RESP OVERVIEW

Your children's education is no doubt one of your top priorities. Post-secondary education will make a big difference to your children's earning potential and standard of living. In fact, Canadians with a high school graduation certificate earned an average of $37,403, while those with a bachelor degree earned one and a half times more - $56,048 (Statistics Canada, 2006 Census). Yet, government funding to universities is dropping and post-secondary institutions are making up the shortfall by raising student fees. By setting aside education funds for your children now, you can ensure their opportunity to attend college or university and ease the debt they may carry upon graduation.

A Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is an effective way to maximize the money available to your children when they enroll in a post-secondary program. Although your contributions are not tax-deductible, money inside the plan will grow tax-free until it's withdrawn for your children. In addition, the government of Canada and certain provinces offer several Grants to help you build your education savings. The Basic Canada Education Savings Grant is available to everyone. See our section on Government Grants for the grants/bond that your family may be eligible for.

RESP Brochure
RESP Pamphlet

Account Type Overview

Individual plans: Established by a single subscriber (including child care agencies) or joint subscribers that have a spousal or common-law relationship. These plans can only have one beneficiary, who must be a Canadian resident and have a valid SIN number. There are no restrictions on the beneficiary age or who can be named as beneficiary. A subscriber could be the beneficiary of their own plan. Individual RESP application

Family plans: Established by a single subscriber or joint subscribers that have a spousal or common-law relationship. These plans can have one or more beneficiaries, who must be a Canadian resident, have a valid SIN number and be under the age of 21 at the time of inclusion on the plan. Each beneficiary must be related to the subscriber of the RESP either by blood or by adoption. Lifetime RESP contribution limits apply to each beneficiary. Please note when all beneficiaries are siblings, the family plan is considered a siblings-only family plan. Family RESP application

Account Comparison

	INDIVIDUAL RESP	FAMILY RESP*
Number of Subscribers (joint owners must be spouses or common law partners)	1 or 2	1 or 2
Relation (by blood, adoption or marriage)	No relation required between the subscriber(s) and the beneficiary.	All beneficiaries must be directly related to the subscriber(s) by blood or by adoption. Parents Children Grandparents Grandchildren Great Grandparents Great Grandchildren
Number of Beneficiaries	1	Multiple beneficiaries permitted (no limit).
Beneficiary Age	No age limit	Must be under age 21 at time of inclusion onto plan.
Available grants to apply for	Basic Canada Education Saving Grant (CESG) Additional Canada Education Saving Grant (CESG) Canada Learning Bond (CLB) Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant (ACES)* Quebec Education Savings Incentive (QESI)**	Basic Canada Education Saving Grant (CESG) Additional Canada Education Saving Grant (CESG) Canada Learning Bond (CLB) Alberta Centennial Education Savings Grant (ACES)* Quebec Education Savings Incentive (QESI)**

* Family RESP is a siblings only plan when all beneficiaries are siblings.
**All beneficiaries must be siblings in order to apply for the Additional CESG and/or CLB in a Family RESP.
***Must be an Alberta resident to be eligible to apply for ACES.
****Must be a Quebec resident to be eligible to apply for QESI.

To print/download the Account Comparison Chart, please click here.

Mutual funds sponsored by Mackenzie Financial Corporation are only qualified for sale in the provinces and territories of Canada. Please read a fund’s prospectus and speak to an advisor before investing.