Can you delay a RRIF withdrawal?

A reader had heard you can base RRIF withdrawals on a younger spouse's age to keep the mandatory amounts smaller, and wanted to know what that really means. The answer walks through how the minimum withdrawal is a percentage of the account that rises with age, and how electing your spouse's age instead of your own lowers that required draw while you are both still living. It is a small choice made once, but it matters for couples with an age gap who want to keep taxable income down, manage Old Age Security, or simply leave more invested longer. The piece also clears up the timing: an RRSP becomes a RRIF by the end of the year you turn 71, the first payment can wait into the following year, and you are always free to take more than the minimum when you need it.