What should you look for in a retirement advisor?
Check the CIRO AdvisorReport or the CSA National Registration Search yourself — both free, both public — or use a service that does it for you. Look at the registration category, the provinces they may serve, and any disciplinary history.
Decumulation is a different discipline from growth investing. Ask directly how many clients they have taken through the transition from paycheque to portfolio, and what happened to those clients in a bad market year early in retirement.
Employer pension plans and commutation analysis, CPP and OAS timing, RRSP-to-RRIF conversion, and withdrawal sequencing for larger portfolios. The questions your money is actually asking.
A percentage of assets, commonly around 1% a year, a flat or hourly planning fee, or commissions on products. Ask for the all-in number including fund management fees, in plain language, in writing.
In person where offices exist, or secure video and phone anywhere in the country. Distance no longer limits your choice of specialist, and it shouldn't.
Why the years before retirement are different
Most financial advice is about accumulation: contribute, invest, wait. The five years either side of retirement invert that, and several of the decisions are one-time and irreversible.
The largest is usually the employer pension. Anyone leaving a job with a defined-benefit plan typically faces a choice between a commuted value paid into a locked-in account and a deferred pension paid for life. That decision turns on tax, health, spousal benefits and prevailing interest rates, and the offer usually has an expiry date. It is common across energy, utilities, the trades, healthcare, education and the public sector — in every province, not just the ones people associate with big pensions.
There's a tax trap inside it that surprises people: for defined-benefit pensions the Income Tax Act caps how much of a commuted value can be sheltered, and anything above that cap is paid out in cash and is fully taxable that year. Our guide to the T2151 transfer form sets out how that works.
Alongside it sit CPP and OAS timing — a permanent 36% reduction at 60 against a 42% increase at 70 — and withdrawal sequencing across account types, which changes your lifetime tax bill and your OAS recovery tax exposure. See the full CPP and OAS breakdown.
What does advice cost in Canada?
Percentage of assets under management is the most common model, often around 1% a year and falling as the portfolio grows. Advice-only planners charge a flat or hourly fee and sell no products. Commission-based advisors are paid by the products they place, which is the least visible arrangement and the one worth asking the most questions about.
For context, a typical Canadian bank mutual fund carries an all-in cost above 2% a year, against roughly 1% for independent fee-based advice. On a $500,000 portfolio that difference is about $5,000 a year, every year, compounding against you.
In person or remote — which is right for you?
Retirement planning is a long relationship and both formats work. In person suits households who want a local office and a handshake. Video widens the field to the best-fit specialist regardless of postal code, which matters most if you live outside a major centre. Many households use a mix: video for quarterly reviews, in person for the decisions that can't be undone.
How RetireWisely's free matching works
Answer a few questions about your province, timeline, savings, priorities and meeting preference. We screen our network on the criteria above and introduce you to one advisor — never a call list — with a free 30-minute introductory call booked on your schedule. The service costs you nothing: advisors pay a referral fee only if you choose to become their client, which is why we only make introductions we think will hold. The full criteria are on our vetting page.
Frequently asked questions
How do I check if a financial advisor is registered in Canada?
Look them up yourself in the CIRO AdvisorReport and the Canadian Securities Administrators' National Registration Search. Both are free and public, and both show the advisor's registration category, the provinces they are permitted to serve, and any disciplinary history. Do this before a first meeting, not after. Any advisor who hesitates when you say you intend to check is telling you something useful.
What does a financial advisor cost in Canada?
Three common models. A percentage of assets under management, most often around 1% a year, falling as the portfolio grows. A flat annual or hourly fee for advice-only planning, with no product sales. Or commissions embedded in the products sold, which is where costs are hardest to see. Ask for the all-in number in writing, including fund management fees, before you commit to anything.
Do I need an advisor in my own city?
No, and insisting on one narrows your choice for no real benefit. Secure video and phone meetings are now standard, which means you can work with a specialist in retirement income rather than whoever happens to have an office nearby. In-person remains available where advisors have offices. Many households use both: video for reviews, in person for the decisions that matter.
Why does retirement need a different kind of advisor?
Building a portfolio and drawing one down are different skills. Decumulation involves withdrawal sequencing across RRSP, TFSA and non-registered accounts, RRIF minimums, CPP and OAS timing, OAS recovery tax, and pension decisions that cannot be reversed. An advisor who is excellent at growth investing may have little experience turning savings into a paycheque that survives a bad first three years.
Should I get a second opinion if I already have an advisor at my bank?
Many people do in the final years before retiring, particularly on pension commutation and withdrawal-order tax planning, where independent specialists often go deeper than a branch advisor whose product shelf is limited to one institution. A second opinion costs nothing but time, and the decisions it covers are largely irreversible.