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HOOPP

When Can I Retire?

What will your retirement look like? Whether you retire early or late, decide to travel or stay close to home, you will be faced with some big financial decisions. You can depend on your HOOPP pension to help by providing you with a predictable monthly income in retirement, but you also need to consider how it will fit into your larger financial plan. The earlier you start planning, the more likely you will be financially prepared for retirement.

We’re here to help you prepare. With HOOPP, you can retire anywhere from ages 55 to 71.

Retirement age milestones

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Retire as early as 55

You can retire early at age 55, however, your pension will be reduced to reflect the fact that you will probably receive it for a longer period. Your pension will not be reduced if you have 30 years of eligibility service.

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Work until age 60

At age 60, you can retire without any reduction to your pension. You will also receive a monthly bridge benefit in addition to your HOOPP retirement pension until age 65 when government pensions typically begin.

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Retire later

If you work past age 65, you can keep contributing to HOOPP and build benefits until November 30 of the year in which you turn 71. Pensions that start after age 65 are also increased to reflect the fact that you are starting your pension payments later.

Bridge benefit

If you retire between the ages of 55 and 65, you will receive a monthly bridge benefit in addition to your HOOPP retirement pension. The bridge benefit is temporary; it is paid until age 65 because that’s the age when the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security typically begin.

Learn more about the HOOPP bridge benefit.

Income in retirement: How much is enough?

When estimating your retirement income needs, start with your current take-home pay.

The general rule suggests that you will need about 70% of your pre-retirement income to live comfortably when you retire. You may need more or less than that, depending on your lifestyle, hobbies, and overall financial situation.

For example, you may only need half of your working income if you retire soon after paying off your mortgage. On the other hand, if you have expensive hobbies, plan to travel and have a mortgage, you may find that you need to maintain your level of your pre-retirement income.

Remember, your retirement income won't include deductions such as pension contributions or employment insurance contributions. You can also typically expect to pay less income tax in retirement.

Choosing a retirement date

In general, the later you retire, or the more years of service you have, the larger your pension will be. To make the most of your HOOPP pension, try to retire after you reach an important birthday or an eligibility service milestone.

When choosing a retirement date, be sure to consider:
  • With your current health, do you want to collect less sooner, or more later?
    Age, family history and health are important factors when you consider how long you will collect your lifetime pension. If you have a qualifying spouse and think they will live longer than you, this can also factor into your decision; visit our Planning for your loved ones page to learn more.
  • When are you going to reach your earliest unreduced date? 
    Essentially, the closer you retire to age 60 or 30 years of service, the larger your overall pension will be.
  • Can and should you wait until your next birthday to retire?
    If you can’t wait until your earliest unreduced date, then retiring after your next birthday or next completed year of eligibility service can help increase your overall pension.

Here’s how reaching an age or eligibility service milestone can help increase your pension.

Eligibility service milestone

Yvette, HOOPP memberYvette

Yvette's birthday is February 27, 1962.

Lately, Yvette has been asking herself: "When can I retire?"

She would like to retire early, before age 65. However, if she retires before age 60 and has less than 30 years of eligibility service, her pension will be reduced (for more information, see the Retirement Table below.) If she retires at age 59 with 14 years of service, Yvette will receive 94.0% of her pension benefits. However, if she continues to work for a few months and retires with 15 years of service, she will receive 95.5% of her benefit.

 

Yvette retires: May 31, 2021
Age 59

Yvette retires: Nov. 30, 2021
Age 59

Pension start dateJune 1, 2021Dec. 1, 2021
Average annualized earnings$60,000$60,000
Eligibility service14.8 years (5 months post Dec. 31 2020)*15.3 years (11 months post Dec. 31, 2020)*
Monthly basic lifetime pension$1,220$1,280
Monthly bridge benefit (payable to age 65)$170$190

*Effective April 1, 2021 HOOPP made a number of Plan benefit improvements. Since Yvette has service prior to 2021, she was eligible for those improvements and her pension for service prior to 2021 is calculated at a higher rate. Learn more about HOOPP's benefit improvements.

Retirement age milestone

Samir-exampleSamir

Samir's birthday is June 3, 1961.

He would like to retire early at age 59.

As a result, his pension will be reduced because he has less than 30 years of service. If he retires at age 59, Samir will receive 96.4% of his pension benefits. However, if he retires at age 60 instead, he would receive 100% of his accrued pension because no reduction is applied. 

 

Samir retires: May 31, 2021
Age 59

Samir retires: June 30, 2021
Age 60

Pension start dateJune 1, 2021July 1, 2021
Average annualized earnings$60,000$60,000
Eligibility service18.1 years (5 months post Dec. 31 2020)*18.2 years (6 months post Dec. 31, 2020)*
Monthly basic lifetime pension$1,530$1,600
Monthly bridge benefit (payable to age 65)$210$220

*Effective April 1, 2021 HOOPP made a number of Plan benefit improvements. Since Samir has service prior to 2021, he was eligible for those improvements and his pension for service prior to 2021 is calculated at a higher rate. Learn more about HOOPP's benefit improvements.

HOOPP retirement table

This retirement table provides you with a breakdown of the percentage of your pension you will receive based on your service.

Completed years of eligibility service Percentage of pension payable
  Age 55 Age 56 Age 57 Age 58 Age 59 Age 60+
14 or less 70.00% 76.00% 82.00% 88.00% 94.00% 100%
15 77.50% 82.00% 86.50% 91.00% 95.50% 100%
16 79.00% 83.20% 87.40% 91.60% 95.80% 100%
17 80.50% 84.40% 88.30% 92.20% 96.10% 100%
18 82.00% 85.60% 89.20% 92.80% 96.40% 100%
19 83.50% 86.80% 90.10% 93.40% 96.70% 100%
20 85.00% 88.00% 91.00% 94.00% 97.00% 100%
21 86.50% 89.20% 91.90% 94.60% 97.30% 100%
22 88.00% 90.40% 92.80% 95.20% 97.60% 100%
23 89.50% 91.60% 93.70% 95.80% 97.90% 100%
24 91.00% 92.80% 94.60% 96.40% 98.20% 100%
25 92.50% 94.00% 95.50% 97.00% 98.50% 100%
26 94.00% 95.20% 96.40% 97.60% 98.80% 100%
27 95.50% 96.40% 97.30% 98.20% 99.10% 100%
28 97.00% 97.60% 98.20% 98.80% 99.40% 100%
29 98.50% 98.80% 99.10% 99.40% 99.70% 100%
30 + 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100%

Frequently asked questions


How does my HOOPP pension work with CPP and OAS?

You may qualify for income from government sources such as Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and Old Age Security (OAS).

An advantage of being a HOOPP member is having your pension integrated with the CPP. If you retire between the ages of 55 to 65, you will receive a bridge benefit, in addition to your HOOPP pension. The bridge benefit is temporary. It is paid until you reach age 65 because that’s when you're eligible for an unreduced CPP pension.

In addition, OAS may provide approximately $7,300 a year, starting at age 65, for those who are eligible. Your OAS is reduced if your total net income reaches a certain maximum, set each year by the federal government.

Use the Government of Canada's Retirement Income Calculator to calculate the value of your CPP and OAS benefits. Learn more about your HOOPP pension and government benefits.

What do I need to do as I approach retirement?

We’re here for you every step of the way. We can help make sure that your transition to retirement goes smoothly.

Learn more about what you need to do to initiate your pension.

Is my pension protected against inflation?

Your HOOPP pension may be eligible for an annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) to help maintain your pension’s buying power throughout retirement.

Learn more about HOOPP's cost of living adjustment.

What if I decide to return to work?

You may decide, after starting to collect your HOOPP pension that you want to return to work. With the HOOPP Plan, you have options. You can continue to collect and receive your HOOPP pension, or re-enrol in the Plan.

Find out more about working after retirement.

How do I cancel my decision to retire?

HOOPP understands you might initiate a retirement but, for unforeseen reasons, need to cancel it before it begins. If this occurs, please contact HOOPP and your employer immediately.
This document provides a simplified overview of HOOPP's benefits based on the terms of the HOOPP Plan Text at the time of publication. From time to time, HOOPP may amend the HOOPP Plan Text. In cases where the information provided in this document differs from that contained in the HOOPP Plan Text, the HOOPP Plan Text will govern. More details, including the full HOOPP Plan Text and a complete description of the Plan and its benefits, can be found on hoopp.com.