Did you know that some workers forget the existence of their contributions to a pension fund from a previous employer? This may be your case! Here’s how to find them.
Employers offer their employees different types of pension funds, which can create confusion for contributors. “The most common are group registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs). But we also find the Deferred Profit Sharing Plan (DPSP), as well as the Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (RVER),” explains independent financial planner Jean-Sébastien Jutras.
As for the public sector, it has specific retirement plans, notably the Retirement Plan for Personnel Employed by the Government and Public Bodies (RREGOP).
Be proactive
Jean-Sébastien Jutras emphasizes that an employee could actually lose track of their different plans if they have often changed jobs during their professional life. This can also happen when you have held a position for a year or two at the start of your career in a private company or in the public sector. After a few years, you may simply not remember that you contributed to this plan.
“You should know that the different regimes are not always quick in their communications with workers. And if we have changed our address, they can easily lose track of us,” warns the financial planner. A contributor who has moved and no longer receives his statements is also likely to forget.
Jean-Sébastien Jutras specifies that the contributor should not rely on the proactivity of the plan in which he participated, but rather take responsibility for it. “As soon as you change jobs, you should contact the employer or plan administrator to notify them,” he advises.
Find the trace of contributions
There is no register as such listing the different schemes to which one has contributed during one’s working life. To find their trace and make sure you don’t lose any along the way, Jean-Sébastien Jutras recommends consulting My file on the Canada Revenue Agency website. “It is possible to consult your tax returns for the last ten years, which will provide us with information on the contributions you made during this period,” he says.
If in doubt, you can also contact your former employers.
Please note that Retraite Québec can also support you in this process. To do this, you will need to make a request to this organization and provide them with the list of employers who have deducted and paid contributions from your salary to the Quebec Pension Plan.
To make this research easier for you, Retraite Québec also recommends gathering documents referring to the plan (annual statement, account or participation statement, booklet or explanatory document on the plan), proof confirming your participation in the plan ( pay stub, tax slip, income tax returns) as well as the list of your former employers and the dates you were employed by them.
ADVICE :
· At the end of the employment relationship, some plans offer to transfer the contribution amounts to an RRSP or a Locked-in Retirement Account (LIRA), or to pay the money directly to the contributor. This makes it even more important that the plan administrator can find you. Make sure they have your contact details.
· If contributions need to be transferred, do not make hasty decisions and seek professional advice to ensure you make the right choice. “You have to choose the most cost-effective option based on your situation. The mistake that contributors often make is to ask for the money to be paid to them, which will increase their taxable income and therefore their tax bill,” indicates Jean-Sébastien Jutras.
· Conversely, if this amount had been deposited in an RRSP, it would have enabled tax deductions.