BristolUK

I am now officially a Senior. Do I know what my OAS will be yet?
No. Sometimes Government of Canada - the organisation - is disappointing.

Five years ago, when I started to get OAS - the Survivor's Allowance - the information I was given said it would be converted at age 65 to OAS/GIS automatically. No need to apply.

So I was a little surprised to be invited to apply last year, which I duly did.

Service Canada has this nice little feature where you can check the status of applications. Sadly it doesn't show a status. Not even that it's been received. According to the informationthere that's because nothing shows until they've processed something.
Eh?
This reminds me of applications for renewal PR cards where you can check the status but on both previous renewals that I've done, nothing shows up until it's actually been processed. And even then, by the time my account had been updated to show the fact, I had already received the renewal card, so that alerted me to the new status.

Anyway, there's nothing showing on the status page of my Service Canada account. There's a phone number and something about a service standard of answering calls in 10 minutes... but there's a current average wait time of 78 minutes.
No thanks. I'll use the e-service "call me back" feature.

The thing is, as a Senior, I now qualify for the Provincial drug plan if some part of what I get is GIS and I believe that will be the case. That means no monthly premium (I pay $33 at the moment under the current system) and a halving in co-pays for each prescription.

But I can't register for the Seniors' scheme until I know for sure so right now I'm likely paying more than I should be. Fortunately I can afford it.

Just to rub it in, I have not received the usual HST payment this month and my CRA account says nothing is due even though my notice of assessment correspondence for 2021 confirms the usual quarterly payments.

For now I'm taking this as a sign that something is actually going on with processing and that this 'something' means the usual process for the HST payment has been interrupted.

But I'm afraid a piss-up in a brewery is coming to mind.

dbd33

Is becoming "officially a senior" just age related or is there more to it? If it's an age thing, at what age does it happen?

BristolUK

65 for Canada. Not delayed like in the UK.

Jingsamichty

It's not "delayed" in the UK. Just adjusted to reflect longer average life spans and general improvements in health. If there had been a pension 300 years ago it probably would have kicked in at age 40. Are you suggesting the pension age should be forever immutable?

EDIT: Oh - congrats on your 65th birthday, may you have very many more

CanadaJimmy

Yeah I had to do my father-in-law's OAS. Applied back in September last year, wasn't until March this year I got any sort of confirmation. Very slow process.

Partially discharged

Government is not there to serve you.. They are there to serve themselves.

I deal with government every day in my job and that is my general impression of the system as a whole. There are some good people there but it tends to crush the mavericks and independent thinkers. The ultimate 'that's the way we've always done it' entity.

Relying on government payments only doesn't result in much each month does it?

BristolUK

Is that like how bus and train fares are adjusted rather than increased?
Didn't I read a few weeks ago that life expectancy went back the other way?
Cheers...not sure I want another 65th birthday though

I expect a slow process. I think I was invited a year ago and did it then. I would just expect to hear back a little in advance of the birthday even if it doesn't actually get paid until later.

When was your FIL's 65th?

BristolUK

I now that, especially in NB.
I still remember when the tax rate on electricity went up (or got added to, don't recall exactly) and the NB government was refunding the cost - 8% of their bill- to all bill payers. There are any number of ways this could be done - like have the power company deduct 8% from the bill - or charge the normal rate and make a refund/credit at the end of the year or have some means of notifying the government so it could refund the payment and so on.

Nope. Everyone had to save up their monthly bills - or print them off - and then at the end of the year mail a rather thick envelope off to the province with the application form. Upon receipt of half a million applications, the employees would then add up 12 bills half a million times, calculate 8% of each total and arrange for half a million cheques to go out by post with the subsequent investigations for the inevitable non receipt of cheque claims.

Fortunately I don't but it depends on individual circumstances. My MIL does fantastically well out of hers and she did so even before she came to live with us.

CanadaJimmy

Back in March 2021, my wife and MIL applied for CPP for at the time (which got approved quite quickly) but OAS got missed so I got the ball rolling on that one. They did do a back payment all the way back until April 2021 though now it's approved, though GIS is now asking for proof of income for the past two years.

Partially discharged

Reminds me of the way they do deposits on fizzy drinks in NB. We were in Alma once, bought some iced tea or Snapple or something and the price was a lot more at the cash register than what it said in the self serve fridge. I asked about this and they said tax + deposit was extra but wasn't included in the display price. We had the drinks and I thought we would return the empties where we bought them for the deposit back. Nope. We had to go to some other place in town and they only gave back 1/2 the deposit as there was some sort of handling fee.

My F-I-L is from NB and he defends it to the max but he said unless you are an Irving or a McCain, it is better to leave to find fame and fortune.

BristolUK

There is an alternative method now though.

I'm sure that used to be the case once upon a time - although even then many returned.
Population's growing now though. People come here.

BristolUK

I had my call back. All I gained from it is that it's in hand. There's no status information - other than they obviously have it and why can't that be recorded as a status on my account anyway?
The amount will come at the end of next month and if I want to know the amount I need to call the call centre - who have I just been speaking too then? - but the amount isn't what I need to know and the letter showing when GIS is included goes out July or August. WTF? Four months after turning 65 and three months after the actual payment is issued, only then you get the necessary confirmation about the payment that you may have received at least three times already.

They couldn't even tell me that the ongoing action would have interrupted the HST credit.

Poor show.

Tangram

I retired this year. Not a senior yet though, some time to go before that fingers crossed. Good luck to you.

bats

Yes I've had similiar experiences with them. You never know how much GIS you're going to get or even if you're getting it at all for a particular year. You'll know that the basic OAS will be however many years you've been in Canada / 40ths of the full amount.

Kingsboy48

I think that the population is growing because they've all come back from Fort Mac!