Canada Gazette, Part I, Volume 157, Number 25: Regulations Amending the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 (Persons who Cannot be Located)

June 24, 2023

Statutory authority
Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985

Sponsoring department
Department of Finance

REGULATORY IMPACT ANALYSIS STATEMENT

For the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement, see the Regulations Amending the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 (Negociated Contribution Plans).

PROPOSED REGULATORY TEXT

Notice is given that the Governor in Council proposes to make the annexed Regulations Amending the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 (Persons who Cannot be Located) under subsections 10.3(3.2) to (3.4)^{footnote a} and (4)^{footnote b} and paragraphs 39(1)(c.4)^{footnote c} and (o) of the Pension Benefits Standards Act, 1985 ^{footnote d}.

Interested persons may make representations concerning the proposed Regulations within 30 days after the date of publication of this notice. They are strongly encouraged to use the online commenting feature that is available on the Canada Gazette website but if they use email, mail or any other means, the representations should cite the Canada Gazette, Part I, and the date of publication of this notice, and be sent to Kathleen Wrye, Director, Pensions Policy, Financial Crimes and Security Division, Department of Finance, 90 Elgin Street, 13th Floor, Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0G5 (email: re-pension@fin.gc.ca).

Ottawa, June 15, 2023

Wendy Nixon
Assistant Clerk of the Privy Council

Regulations Amending the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 (Persons who Cannot be Located)

Amendments

1 The long title of the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 ^{footnote 1} is replaced by the following:

Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985

2 Section 1 of the Regulations and the heading before it are repealed.

3 The Regulations are amended by adding the following after section 10:

Transfer of Assets — Person Who Cannot be Located

10.01 For the purposes of subsection 10.3(3.2) of the Act, the following persons are prescribed:

• (a) the person whose pension benefit credit relates to the transferred assets; and
• (b) if that person is deceased,
  • (i) their survivor, if there is one,
  • (ii) if there is no survivor, the person’s designated beneficiary, and
  • (iii) if there is neither a survivor nor a designated beneficiary, the executor of the person’s will, the administrator of their estate or the liquidator of their succession on behalf of the estate or succession.

10.02 For the purposes of subsection 10.3(3.3) of the Act, the prescribed information that must be provided to the designated entity is

• (a) in respect of the relevant person who cannot be located,
  • (i) their name and the name of their spouse, common-law partner and designated beneficiary, if any, listed on the records of the administrator,
  • (ii) their postal and email addresses listed on the records of the administrator,
  • (iii) their date of birth, and
  • (iv) their social insurance number;
• (b) the date on which the person became a member of the pension plan or, if any of their benefits under the plan accrued under any other pension plan, the date on which the benefits started to accrue;
• (c) the date on which the person ceased to accrue pension benefits;
• (d) the date of the transfer of assets;
• (e) the amount transferred;
• (f) the name and registration number of the pension plan at the date of the transfer;
• (g) the names of the employers that contributed to the pension plan in respect of the person and, if any of the person’s benefits under the plan accrued under any other pension plan, the names of the employers that contributed to fund the benefits; and
• (h) the name and address, at the date of transfer, of the administrator of the pension plan from which the assets are transferred or, if the trustee or custodian of the pension fund has been approved by the Superintendent to make the transfer, the name and address, at the date of transfer, of the trustee or custodian of the pension fund from which the assets are transferred.

10.03 For the purposes of subsection 10.3(3.4) of the Act, the prescribed information that the designated entity may publish is

• (a) the name of the person who cannot be located;
• (b) the person’s postal and email addresses listed on the records of the administrator;
• (c) the date on which the person became a member of the pension plan or, if any of their benefits under the plan accrued under any other pension plan, the date on which the benefits started to accrue;
• (d) the date on which the person ceased to accrue pension benefits;
• (e) the date of transfer of assets;
• (f) the amount transferred;
• (g) the name and registration number of the pension plan at the date of the transfer; and
• (h) the names of the employers that contributed to the pension plan in respect of the person and, if any of the person’s benefits under the plan accrued under any other pension plan, the names of the employers that contributed to fund the benefits.

10.04 For the purposes of subsection 10.3(4) of the Act, the prescribed period of time is

• (a) 30 years, if the amount referred to in paragraph 10.02(e) is under $1,000; and
• (b) 100 years in any other case.

Coming into Force

4 These Regulations come into force on the day on which section 142 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2021, No. 1, chapter 23 of the Statutes of Canada, 2021, comes into force, but if they are registered after that day, they come into force on the day on which they are registered.

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