Responsibilities | Pension Plans
Information for Pension Plan Members

Time Limits for Transfers
A termination of plan membership occurs, in most cases, when a pension plan member terminates employment, retires or dies.

Upon a plan member's termination of membership, the PBSA requires the pension plan to provide the person with a termination statement within 90 days after the termination.

In the case of a multi-employer plan, the actual termination of membership may be considered to not have occurred until two consecutive fiscal years of the plan have gone by in which the member did not work at least 350 hours over the two years combined. In a multi-employer plan, a person who qualifies for a termination of membership, and wishes to transfer benefit entitlements out of the plan, must complete an application for the transfer and file it with the plan administrator. Upon receipt of a completed application, the PBSA requires the administrator to provide a termination statement within 90 days after receipt of the application.

If a plan member has died before starting a pension, the PBSA requires the plan administrator to provide a statement to the surviving spouse, designated beneficiary, or personal representative of the estate of the deceased member within 30 days after proof of death has been provided to the administrator.

Under all three of the above circumstances, the statement is required to provide certain detailed information about the extent of the member's benefit entitlements, as well as information on the options available and deadlines for choosing options.

Upon receipt of the termination statement, outlining the options available for a transfer of pension entitlement, the PBSA requires the person to select the option within 90 days after receipt of the statement. Selection of an option normally involves the return to the administrator of a completed option selection form.

If a person is entitled to the transfer of the commuted value of a pension entitlement, or a return of contributions, the PBSA requires the plan administrator to make the transfer within 60 days after the completing and filing with the administrator of all documents required to authorize the transfer.

Back to Table of Contents