In its 2023 budget on Tuesday, the federal government proposed roughly $13 billion over the next five years and $4.4 billion ongoing to fully implement the national dental-care program. The plan — to be administered by Health Canada, with support from a third-party benefits administrator — will provide dental coverage for uninsured Canadians with annual […]
The Pension Investment Association of Canada is praising the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities for addressing the regulatory inconsistencies facing Canada’s defined contribution pension plan sponsors in its draft strategic plan for 2023-2026. “We commend CAPSA for its achievements in engaging with stakeholders to consider evolving regulatory risks and [capital accumulation plan] guideline development,” […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management is encouraging the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities to prioritize decumulation in its draft 2023-2026 strategic plan. In an open letter to the CAPSA, the ACPM recommended the strategic plan address all potential decumulation income sources beyond defined contribution pension assets, noting that, while a focus on these […]
The Pension and Investment Association of Canada is calling on the federal government to establish a going-concern plus regime as a long-term minimum funding requirement for federally regulated defined benefit pension plans. In its pre-budget submission to Finance Canada, the PIAC said it believes the Canadian government should set a uniform funding requirement for all provinces […]
Finance’s toughest problem just got a whole lot trickier, thanks to the quandary of inflation. Legendary economist William F. Sharpe sealed his place in history when he collected the 1990 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work on investment decision-making, but in defined contribution pension circles, the emeritus professor at Stanford University is […]
For some Canadians, the term pension may still conjure images of a secure stash of money guaranteed to ensure a comfortable lifestyle in retirement. I should know — until joining Benefits Canada in 2020, I counted myself among this group. Defined benefit pension plans — the epitome of the image described above — still exist, but […]
The Association of Canadian Pension Management is calling on the federal government and capital accumulation plan sponsors to support members’ financial wellness by focusing on decumulation. In a new white paper, the ACPM proposed the creation of a “retirement dashboard” that informs retirees of their available sources of retirement income — including government retirement benefits, […]
The Saskatchewan government is introducing amendments to its pension legislation that provide additional flexibility for plan sponsors and introduce new decumulation options for members of defined contribution plans. The bill, which passed first reading in provincial parliament last week, includes provisions for DC plan sponsors to offer advanced life deferred annuities and variable payment lifetime […]
The Canadian Institute of Actuaries is supporting several of the Alberta government’s proposed legislative and policy updates for private sector pension laws, including the move towards a going-concern plus regime for defined benefit plans and the introduction of automatic features in defined contribution plans. In its response to the consultation draft, the CIA cited the benefits […]
Capital accumulation plan sponsors need to focus on providing lifetime retirement income for plan members amid the growth of decumulation solutions such as advanced life deferred annuities and variable payment lifetime annuities, according to a new report by the C.D. Howe Institute. It noted DC plan members currently have three main options to draw down […]