Who can claim GIS

An autumn forest in Canada Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

Main Street in Penetanguishene, Ontario Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

A green crop field Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.

To qualify for the Guaranteed Income Supplement you must meet all of these conditions at the same time. Missing any one of them means no GIS, even if your income is very low.

Be 65 years old or older. GIS starts at 65 at the earliest. If you are 60 to 64, the Allowance (for a spouse of a GIS recipient) or the Allowance for the Survivor (if widowed) may be the relevant benefit instead — see the comparisons page.
Be receiving the Old Age Security pension. GIS is a supplement to OAS, not a stand-alone pension. If you have deferred your OAS pension, you cannot receive GIS during the deferral: GIS requires an OAS pension actually in pay. Delaying OAS does not increase GIS later.
Live in Canada. You must be resident in Canada. GIS payments stop if you leave Canada for more than six consecutive months, so tell Service Canada before a long trip abroad.
Not be under a sponsorship agreement, unless an exception applies (see below).
Have annual income below the threshold for your situation — $23,112 for a single pensioner, $30,528 combined where a spouse receives the full OAS pension, $42,768 combined where a spouse receives the Allowance, and $55,392 combined where a spouse receives neither OAS nor the Allowance (October to December 2026, income other than OAS).

The sponsorship rule, in plain English

If you came to Canada as a sponsored immigrant, you generally cannot receive GIS, the Allowance or the Allowance for the Survivor for the whole length of your sponsorship agreement. Since 1 October 2025 this applies for the entire agreement, and parent and grandparent sponsorship agreements now run for 20 years in every province except Quebec. The exceptions are narrow: your sponsor has died, has been imprisoned for more than six months, has been convicted of an offence against you, or has declared personal bankruptcy. If none of those applies, the bar stands even if your income is low. If you are not sponsored, the rule does not touch you at all — many newcomers who qualify for OAS also qualify for GIS.

What about a partial OAS pension?

OAS is normally based on years lived in Canada after age 18: 40 years for a full pension, 10 years minimum to qualify at all. If you receive a partial OAS pension, the maximum GIS figures on this site do not apply to you directly — Service Canada calculates your GIS from your actual OAS amount, and you should contact Service Canada for your figure rather than reading it off the standard table. The same applies if your spouse or partner receives a partial OAS pension: the "spouse receives the full OAS pension" row is not your row.

Examples: who qualifies, who does not

Margaret, 72, living alone in Winnipeg. She receives OAS and a small CPP pension of $7,000 a year, and nothing else. Her income other than OAS is $7,000, well below $23,112, so she qualifies for a substantial GIS payment. Robert and Elaine, both 68, in Halifax. Both receive OAS; their combined CPP and workplace pension income is $28,000 a year, below the $30,528 combined limit, so each qualifies for a partial GIS payment. Ahmed, 66, in Mississauga. He receives OAS, but he is still within a sponsorship agreement and none of the exceptions applies, so he does not qualify for GIS however low his income is. Susan, 64, in Calgary. She is not yet 65, so she cannot receive GIS; if her husband receives OAS and GIS, she should check the Allowance instead.

Quebec pointer. GIS itself is a federal benefit and works the same in Quebec. What differs is the pension underneath it: Quebec runs the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP) through Retraite Quebec instead of the CPP, with its own rates and ceilings. If you contributed to the QPP, your QPP pension counts in the GIS income test exactly as a CPP pension would. This site does not run a parallel Quebec guide; for QPP figures, check Retraite Quebec.

General information only. This page explains the Guaranteed Income Supplement in plain English. It is not legal, financial, or tax advice, and it cannot decide whether you qualify. Only Service Canada can decide a claim. Rates and rules change over time — the figures here are for October to December 2026 unless another period is stated — so always confirm the current position with Service Canada or Canada.ca before you act on it. Contact: hello [at] tapetoolhq.com.