In this article:
Overview
Once you open your RESP, you can start contributing funds and receiving grants from the government. Any contributions you make to your RESP are made in the name of an individual beneficiary, even in a Family RESP.
You can contribute a lifetime maximum of $50,000 per beneficiary to an RESP. If you have more than one RESP open for a single beneficiary, make sure that the total contributions don't go over the lifetime maximum.
Grants offered through Wealthsimple
- Canadian Education Savings Grant (CESG)
- Additional Canada Education Savings Grant (A-CESG)
- Canada Learning Bond (CLB)
- British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG)
Canadian Education Savings Grant (CESG)
The Canadian Education Savings Grant (CESG) is an annual government matching program. Most people who sign up for an RESP want to apply for this grant.
The government will match 20% of your contributions up to a maximum of $500 per beneficiary per year. To get the $500 grant, you would need to deposit $2,500 into your RESP each year. There's a lifetime maximum grant size of $7,200 per beneficiary.
To be eligible for the current year's Canadian Education Savings Grant (CESG), you must contribute to your RESP before December 31. If you don't contribute enough to receive the full $500 CESG grant, you can carry forward any unused amount for one extra year.
Eligibility
All Canadian children are eligible for the CESG. Children can receive this grant every year until they reach the age of 17. However, there are additional contribution requirements for beneficiaries who are 16 or 17 years old.
How to apply
Every time you make a deposit to your RESP, you can apply for the CESG. Wealthsimple will automatically apply for the CESG on your behalf. You can expect to see the CESG grant in your RESP 6-10 weeks after depositing into your RESP with Wealthsimple.
When you open your RESP with Wealthsimple, we’ll ask you to fill out the CESG application forms as a part of your account opening. Wealthsimple will take the information provided on these forms and automatically apply for the CESG on your behalf every time you make a deposit.
Making up for missed years
Each year, your beneficiary(s) can earn the maximum $500 grant when you contribute $2,500 per beneficiary in your RESP. However, if you missed a year or two in contributions, you can make up for unused CESG one year at a time.
Example
Let’s say you open an RESP for your five-year-old child and wish to make up for all lost years of CESG.
- The first year you open the RESP (when the child is five), you can contribute $2,500 to earn them CESG for year 5 of their life. You can also make up for one lost year and contribute an additional $2,500, earning them CESG for year 1.
- The next year (when the child is six), you can contribute $2,500 to earn them CESG for year 6 of their life. You can also make up for one lost year and contribute an additional $2,500, earning them CESG for year 2.
- The third year (when the child is seven), you can contribute $2,500 to earn them CESG for year 7 of their life. You can also make up for one lost year and contribute an additional $2,500, earning them CESG for year 3.
- The fourth year (when the child is eight), you can contribute $2,500 to earn them CESG for year 8 of their life. You can also make up for one lost year and contribute an additional $2,500, earning them CESG for year 4. You have now caught up for all lost years.
- The fifth year (when the child is nine), you can contribute $2,500 to earn them CESG for year 9 of their life. As you have caught up for all previous years, this is now the maximum amount you can contribute.
Additional Canada Education Savings Grant (A-CESG)
The Additional Canada Education Savings Grant (A-CESG) is an additional amount of CESG available to low-income and middle-income families, depending on family income levels and contributions.
Eligibility
To be eligible for the A-CESG, you must meet income requirements set by the government.
How to apply
If you are eligible, every time you deposit into your RESP, you can apply for the A-CESG.
When you open your RESP with Wealthsimple, you will fill out the CESG application forms as a part of your account opening. Make sure to leave the box I DO NOT want to request the additional CESG for this RESP unchecked. Wealthsimple will then take the information provided on these forms and automatically apply for the CESG and A-CESG on your behalf every time you make a deposit.
Canada Learning Bond (CLB)
The Canada Learning Bond (CLB) is an annual grant for low to moderate-income families that meet the government’s eligibility requirements. Each child can receive up to $500 the first year they are eligible and $100 each subsequent year they are eligible until they turn 15. Each child can receive a lifetime maximum of $2,000. It's free to apply, and no family contribution is required to receive the CLB.
Eligibility
The eligibility for the CLB is based on the number of children in a family compared to their total family income. As this is an annual grant, if a family meets the adjusted income requirement defined by the Government of Canada one year and not the other, they can receive the grant during the year that they're eligible.
How to apply
You can apply for the CLB until the child turns 21. When you open your RESP with Wealthsimple, you'll fill out the CESG application forms as part of your account opening. Make sure to leave the box I DO NOT want to request the CLB for this RESP unchecked. Wealthsimple will then take the information provided on these forms and automatically apply for the CLB on your behalf. You're not required to make a deposit to be eligible for the CLB.
Can I apply for the CLB for myself?
Yes. If you're between 18 and 20 years of age and born in 2004 or after, you can open an RESP and apply for the CLB yourself. You can apply for the CLB until the day before your 21st birthday.
British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant (BCTESG)
The British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant (BSTESG) is a one-time grant of $1,200 from the British Columbia government.
Eligibility
Children who live in British Columbia (BC) and are between the ages of six and nine are eligible for the BCTESG.
How to apply
You can apply for the BCTESG once your beneficiary is between the ages of six and nine. When your child reaches the eligible age, we will need a BC ID or another proof of address for the account holder. We can then send out the application and apply on your behalf.
If you live in BC when you open an RESP
If you live in BC when you open an RESP, we'll ask you to sign an Annex D form via DocuSign. Once your beneficiary is eligible for this grant, you will need to contact our support team. We will then request a valid BC ID or proof of address for the account holder. This allows us to apply for the BCTESG on your behalf.
If you move to BC after opening an RESP
If you move to BC after opening an RESP, please contact our support team so that we can help you fill out this form.
Québec Education Savings Incentive (QESI)
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take to receive grants in my RESP with Wealthsimple?
Depending on when you deposit funds into your RESP account, it can take anywhere from 6 to 10 weeks for your contribution to receive a corresponding government grant. This is because we can only request grants in the first five days of each month for the previous month's contributions. After this, it can take 3-4 weeks for the government to send us these grants, and it takes us about 5 business days for us to process them.
How can I tell how much I have contributed to each beneficiary in my Family RESP?
You can reach out to our support team and request a contribution breakdown for your RESP.
Why do I need to select a beneficiary every time I make a deposit to my Family RESP?
Even though funds can be shared among beneficiaries in the case that one does not attend post-secondary education, grants are received on an individual basis. For this reason, each deposit must go to an individual beneficiary in order to ensure that grants also go to an individual beneficiary.
If I have more than one RESP open for my child, how will grants be applied for?
Grants get accepted on a first-come-first-serve basis. So, if the provider for your other RESP applies for grants before Wealthsimple, then you will receive grants through them and your grant applications will be rejected with Wealthsimple.
How do I apply for missed CESG?
Every deposit you make automatically gets considered for all eligible grants. So, once you have maximized your CESG contributions for that year, any additional contributions that you make will automatically count towards catching up for a previous year.
Does Wealthsimple offer SAGES?
The Saskatchewan Advantage Grant for Education Savings (SAGES) has been suspended by the government since January 1, 2018. This program is now in the process of being phased out. For more information, read our article on the discontinuation of the SAGES grant.
Comments
0 comments
Please sign in to leave a comment.