Correction date: April 29, 2022
Issue number: 2022002
Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities, 2020, American Sign Language - Video transcript
(The Statistics Canada symbol and Canada wordmark appear on screen with the title: "Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities, 2020, American Sign Language")
The Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities
Less than a third of eligible residents in Canada (up to age 59) have a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP)—about 31.5% in 2020.
Residents in Canada who have a severe and prolonged mental or physical disability are eligible for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC). This opens the door to other programs, one of which is the RDSP.A Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) is not tax deductible but it offers several advantages to beneficiaries. Up to the age of 49 the Government of Canada matches contributions to the savings plan at up to 300% and invests up to $1000 a year for eligible residents in Canada earning a low income. Beneficiaries also do not pay tax on RDSP contributions when withdrawn.
To understand why more eligible residents in Canada do not have an RDSP, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) engaged Statistics Canada to conduct the Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities, collecting data from residents in Canada who were eligible for an RDSP but did not open one.
These respondents included both persons with disabilities and family members or others who care for persons with disabilities, since the holder of the plan may not be the same person as the beneficiary in all cases.
These data show that, in general, eligible residents in Canada lack information about the RDSP, with many not being aware it exists and a substantial portion reporting not having enough information or money to open a plan.
Among eligible residents in Canada who had not opened an RDSP, only about half know that the RDSP exists
To take advantage of the Registered Disability Savings Plan, residents in Canada have to know about it. In 2020, almost half the eligible residents in Canada who had not opened an RDSP had never heard of the savings plan. Almost a third said they were not very knowledgeable about RDSPs, 20% said they were somewhat knowledgeable, and 5% said they were very knowledgeable.
Respondents who knew about RDSPs mostly learned about them through government documentation
Respondents who knew about and were eligible for the RDSP were asked how they learned about the savings plan.
The majority, almost 60%, learned about them through government documentation. The next most common methods were friends or relatives, or a financial advisor or financial institution, both at about 17%.
Almost 10% of respondents heard about RDSPs though a disability organization or their social worker, doctor, therapist, advocate or other support worker. Meanwhile, social media, information sessions or advertisements did not seem to play a significant role, each accounting for less than 5%.
Respondents with lower incomes or less education were less likely to know about RDSPs
Certain population groups were less likely to be aware of RDSPs.
Respondents with household incomes lower than $20,000 were less likely to know about RDSPs, at 46%; by comparison, 63% with household incomes over $100,000 were aware of RDSPs.
Respondents with lower levels of education were also less likely to have heard of RDSPs. The contrast in awareness is especially sharp between respondents who do not have a high school diploma (46%) and those with a university certificate, diploma or degree (79%). Indigenous respondents were less likely to have heard about RDSPs as well (41% of Indigenous respondents compared to 55% of non-Indigenous respondents).
In the Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities, information for Indigenous people reflects the experience of those who identify as First Nations, Métis, or Inuit, and who live off reserve in the provinces.
Awareness varied by respondents' main activity. Respondents who were working were more likely to have heard of RDSPs (57%), especially compared to those looking for work (41%). But people caring for a person with a disability or a chronic illness were the most likely to know about RDSPs, at a rate of 71%.
Younger respondents, especially aged 15 to 19, were significantly less likely to say they had ever heard of RDSPs, at a rate of 36%. This is a marked difference compared to respondents 25 or older who had rates of awareness from 52% to 56%. This may be partially explained by some beneficiaries being minors or being in a circumstance where an adult is required to be the holder of the plan for the beneficiary.
Many eligible residents in Canada did not open an RDSP because they did not have the money to save or lacked information about the plan
Eligible residents in Canada who were already aware of RDSPs but did not open one were asked why they did not do so. The most common reason offered for not opening an RDSP was not having enough money to save, at 46%. The next most common response was that they lacked information about the RDSP program (29%) and 15% said that it was too complicated. The latter group gave the following two reasons most often: 29% had complications filling in the tax forms and 44% had complications visiting the bank to open a plan.
About 7% of respondents said that they did not open an RDSP for other reasons related to savings. Of this group, 76% said that they were saving money elsewhere.
How else did they save for the future?
To better understand savings patterns among persons approved for the Disability Tax Credit, those who had not opened an RDSP were asked if they have saved any money for the future. Just over one third (35%) said that they had saved money for the future.
Of those who saved money for the future of the person with the disability, about two thirds (68%) said that it was in a savings or chequing account. The next most popular ways to save was TFSAs at 36%, followed by RRSPs at 32%. Just over two in ten (22%) said that their savings came from the pension plan from their employer.
Note to readers
The objective of the Survey on Savings for Persons with Disabilities (SSPD) was to collect information on the knowledge and behaviours of Canadians with disabilities and their caregivers, with respect to savings.
The SSPD was conducted as part of the RapidStats program offered by Statistics Canada's Centre for Social Data Integration and Development to rapidly respond to pressing data needs.
The data were collected in the provinces from October 19 to November 30, 2021. The response rate was 50%, which is similar to other RapidStats surveys.
The target population was Canadians aged 49 and under who are approved for the Disability Tax Credit (DTC) but do not have a Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP).
(The Canada wordmark is on screen.)