First I had to apply for a Personal Access Code and wait for it to arrive in the mail from the federal government. Then, I had to use my PAC to set up a GCKey to use online. Now, finally, I should be able to sign in to the Service Canada website and look up my CPP contributions.
Specifically, I want to see how many years of maximum contributions I have made. The monthly Canada Pension Plan payment I will get in the future depends on how much I have contributed each year since I turned 18, excluding only my 7 lowest income earning years and the years I was not employed at all while I provided child care for my children under the age of 7, if applicable.
In general, most Canadians are NOT eligible for the maximum monthly CPP payment because most of us had jobs that paid too little for at least some of our working years. Remember, even the years you attended school after high school count in the CPP calculations. Somehow the government expected you to be making a good-sized annual pay cheque without any higher education! They also assume you will not take early retirement or be forced into it by a layoff or company restructuring.
Checking my CPP Contributions Online at the My Service Canada Website
To Learn About Your CPP Statement of Contributions
Visit http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/services/pensions/cpp/contributions/soc.shtml and read about how and why you may want to view or print your Statement of Contributions to the Canada Pension Plan. For example, it’s a good idea to get any errors fixed a few years before you want to start claiming CPP.
This page also explains the short forms used on your report.
To Get Your CPP Statement of Contributions
- Next, go to http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/online/mysca.shtml
- Click on the link called: Are you a returning user? Log in now!
- Click on the button: Access My Service Canada Account.
- Near the bottom of the Access My Service Canada Account screen, click on the GCKey button.
On the GCKey Log In or Register screen
- In the User ID field, type your GCKey.
- In the Password field, type your password.
- Click on the Log In button
On the Welcome User ID screen
- Click on the Continue button.
Review the Privacy Notice and Terms and Conditions screen. If it’s acceptable, click on the button: I agree
The My Service Canada Account welcome screen opens.
There’s quite a list of links to choose from.
About half way down the screen is a Tab called View/Print.
Under it is listed a heading Canada Pension Plan (CPP) / Old Age Security (OAS) Pension.
- Click on the link: View my CPP Contributions.
It may take a minute or so to open the next screen.
The CPP Earnings and Contributions screen opens.
It should list each year you worked, and how much you contributed to CPP.
[This is hilarious: Apparently during a year in the last century my husband contributed $0.14. That must have been some part time job!]
Interestingly enough, there is no convenient way to print the information.
You have to either use the print function for your internet browser, or
copy and paste the information into a word processor program and print it from here.
To Copy the CPP Statement of Contributions Into a Word Document.
- Open MS Word.
- Click on your contributions statement in your internet browser.
- To select everything, while holding down the Ctrl key, press the A key.
- :Click on your new, empty Word document.
- To paste all the information, while holding down the Ctrl key, press the V key.
- Highlight and delete all the stuff you don’t want or need like links to the various Service Canada web pages.
- Save your Word document and/or print it.
Securely end your My Service Canada session
- Click on the red Log out button near the top of the screen.
- Click on the grey Log out button on the next screen.
So what do all those contributions and letters mean? Well, that’s what I’ll have to find out and report on next.
Related Reading
- How to Register for a GCKey To Look Up Your CPP Information Online: Part One Get a PAC
- How to Get a GCKey for My Service Canada After You Get Your Personal Access Code, PAC
Join In
Did you find any incredibly silly contribution amounts when you looked at your contribution history? Was it unnerving to see very few Ms (for maximum contribution) on your report. Please share your experiences with a comment.
Please send me info on how I check my c p p control but ion need to set up accountant
I’m sorry but I don’t have any information to send. You need to contact Service Canada. I just write up what I have done while working on my own personal finances. I don’t work for the government or an accountant.
how did you exactly got the your Personal Access number? by calling or online?
My number arrived by mail after I completed the online steps first.
I have an account but there is no tab labelled View/Print and I cannot find any link to CPP statement of contributions anywhere…do you have to be a specific age?
I haven’t logged in both ways in quite a while.
If you sign in from the page: http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/myaccount/
you will probably see a link at the bottom of the screen that you can click on to “View and update your EI, CPP and OAS information online.”
If you click on Access Now, and click I Agree to accept sharing your SIN number with the CPP system, it takes you in.
On the Welcome screen, below the info about EI, there should be a list with four tabs the first of which is View/Print and below which is listed View My CPP Contributions.
When I click on that, it takes me in to a summary of each year’s contributions to my CPP
It no longer has a nice Print version inside that I could find, but I could copy the info into my word processing program or take screen captures and paste them into a document to print. (or print the screen directly.)
It should not have anything to do with your age.
Did you receive a CRA access code in the mail or a GC Key in the mail? If not, you likely still have limited access to view things.
If you did get the codes and complete setting up your online access, then it may be worth phoning Service Canada to find out why you can’t get access properly.
(I don’t work for the government nor do I know anyone who does, I’m just a taxpayer. So unfortunately, I can’t help you directly.)
I hope it works this time!
Yes! I did find incredibly silly contribution amounts when I looked at my contribution history? I did not see any Ms (for maximum contribution) on my report, not one! I also noticed that I had several years (about 3 -4 years) where they put a “0” meaning I did not work/ contribute…But I did work in those years. Does anyone have any advice on this? I would appreciate it very much! As for the years that they put a 0 they go back to 2004 and into the 70’s and 80’s and so I no longer have those tax returns and or pay stubs! I am on CPP and I believe they have ripped me off giving me $*** per month when I have worked 36 years total and had 3 children in a 21 year span which I am sure they did not take the Child Rearing Provision into consideration.
I’m very sorry to hear of your CPP difficulties. As I am sure you won’t be happy to hear, the only way to ask for corrections is to talk to Service Canada. (I don’t work for or with them; I’m just a taxpayer, too.)
There may still be ways to check what your contributions were but I am not sure how you should start.
While it may be stressful to talk to the government about this, it may be worth a try!
I’m very sorry for this slow reply.
i am in the same boat – they never recorded my maximum contributions for several years – the only way to correct it is contact your employer and see if they can provide all the T4’s – fat chance of that but is the only way you can prove what you say.
Any way to calculate how much your CPP will go down if you choose not to work from age 60 to 65 (without taking the pension)?
The best thing is to contact Service Canada and ask them to do the calculations for you. CPP calculations are weird from what I have read.
The reduction in pension is dramatic if you start at age 60 and it will NOT increase even when you reach 65. I’d use a lot of caution before deciding what to do.
I understand having 5 more “0 earnings” years may be a factor to consider but I think for many people it is still more beneficial to wait till 65.
I’d ask Service Canada to tell you the specific numbers for your situation. (For example, there are different calculations if a person was the primary caregiver for a child under 6 during any of their working years. They know how to include that information into the math.)
I’m very sorry for this slow reply.