you defer CPP for only a few months?
Yes. CPP deferral is calculated monthly, so you do not have to delay for a complete year. Each month after age 65 adds 0.7% to your retirement pension until the increase reaches 42% at age 70.
Do you have to be retired to defer CPP?
No. You can continue working without starting your CPP retirement pension. Pensionable earnings after 65 may also affect your eventual pension calculation, while CPP contributions stop at age 70.
Can you defer CPP but collect OAS?
Yes. CPP and OAS are separate pensions with separate starting rules. Starting one does not require you to start the other at the same time.
Does CPP keep increasing if you wait past 70?
No. The deferral adjustment stops increasing at age 70. Waiting beyond 70 does not produce an additional age-related CPP increase.
