Ever stopped to think how much we rely on acronyms? Insidious and sometimes humorous, they run rampant. Over the years, the retirement benefits industry has created a stream of acronyms worthy of bringing HR professionals to their knees. Think you know a bit about retirement benefits? See if you can follow this…
Pension benefits can be offered to your employees using an RPP, DPSP, EPSP or RRSP. An RPP can be DB, DC or MP. It must comply with the tax rules of the ITA and ITR and will be monitored by the big tax department, the CCRA (formerly DNR or MNR).
Depending on the provincial jurisdiction, your RPP must comply with the PBA, PBSA, QSPP or EPPA and you must file endless documents with FSCO, OSFI, RRQ and others. It is less complicated if your employees are located in P.E.I. or N.W.T.
Make sure you diligently file PAs, PSPAs, PARs, AIRs, and AVRs. Of course, you know how to calculate a “grossed-up PSPA…”
Need more info? Call RPD at CCRA and ask them to send you ICs, ITs and PRUs. Stock up on T4s, T10s, T215s, T1004s, T1006s and obtain special tax guides such as T4040, T4084, T4104 and RC4137.
What type of RPP is most appropriate? An earnings-based plan can be FAE, BAE or CAE. Maybe you can add an FPP component which gives OABs based on the level of the participant’s OACs.
If you don’t want to do it alone, several employers can get together to participate in a MEP or SMEP. You need a funding agent? Maybe GWL, ML, SL or TDCT could help.
Need something special for executives? Maybe they should get an IPP or TIPP. Don’t exceed MP or DB limits, unless of course you decide to give supplementary benefits via a SERP or RCA.
Do you have union employees? Yikes. Now you must determine if you negotiate with CAW, IBEW, USWA, UFCW, ACTWU, AFGM, CGIU, UNITE, SEIU, OPSEU, CUPE or PSAC.
You can index member earnings or the pension payments based on AIW or CPI. You might integrate the plan benefits with CPP or OAS. To be an expert, you must also be keenly aware of employment standards legislation such as ESA, WCB and WSIB.
You can offer portability to terminated or retired members by permitting transfers to LIRA, RRIF, LIF and LRIF.
Finally, if you operate within the public sector, make sure you create an acronym for your pension plan. Like OMERS or HOOPP.
And if it all becomes too overwhelming, simply call your local FCIA, LLB, CA or CMA for assistance.
You can always stay up to date reading CHRR.
ACRONYM IDENTIFIER
In case you had trouble following along, here is an expanded partial list of the less obvious acronyms used in “Acronyms run rampant” (above).
•RPP — Registered Pension Plan
•DPSP — Deferred Profit Sharing Plan
•EPSP — Employee Profit Sharing Plan
•RRSP — Registered Retirement Savings Plan
•DB — Defined Benefit
•DC — Defined Contribution
•MP — Money Purchase
•ITA — Income Tax Act
•ITR — Income Tax Regulations
•CCRA — Canada Customs & Revenue Agency
•DNR — Department of National Revenue
•MNR — Ministry of National Revenue
•PBA — Pension Benefits Act
•PBSA — Pension Benefits Standards Act
•QSPPA — Quebec Supplemental Pension Plans Act
•EPPA — Employment Pension Plans Act
•FSCO — Financial Services Commission of Ontario
•OSFI — Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions
•RRQ — Régie des Rentes du Québec
•PA — Pension Adjustment
•PSPA — Past Service Pension Adjustment
•PAR — Pension Adjustment Reversal
•AIR — Annual Information Return
•AVR — Actuarial Valuation Report
•RPD — Registered Plans Directorate
•IC — Information Circular
•IT — Interpretation Bulletin
•PRU — Pension Reform Update
•FAE — Final Average Earnings
•BAE — Best Average Earnings
•CAE — Career Average Earnings
•FPP — Flexible Pension Plan
•OAB — Optional Ancillary Benefit
•OAC — Optional Ancillary Contributions
•MEP — Multi Employer Plan
•SMEP — Specified Multi Employer Plan
•GWL — Great-West Life Assurance Company
•ML — Manulife Financial
•SL — Sun Life Financial Services of Canada
•TDCT — TD Canada Trust
•IPP — Individual Pension Plan
•TIPP — Tailored Individual Pension Plan
•SERP — Supplementary Employment Retirement Plan
•RCA — Retirement Compensation Arrangement
•CAW — Canadian Auto Workers
•IBEW — International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
•USWA — United Steelworkers of America
•UFCW — United Food and Commercial Workers Union
•ACTWU — Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union
•AFGM — American Federation of Grain Millers
•CGIU — Graphic Communications International Union
•UNITE — Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees
•SEIU — Service Employees International Union
•OPSEU — Ontario Public Service Employees Union
•CUPE — Canadian Union of Public Employees
•PSAC — Public Service Alliance of Canada
•AIW — Average Industrial Wage
•CPI — Consumer Price Index
•ESA — Employment Standards Act
•WCB — Workers’ Compensation Board
•WSIB — Workplace Safety and Insurance Board
•LIRA — Locked-in Retirement Account
•RRIF — Registered Retirement Income Fund
•LIF — Life Income Fund
•LRIF — Locked-in Retirement Income Fund
•OMERS — Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
•HOOPP — Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan
•FCIA — Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries
•LLB — Bachelor of Laws (Lawyer)
•CA — Certified Accountant
•CMA — Certified Management Accountant
•CHRR — Canadian HR Reporter
Source: Buck Consultants.
Pension benefits can be offered to your employees using an RPP, DPSP, EPSP or RRSP. An RPP can be DB, DC or MP. It must comply with the tax rules of the ITA and ITR and will be monitored by the big tax department, the CCRA (formerly DNR or MNR).
Depending on the provincial jurisdiction, your RPP must comply with the PBA, PBSA, QSPP or EPPA and you must file endless documents with FSCO, OSFI, RRQ and others. It is less complicated if your employees are located in P.E.I. or N.W.T.
Make sure you diligently file PAs, PSPAs, PARs, AIRs, and AVRs. Of course, you know how to calculate a “grossed-up PSPA…”
Need more info? Call RPD at CCRA and ask them to send you ICs, ITs and PRUs. Stock up on T4s, T10s, T215s, T1004s, T1006s and obtain special tax guides such as T4040, T4084, T4104 and RC4137.
What type of RPP is most appropriate? An earnings-based plan can be FAE, BAE or CAE. Maybe you can add an FPP component which gives OABs based on the level of the participant’s OACs.
If you don’t want to do it alone, several employers can get together to participate in a MEP or SMEP. You need a funding agent? Maybe GWL, ML, SL or TDCT could help.
Need something special for executives? Maybe they should get an IPP or TIPP. Don’t exceed MP or DB limits, unless of course you decide to give supplementary benefits via a SERP or RCA.
Do you have union employees? Yikes. Now you must determine if you negotiate with CAW, IBEW, USWA, UFCW, ACTWU, AFGM, CGIU, UNITE, SEIU, OPSEU, CUPE or PSAC.
You can index member earnings or the pension payments based on AIW or CPI. You might integrate the plan benefits with CPP or OAS. To be an expert, you must also be keenly aware of employment standards legislation such as ESA, WCB and WSIB.
You can offer portability to terminated or retired members by permitting transfers to LIRA, RRIF, LIF and LRIF.
Finally, if you operate within the public sector, make sure you create an acronym for your pension plan. Like OMERS or HOOPP.
And if it all becomes too overwhelming, simply call your local FCIA, LLB, CA or CMA for assistance.
You can always stay up to date reading CHRR.
ACRONYM IDENTIFIER
In case you had trouble following along, here is an expanded partial list of the less obvious acronyms used in “Acronyms run rampant” (above).
•RPP — Registered Pension Plan
•DPSP — Deferred Profit Sharing Plan
•EPSP — Employee Profit Sharing Plan
•RRSP — Registered Retirement Savings Plan
•DB — Defined Benefit
•DC — Defined Contribution
•MP — Money Purchase
•ITA — Income Tax Act
•ITR — Income Tax Regulations
•CCRA — Canada Customs & Revenue Agency
•DNR — Department of National Revenue
•MNR — Ministry of National Revenue
•PBA — Pension Benefits Act
•PBSA — Pension Benefits Standards Act
•QSPPA — Quebec Supplemental Pension Plans Act
•EPPA — Employment Pension Plans Act
•FSCO — Financial Services Commission of Ontario
•OSFI — Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions
•RRQ — Régie des Rentes du Québec
•PA — Pension Adjustment
•PSPA — Past Service Pension Adjustment
•PAR — Pension Adjustment Reversal
•AIR — Annual Information Return
•AVR — Actuarial Valuation Report
•RPD — Registered Plans Directorate
•IC — Information Circular
•IT — Interpretation Bulletin
•PRU — Pension Reform Update
•FAE — Final Average Earnings
•BAE — Best Average Earnings
•CAE — Career Average Earnings
•FPP — Flexible Pension Plan
•OAB — Optional Ancillary Benefit
•OAC — Optional Ancillary Contributions
•MEP — Multi Employer Plan
•SMEP — Specified Multi Employer Plan
•GWL — Great-West Life Assurance Company
•ML — Manulife Financial
•SL — Sun Life Financial Services of Canada
•TDCT — TD Canada Trust
•IPP — Individual Pension Plan
•TIPP — Tailored Individual Pension Plan
•SERP — Supplementary Employment Retirement Plan
•RCA — Retirement Compensation Arrangement
•CAW — Canadian Auto Workers
•IBEW — International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
•USWA — United Steelworkers of America
•UFCW — United Food and Commercial Workers Union
•ACTWU — Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union
•AFGM — American Federation of Grain Millers
•CGIU — Graphic Communications International Union
•UNITE — Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees
•SEIU — Service Employees International Union
•OPSEU — Ontario Public Service Employees Union
•CUPE — Canadian Union of Public Employees
•PSAC — Public Service Alliance of Canada
•AIW — Average Industrial Wage
•CPI — Consumer Price Index
•ESA — Employment Standards Act
•WCB — Workers’ Compensation Board
•WSIB — Workplace Safety and Insurance Board
•LIRA — Locked-in Retirement Account
•RRIF — Registered Retirement Income Fund
•LIF — Life Income Fund
•LRIF — Locked-in Retirement Income Fund
•OMERS — Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System
•HOOPP — Hospitals of Ontario Pension Plan
•FCIA — Fellow of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries
•LLB — Bachelor of Laws (Lawyer)
•CA — Certified Accountant
•CMA — Certified Management Accountant
•CHRR — Canadian HR Reporter
Source: Buck Consultants.
