What is a LIF account?

A Life Income Fund is the payout account for locked-in pension money. You must withdraw at least an annual minimum, and in Ontario you cannot withdraw more than an annual maximum. The remaining balance stays invested and tax-sheltered.

At what age can I open a LIF in Ontario?

Generally from age 55, or earlier if the originating pension plan allowed an earlier pension date. You must convert locked-in money to a LIF or annuity by December 31 of the year you turn 71.

What is the maximum I can take out of a LIF?

Ontario sets an annual maximum calculated from your age and the account balance at the start of the year using a prescribed rate. It is recalculated every year, so the dollar cap changes annually.

Can I unlock 50% of my LIF?

Ontario permits a one-time transfer of up to 50% of the money moved into a new LIF to an RRSP or RRIF, applied for within 60 days of that transfer. It applies only to that transfer, so the timing matters.

Is LIF income taxable?

Yes. Withdrawals are taxable income in the year received. Depending on your age and the source, LIF income may qualify for the pension income amount and for pension income splitting with a spouse.

What happens to a LIF when I die?

In Ontario a spouse generally has first claim and can typically transfer the balance on a tax-deferred basis. Other beneficiaries usually receive the value after tax is settled, so the designation and any spousal waiver need to match your will.

Insights

What Is a LIF? How Locked-In Money Finally Pays You

A LIF is where your locked-in pension money turns into income — with a floor, a ceiling and rules almost nobody explains before you sign. Here is how it works in Ontario.

August 24, 2026 · 8 min read

You have a locked-in account you have never been allowed to touch. At some point it has to start paying you, and the account that does that is a Life Income Fund. Most people meet the LIF for the first time on a form, in the year they turn 71, with a signature line and no explanation.

A LIF is the only account in the Canadian system with both a floor and a ceiling on what you can take out. Understand those two numbers and you control the tax bill for the rest of your retirement. Ignore them, and the account controls you.

What a LIF actually is

A Life Income Fund is the payout stage of locked-in pension money. You transfer a LIRA (or money straight from a pension plan) into a LIF, and from the following year onward:

You must withdraw at least the annual minimum — the same percentage-of-balance formula used for RRIFs, based on age.
In Ontario, you generally cannot withdraw more than an annual maximum, calculated on the balance at the start of the year using a prescribed rate and your age.
The investments inside carry on tax-sheltered. Only what you withdraw is taxable income.

That maximum is the whole point. Pension law does not want a lifetime of employer contributions spent in three years.

When you can start

In Ontario, LIF income generally becomes available from age 55 — earlier if your plan's rules allowed an earlier pension date. You must be in a payout vehicle by December 31 of the year you turn 71.

Between those two ages sits the decision almost nobody makes deliberately: when to start.

What most retirees do, and what actually works

What most do: wait until 71 because the money is "not needed yet", then discover that mandatory minimums, CPP, OAS and a RRIF all arrive in the same tax year, pushing them into a higher bracket and into OAS clawback territory.

What actually works: looking at the whole retirement span at once. For many households, starting LIF income earlier at a low bracket — even if the cash is not needed and gets redirected to a TFSA or non-registered account — produces more after-tax money over twenty years than waiting. For others, the opposite is true. The answer depends on your other income, your spouse's income, your CPP and OAS timing and whether you own a corporation.

Bold the line worth remembering: the LIF decision is a tax-bracket decision, not an investment decision.

The 60-day window you only get once

Ontario allows a one-time unlocking of up to 50% of the money transferred into a new LIF, moved to an RRSP or RRIF, with the application made within 60 days of that transfer. Money you move later into that same LIF does not qualify. This is the highest-value, most-missed decision in the locked-in world, and we cover the mechanics in how to unlock a LIRA in Ontario.

If you are considering it, do the unlocking work before you sign the LIF paperwork, not after.

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LIF, RRIF or annuity?

A LIF keeps you invested, keeps flexibility inside a range, and keeps you subject to the maximum.
A RRIF has no maximum, but ordinary RRSP money only — see LIF vs RRIF.
A life annuity trades the balance for guaranteed lifetime income and gives up control and any remaining estate value beyond guarantees.

Many households end up with a blend. The mistake is choosing one because it was the default on a form.

Spousal rules you cannot ignore

Pension law protects spouses. Establishing a LIF, unlocking money, and naming a beneficiary other than your spouse generally require documented spousal consent in Ontario. A designation that contradicts your will, or a waiver nobody can find, is how estates get expensive. More on that in LIRA beneficiaries, estates and the age-71 deadline.

The objections

"My institution will just handle the paperwork." They will process the transaction you request. They are not required to tell you the 60-day window existed or that starting five years earlier would have cost you less tax.

"I do not need the income, so I will take the minimum." Taking the minimum is a choice with a tax consequence, the same as taking the maximum. Default is not neutral.

"I will decide at 71." At 71 most of the useful options have already expired.

Here is how we would handle this

Before any LIF paperwork is signed we model the next twenty years of household income: LIF minimums and maximums by year, RRSP and RRIF drawdown, CPP and OAS start dates, corporate dividends if there is a company, and the OAS clawback thresholds. Then we set the LIF start date and withdrawal level to fit that picture, and we do the unlocking application inside the window. That planning is what a Fit Review is for.

Do this this week

Confirm the jurisdiction and current balance of every locked-in account you hold.
Confirm whether any of it has already been moved into a LIF — if not, your 50% window is intact.
Sketch your expected income at 65, 71 and 75 from all sources, including your spouse's.
Check the beneficiary on the account and whether spousal consent exists on file.
Use our planning calculators to pressure-test what this account has to deliver.

This is general information, not tax or legal advice for your situation.

If you are within a few years of turning a locked-in account into income, apply for a free 30-minute Fit Review before you sign anything. The roster is limited and every application is read personally by a partner.

Common questions

What is a LIF account?: A Life Income Fund is the payout account for locked-in pension money. You must withdraw at least an annual minimum, and in Ontario you cannot withdraw more than an annual maximum. The remaining balance stays invested and tax-sheltered.
At what age can I open a LIF in Ontario?: Generally from age 55, or earlier if the originating pension plan allowed an earlier pension date. You must convert locked-in money to a LIF or annuity by December 31 of the year you turn 71.
What is the maximum I can take out of a LIF?: Ontario sets an annual maximum calculated from your age and the account balance at the start of the year using a prescribed rate. It is recalculated every year, so the dollar cap changes annually.
Can I unlock 50% of my LIF?: Ontario permits a one-time transfer of up to 50% of the money moved into a new LIF to an RRSP or RRIF, applied for within 60 days of that transfer. It applies only to that transfer, so the timing matters.
Is LIF income taxable?: Yes. Withdrawals are taxable income in the year received. Depending on your age and the source, LIF income may qualify for the pension income amount and for pension income splitting with a spouse.
What happens to a LIF when I die?: In Ontario a spouse generally has first claim and can typically transfer the balance on a tax-deferred basis. Other beneficiaries usually receive the value after tax is settled, so the designation and any spousal waiver need to match your will.