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RRSP DEADLINE

Financial planners remind public of RRSP deposit deadline

Feb 28, 2020 | 4:40 PM

KAMLOOPS — With the deposit deadline for Registered Retirement Savings Plans approaching on Monday (Mar. 2), financial planners are reminding people to get their deposits in.

Between accessing advice online, and working with professionals, Shelby Vollo with Wealthy Roots Financial says she’s noticed people are becoming more financially savvy.

“So I’m not seeing people rush like in the past four or five years, where it’s like ‘Oh last minute, let’s get them in’,” notes Vollo. “People are a lot more prepared now I think, and a lot more people are working with accountants and financial planners, so you’re a lot more organized ahead of time, instead of scrambling at the last minute.”

Alongside RRSP handling, Vollo says this year is a good time to adjust funds within a tax-free savings account.

“You can have up to $69,500 in it for 2020, and the annual amount this year is $6,000 but there’s no deadline for when you need to deposit that,” she says. “So it’s really great that you have that flexibility all year because maybe you’re going to get that tax return come tax time, and you can just put it right back into your TFSA if that makes sense for you.”

As far as how COVID-19 is impacting the global economy, Vollo notes that a similar situation developed years ago when SARS broke out, and stocks did go back up. While the initial reaction may be for people to pull out of declining investments, Vollo says that would not be the best long term move.

“So when a big, unavoidable, epidemic sickness happens, markets are going to go down, especially globally because it did start in China and it’s not quarantined yet,” she explains. “So we keep seeing the markets go down, but this is actually the best time to be investing into the market. You’re buying in at a discount right, everything is low, so you want to buy in.”

She adds that anyone who wants to adjust their RRSP’s and add to them should get in touch with a financial advisor ahead of the Monday deadline.