RESPsA Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP) is an account registered with the federal government that is used to help people save for a child’s post-secondary education. Unlike Registered Retirement Savings Plans (RRSPs), you can’t deduct RESP contributions from your taxes but the money earned in an RESP isn’t taxed until it is withdrawn.
The federal government will match contributions to a child’s RESP under the following grant programs:
- Canada Education Savings Grant (CESG)
- Canada Learning Bond (CLB)
There are two types of RESP plans:
1. Family Plan
A family plan is ideal if you have more than one child.
You can name one or more children to receive the savings when it’s time to pay for their post-secondary school education. Only parents, stepparents, grandparents, and siblings are able to contribute to this type of account.
The advantage of a family plan is that earnings can be shared among children, and the CESG may be used by any beneficiary named in the RESP, to a maximum of $7,200 per child. The Additional Canada Education Savings Grant and the Canada Learning Bond can be paid only if all the beneficiaries in the plan are siblings.
2. Individual Plan
Any person can contribute to this type of plan on behalf of a beneficiary. In this type of plan, only one beneficiary is named in the RESP, and the beneficiary doesn’t have to be related to the subscriber.
Opening an RESP is easy! The child will need a Social Insurance Number (SIN), and ensure you get one for yourself if you don’t already have one. It’s free.