SIP&P No Longer Required for Member Choice Accounts

Effective July 1, 2016, the Pension Benefits Standards Regulations, 1985 (PBSR) no longer require that a Statement of Investment Policies and Procedures (SIP&P) be established in relation to a plan’s portfolio of investments and loans relating to member choice accounts. As a result, defined contribution plans that offer only member choice accounts are no longer required by the PBSR to have a SIP&P. Plan documents may nevertheless specify that a SIP&P will be established for such plans, in which case OSFI would expect a SIP&P to be established in accordance with the plan documents.

OSFI expects administrators of pension plans that offer member choice accounts to document the process for establishing and evaluating the default investment option that will be applied to plan members who do not make an election and the rationale for its selection.