🇨🇦 Canada · 5 min read · Published 2026-09-07 · Updated 2026-09-07

Written by Jordan Reeves · Editorial review: automated source and figure checks (how we check this)

Sources last verified: 2026-09-07

Can I Move My RRIF to Another Institution?

Yes, and a direct transfer between institutions is not a withdrawal, so no tax and no withholding apply. What does apply is the year's minimum payment, which must come out of the original account before the balance moves.

60-SECOND ANSWER

A direct RRIF transfer is not taxable, but the year's minimum must be paid before the balance moves.

The answer:: A direct institution-to-institution transfer on the prescribed form is not a withdrawal, so nothing is taxed or withheld.
The trap:: Withdrawing and redepositing. That is a taxable withdrawal, and there is no way to put the money back into a RRIF.
The recommendation:: Ask for the transfer in kind where you want to keep the holdings, because selling first can realise costs you did not intend.

Jump to the detail ↓

Where the AI summary above gets this wrong

"Moving your retirement account to another bank triggers tax."

That's surface-true. Here's what it misses:

A direct transfer is not a withdrawal — Institution-to-institution transfers on the prescribed form are not included in income and carry no withholding.
The minimum still has to be paid — The prescribed minimum for the year must be withdrawn from the transferring account before the balance moves.
Fees and delays are normal — Transferring institutions commonly charge a transfer-out fee, and the process routinely takes several weeks.

→ See what an unnecessary withdrawal costs

01 Why the transfer is not taxable

A transfer between registered accounts of the same type, made directly between institutions on the prescribed form, is not a disposition and is not included in income. Nothing is withheld and nothing appears as income on a slip.

The critical word is direct. Withdrawing the money and depositing it at the new institution is a withdrawal, fully taxable, and there is no mechanism to recontribute to a RRIF — the withholding treatment is in withholding on RRIF withdrawals.

Source: RRSPs and other registered plans for retirement (T4040)

02 What happens to the minimum

The prescribed minimum for the year is calculated on the balance at the start of the year and must be paid out of the transferring account before the balance is moved. The receiving institution cannot pay a minimum on funds it did not hold in January.

Where the transfer happens late in the year and the minimum has already been paid, nothing further is required. Where it has not, the transferring institution will normally deduct it automatically before releasing the balance.

WORKED EXAMPLE · Try the numbers

Shows: what a given amount of additional taxable income costs you in tax at your marginal rate, and what you keep. Ignores: provincial surtaxes, credits that phase out with income, and any effect on income-tested benefits.

Amount ($)

Your marginal rate (%)

What you keep after tax

$6,700

At a 33% marginal rate, $10,000 costs $3,300 in tax and leaves $6,700.

Source: RRSPs and other registered plans for retirement (T4040)

03 What to expect in practice

Transfers commonly take several weeks and the transferring institution usually charges a fee. Some receiving institutions will reimburse it as an incentive, which is worth asking about before initiating.

A transfer in kind moves the existing investments intact; a transfer in cash sells them first. Selling inside a registered account has no tax consequence, but it can incur trading costs and time out of the market.

Initiating the transfer from the receiving institution rather than the transferring one is the practical order. The receiving side has an incentive to chase it, holds the form and knows what it needs, whereas the institution losing the account has none of those things and no reason to hurry. Asking for written confirmation that the year's minimum has been paid before the transfer avoids the situation where neither the old nor the new institution believes it was theirs to make.

Source: Canadian income tax rates for individuals

The only way to get this wrong is to withdraw the money yourself and walk it across the street. It happens, it is fully taxable, and there is no route back into the account. Ask the receiving institution to initiate the transfer and never touch the money.