Delegations and Transfers between Jurisdictions

Pension plans which cover both employees subject to federal pension legislation as well as members subject to provincial legislation are known as multi-jurisdictional pension plans. Over the years, the Minister of Finance has entered into a number of reciprocal or bilateral agreements with most provincial pension authorities. According to these agreements multi-jurisdictional pension plans may be registered where the plurality of members are employed. The reciprocal agreements enable:

• OSFI to administer the province’s pension legislation on their behalf for members subject to that province’s jurisdiction.
• Provincial regulators to supervise on behalf of OSFI for members subject to the PBSA.

Currently, there is no reciprocal agreement with Newfoundland and Labrador and the agreement with Quebec covers only members employed in the Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut. Therefore, federally registered plans with members in Quebec and/or Newfoundland and Labrador who are not in included employment must ensure that the plan is registered with both OSFI and Quebec and/or Newfoundland and Labrador.

It is expected that plan administrators should know if their plans have members whose employment is subject to provincial jurisdiction and administer their plans accordingly. They should also report the breakdown of membership in the Annual Information Return (AIR).

Transfers of supervisory jurisdiction occur when the plurality of membership in a plan changes from one jurisdiction to another. If a plan administrator discovers that the plurality of membership has changed within the plan, they should contact their Relationship Manager to discuss the possibility of a transfer in supervisory jurisdiction. If a transfer in supervisory jurisdictions is required, the date of transfer will be determined through an administrative agreement between the two jurisdictions (regulators), and the plan administrator will be required to advise its membership.