Retirement savings do not necessarily need to come out of a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) as one large taxable withdrawal. A Registered Retirement Income Fund (RRIF) provides another route, allowing eligible registered assets to move into an account built for retirement withdrawals while the remaining investments stay registered. A RRIF is an arrangement registered with the Canada Revenue Agency between you and a financial institution such as a bank, trust company or insurance company. Property is transferred into the fund from an eligible registered plan, and the carrier makes payments from it to you. Unlike an RRSP, however, the account is designed to distribute money rather than accept ordinary new contributions.
How Money Moves Into a RRIF
An RRSP is the source many Canadians associate with a RRIF, but it is not the only one. The 2026 RRIF transfer rules permit qualifying direct transfers from several registered arrangements, including an RRSP, another RRIF, a First Home Savings Account (FHSA), a pooled registered pension plan (PRPP) and certain pension-plan amounts.
Using a direct transfer matters. Taking money personally from an RRSP before trying to put it into a RRIF is not the same transaction and can make the withdrawal taxable. The financial institution should therefore handle an eligible RRSP-to-RRIF conversion as a registered transfer.
There is no requirement to wait until 71 to open a RRIF. However, an RRSP must mature by the end of the year its annuitant turns 71. Converting it to a RRIF is one available option at that point. An eligible annuity is another, so an RRIF is not the mandatory destination for every maturing RRSP.
What Happens to Investments Inside a RRIF
Moving assets into a RRIF does not require everything to be sold and held as cash. A RRIF can contain qualified investments, allowing the remaining balance to stay invested while withdrawals are made.
Investment earnings inside the fund are not taxed annually while they remain there. As a result, converting an RRSP to a RRIF does not by itself mean recognizing the entire transferred balance as taxable income. The tax event generally occurs as money is paid out.
That feature makes investment choices relevant even after the account enters its withdrawal phase. A RRIF balance can rise or fall with its holdings while simultaneously declining through withdrawals. Someone who wants direct control over those holdings can also establish a self-directed RRIF.
How RRIF Withdrawals Work
The calendar year in which you establish a RRIF has a 2026 minimum withdrawal of $0. A required annual payment begins the following year.
For each subsequent year, the carrier determines the minimum using the fund’s value at the beginning of the year and the prescribed factor associated with the relevant age. You can elect when setting up the RRIF to use your spouse’s or common-law partner’s age instead. That choice is made on the original application and cannot later be changed.
You are free to withdraw more than the required amount. An ordinary RRIF does not impose a general maximum annual withdrawal, although taking more naturally leaves less money in the account. The detailed percentages and age calculations belong in our separate guide to RRIF minimum withdrawal rules and rates.
One detail is particularly useful when planning the conversion. Because the required minimum begins only in the calendar year after establishment, opening a RRIF does not automatically force a prescribed withdrawal during that first year.
How Tax Works Once Money Leaves the RRIF
RRIF payments are taxable when received, and the carrier reports the relevant income on a T4RIF slip.
For Canadian residents, withholding tax generally applies to the portion of a payment above the required annual minimum rather than to the minimum itself. The amount withheld is not necessarily your final tax bill because the RRIF income forms part of the income reported on your tax return. The separate rules and rates are covered in our guides to RRIF withdrawal taxation and RRIF withholding tax.
A useful way to approach withdrawals is to separate two questions that are easy to mix together. The minimum tells you what must leave the fund under the registered-plan rules. Your actual withdrawal decision determines how much you choose to take beyond that requirement.
Other Questions About RRIFs
Can you have more than one RRIF?
Multiple RRIFs are permitted. Each remains its own registered arrangement, so having several accounts does not turn them into one combined fund for administration purposes.
Can a RRIF be moved to another financial institution?
A direct transfer of RRIF property can move eligible property to another RRIF without first paying the transferred property to you as an ordinary withdrawal. The transferring carrier must retain enough to satisfy any minimum amount that still has to be paid for that year.
Can a RRIF run out of money?
A RRIF does not provide a guaranteed lifetime balance. Its value depends on withdrawals, investment performance and other changes affecting the assets held inside it. A person can therefore remain alive after the fund has been depleted.
What happens to a RRIF after the annuitant dies?
The result depends on factors such as the beneficiary arrangements and who receives the property. Tax treatment can also change when a spouse or common-law partner is involved, so the full rules are covered separately in what happens to a RRIF when you die.
