Beneficiaries may generally be changed and funds transferred between Registered Education Savings Plans subject to age and relationship conditions. Transfers that do not meet the conditions can trigger repayment of government grants, so selecting an appropriate structure at the outset is preferable.

Choosing the structure

Family plan or individual plan? Decide this once.

Q: What is the difference between a family and an individual RESP?

An individual Registered Education Savings Plan has a single beneficiary and may be opened by anyone with no relationship requirement and no age limit at naming. A family plan may have multiple beneficiaries, all of whom must be related to each living subscriber by blood or adoption and must be under 21 when named.

Q: If I have two children, should I use one family plan?

For families with more than one child, a family plan allows funds to be shared between beneficiaries without transfers, and contributions may be allocated unequally. Separate individual plans provide clearer per-child accounting but less flexibility if one beneficiary does not pursue post-secondary education.

Q: Does a family plan mean the money is split equally?

Funds in a family Registered Education Savings Plan need not be divided equally between beneficiaries and may be allocated according to differing costs. Per-beneficiary grant maximums continue to apply to each beneficiary individually.

Q: Are there grants a family plan can cost me?

Certain incentives including the additional Canada Education Savings Grant, the British Columbia Training and Education Savings Grant, and the Quebec Education Savings Incentive increase require all beneficiaries in a family plan to be siblings. The Canada Learning Bond may be paid into a sibling-only family plan but cannot be shared between beneficiaries.

Q: Can I open a plan for a child who isn’t related to me?

An individual Registered Education Savings Plan may be opened for any beneficiary with no relationship requirement. The blood or adoption requirement applies only to family plans, which permit beneficiaries to share funds.

Q: Can I open a plan for an adult, or for myself?

Individual Registered Education Savings Plans have no age limit for naming a beneficiary, allowing plans for adult learners or for the subscriber's own education. Canada Education Savings Grant eligibility generally ends after the year the beneficiary turns 17.

Choose a family plan if you have two or more children who are siblings: it lets you share contributions, growth and Canada Education Savings Grant between them, which an individual plan cannot. Choose an individual plan for a single child, or for a beneficiary who is not related to you. Both attract the same grants — CESG up to $7,200 for life per child (canada.ca).

Figures on this page are verified against canada.ca.

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Side by side

Family plan or individual plan: the differences that matter

An individual plan has one beneficiary and no relationship test — anyone can open one for anyone. A family plan can hold several, but every beneficiary must be related to every living subscriber by blood or adoption, must be under 21 when named, and must all be siblings if you want the income-tested benefits. For most families with two or more children of their own, the family plan wins. For cousins, step-relations added later, or a child who is not yours, it does not.

Individual and family RESPs compared, on the rules that actually change the outcome
	Individual plan	Family plan
Beneficiaries	Exactly one	One or more
Relationship required	None. A friend, a neighbour, yourself	Blood relationship or adoption to every living subscriber
Age when named	Can be older	Must be under 21
Basic CESG (20%, $500 a year)	Yes	Yes
Additional CESG	Yes	Only if every beneficiary is a sibling
Canada Learning Bond	Yes	Only if every beneficiary is a sibling
BC Training and Education Savings Grant	Yes	Only if every beneficiary is a sibling
Moving money between children	Requires a transfer between plans	Built in — the balance is shared
If one child does not go	Transfer or unwind that plan	The others can use their share, within the grant limits
$50,000 lifetime limit	Per child	Per child, not per plan — a family plan does not raise it
$7,200 lifetime grant cap	Per child	Per child. One child cannot use another’s grant
Paperwork and fees	One set per child	One set for the household

Choose an individual plan when

There is one child, and no plan to have more.
The children are not siblings — cousins, or step-children not related to both subscribers by blood or adoption.
You are opening it for someone else’s child, a godchild, or a family friend.
The beneficiary is already 21 or older.
You want each child’s money kept visibly separate.

Choose a family plan when

You have two or more children who are siblings, or expect to.
You want the flexibility to move the balance to whichever child ends up needing it.
You would rather run one plan than three.
You are a grandparent opening one for grandchildren who are brothers and sisters.

The rule that costs the most money

Three of the benefits — the Additional CESG, the Canada Learning Bond and the BC Training and Education Savings Grant — can only be paid into a family plan where every beneficiary is a sibling. Put two sets of cousins in one family plan and all three are off the table, for every child in it, not just the cousins. Nobody sends a letter about this. Cousins belong in separate plans.

The reverse trap is quieter: opening three individual plans for three siblings works, but means three sets of paperwork, and money stranded in the plan of the child who does not go. See what happens if they don’t go.

Rules verified against canada.ca on 4 September 2026: Canada Revenue Agency guidance on RESPs and family plans, and Canada Education Savings Program material on family versus individual plans and on the BC grant. Every RESP limit for the year is collected in RESP rules in 2026. This is general information, not financial, investment, insurance or tax advice.

The difference in one line

One beneficiary, or several who can share.

An individual plan has a single beneficiary and can be opened by anyone for anyone, with no age limit. A family plan can hold several beneficiaries who share the savings, but every one of them must be related to the subscriber by blood or adoption and must be under 21 when named.

Individual plan

One beneficiary
Subscriber can be anyone — no relationship needed
No age limit when the beneficiary is named
Clean accounting: this money is for this child
Works for a godchild, a friend’s child, an adult learner, or yourself
Sharing later means a transfer, with conditions attached

Family plan

Several beneficiaries in one plan
All must be related to you by blood or adoption
Each must be under 21 when named
Savings shared between them — not necessarily equally
Add a later-born child without opening a new plan
Some grants require every beneficiary to be a sibling

The trap: the sibling-only rule

The income-tested additional grant, the British Columbia grant, and the Quebec increase are only payable where every beneficiary in a family plan is a sibling. Put cousins, or grandchildren from different families, in one family plan and you can block those amounts entirely.

Separately: the Canada Learning Bond can be paid into a sibling-only family plan, but it belongs to the child it was paid for and cannot be shared with siblings.

Free decision check

Five questions, one recommendation.

Tick what’s true of your situation.

I have, or expect to have, more than one child. All the children I’d name are siblings — not cousins or unrelated. I am related to all of them by blood or adoption. All of them are, or will be, under 21 when named to the plan. I want each child’s money kept strictly separate, whatever happens.

Tick the boxes that apply

A recommendation appears here once you’ve answered.

Check it before I apply → Grandparents opening a plan

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Picking family vs. individual affects every grant and withdrawal for the next eighteen years. Tell me your kids’ ages and I’ll tell you which plan fits — in one call, before you open anything.

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Common questions

Questions about plan types

What is the difference between a family and an individual RESP?

An individual plan has one beneficiary; a family plan can have several who share the money. Anyone can open an individual plan for any child — no relationship required, and no age limit when the child is named. A family plan requires every beneficiary to be related to each living subscriber by blood or adoption, and each must be under 21 when they are named to it.

If I have two children, should I use one family plan?

Usually yes — flexibility is the whole point. If one child doesn’t pursue post-secondary education, or costs less than expected, the other can use the money without transfers or paperwork. Contributions can be allocated between them unequally to reflect different timing or costs. Two separate plans give you cleaner accounting per child, but you lose that flexibility exactly when you’d want it.

Does a family plan mean the money is split equally?

No — and that’s a feature. Educational payments do not have to be divided equally between beneficiaries. One child studying a four-year degree away from home and another doing a two-year college program locally have very different costs, and the plan can reflect that. Note that each beneficiary must actually be able to use their share, and the per-child grant maximum still applies to each of them individually.

Are there grants a family plan can cost me?

Yes, and this catches people out. Certain income-tested and provincial incentives — the additional grant for lower-income families, the British Columbia grant, and the Quebec increase — are only payable where all beneficiaries in a family plan are siblings. Cousins, nieces and nephews in the same plan can block them. And the Canada Learning Bond, while it can be paid into a sibling-only family plan, belongs to one child and cannot be shared.

Can I open a plan for a child who isn’t related to me?

Yes — with an individual plan. A godchild, a friend’s child, a niece or nephew, or a student you want to support: an individual plan has no relationship requirement at all. Only family plans impose the blood-or-adoption rule, because that is what allows beneficiaries to share the money.

Can I open a plan for an adult, or for myself?

An individual plan, yes. There is no age limit for naming a beneficiary to an individual plan — which makes it usable for an adult returning to study, or for your own education. Government grant eligibility is a separate question and generally ends after the year the beneficiary turns 17, so the value is the tax-sheltered growth rather than the matching.

Can I switch later?

Often, but not always cleanly. Beneficiaries can generally be changed and funds transferred between plans, subject to age and relationship conditions — and an ineligible transfer can trigger repayment of grants. It is considerably easier to choose the right structure at the start than to restructure once grants are in the plan. Ten minutes of thought now saves a real headache later.

Let’s talk

Get the structure right the first time.

A free call before you sign anything: which structure fits your family, whether the sibling rule affects you, and how to keep the flexibility you’ll want in fifteen years. Restructuring later is possible — it’s just needlessly harder.

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If the household has changed, the shape of the plan is only half the question — who is named as subscriber decides who controls it. That is covered in what happens to the RESP when parents separate.

Harpreet Singh · LLQP-Licensed · Life Insurance & Segregated Funds · Ontario · Proudly Canadian. This page is general information only — not financial, investment, insurance, or tax advice. Rules governing plan types, subscribers, beneficiary relationship and age requirements, grant eligibility including sibling-only conditions, transfers, and beneficiary changes are set by the Government of Canada and may change; confirm current requirements at canada.ca. Individual plan terms vary by promoter and may be more restrictive than federal rules. The decision check reflects general considerations only and is not a recommendation for your circumstances. Speak with a qualified advisor about your own situation.

Written and reviewed by

Harpreet Singh

LLQP-Licensed · Life Insurance & Segregated Funds · Ontario

Harpreet is an LLQP-licensed insurance advisor based in Ontario, Canada. He helps families understand RESPs in plain language, claim every government grant they qualify for, and protect the plan with the right coverage — with straight answers and no pressure. More about Harpreet →

Reviewed September 2026 Figures per Canada.ca / CRA LinkedIn Book a free, no-pressure call