Why are Lower-income Parents Less Likely to Open an RESP Account? The Roles of Literacy, Education and Wealth

The Government of Canada offers various financial incentives for parents to save for their children’s postsecondary education by contributing to a Registered Education Savings Plan (RESP). However, RESP participation rates tend to rise substantially with family income, and previous research has demonstrated that family wealth was the single most important reason for this trend (among factors that could be examined). This study explores whether differences in parental literacy, numeracy and financial literacy can further account for some of the gap in RESP participation by level of family income.