Canadian Forces Superannuation Act

This Act may be cited as the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act.

In this Act,

Canadian Forces Pension Fund means the fund established under section 55.2; (Caisse de retraite des Forces canadiennes)

Canadian Forces Superannuation Investment Fund means the fund established under section 55.1; (Fonds de placement du compte de pension de retraite des Forces canadiennes)

child means a child or stepchild of — or an individual adopted either legally or in fact by — a contributor, who at the time of the contributor’s death was dependent on the contributor for support; (enfant)

contributor means a person who is required by section 5 to contribute to the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, and includes, unless the context otherwise requires,

a person who has ceased to be required by this Act to contribute to the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, and

for the purposes of sections 26 to 35 and 38 to 40, a contributor under Part V of the former Act who has become entitled to a pension under that Part or has died; (contributeur)

disabled, as applied to any member of the regular force, has reference to any condition rendering him mentally or physically unfit to perform his duties as such member; (invalide)

former Act means the Defence Services Pension Act, chapter 63 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1952, as it read before March 1, 1960, and includes, unless the context otherwise requires, any other enactment of Parliament providing for the payment of pensions to members of the regular force based on length of service, other than this Act; (ancienne loi)

intermediate engagement[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 1]

member of the regular force means an officer or non-commissioned member of the regular force; (membre de la force régulière)

member of the reserve force means an officer or non-commissioned member of the reserve force; (membre de la force de réserve)

Minister means the Minister of National Defence; (ministre)

officer means a commissioned or subordinate officer of the regular force; (officier)

pay, as applied to the Canadian Forces, means pay at the rates prescribed or established under the National Defence Act for the rank held by the person in respect of whom the expression is being applied, together with the allowances prescribed by the regulations made under this Act for that rank, and, as applied to the public service or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, means the salary or pay and allowances, as the case may be, applicable in the case of that person, as determined under the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act; (solde)

provincial pension plan has the same meaning as in the Canada Pension Plan; (régime provincial de pensions)

public service has the meaning given that expression in subsection 3(1) of the Public Service Superannuation Act; (fonction publique)

rank includes appointment; (grade)

regular force means the regular force of the Canadian Forces and includes

the forces known before February 1, 1968 as the regular forces of the Canadian Forces, and

the forces known before February 1, 1968 as the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army Active Force, the Permanent Active Militia, the Permanent Militia Corps, the permanent staff of the Militia, the Royal Canadian Air Force (Regular) and the Permanent Active Air Force; (force régulière)

retirement age[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 1]

salary as applied to a member of the Canadian Forces means the pay received by the member from employment as a member of the Canadian Forces; (traitement)

short engagement[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 1]

Superannuation Account means the Canadian Forces Superannuation Account referred to in section 4; (compte de pension de retraite)

supplementary benefit means a supplementary benefit payable under Part III; (prestation supplémentaire)

survivor, in relation to a contributor, means

a person who was married to the contributor at the time of the contributor’s death, or

a person referred to in subsection 29(1). (survivant)

[Repealed, 1999, c. 34, s. 115]

A reference in this Act to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act shall be construed as including a reference to any other enactment of Parliament in force either before or after March 1, 1960 providing for the payment of pensions to members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police based on length of service.

Except as provided in the regulations, employment as a member of the Canadian Forces is not excepted employment for the purposes of the Canada Pension Plan.

Male and female contributors under this Act have equality of status and equal rights and obligations under this Act.

The Governor in Council may make regulations respecting the manner in which and the extent to which any provisions of Parts I, II and III, or of any regulations made under those Parts, apply to members or former members, or classes of members or former members, of the reserve force that are prescribed in those regulations and adapting any of those provisions for the purposes of that application.

For greater certainty, members of the reserve force who, immediately before the coming into force of this section, were deemed to be re-enrolled in the regular force under subsection 41(2) or (3) of this Act as it read immediately before its repeal are members, or classes of members, who may be prescribed by regulations made under subsection (1).

For greater certainty, members of the reserve force who, immediately before the coming into force of this section, were participants within the meaning of paragraph (b) of the definition participant in subsection 60(1) of this Act as it read immediately before its repeal are members, or classes of members, who may be prescribed by regulations made under subsection (1) for the purposes of the application and adaptation of any provisions of Part II.

Subject to this Act, an annuity or other benefit specified in this Act shall be paid to or in respect of every person who, being required to contribute to the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund in accordance with this Act, ceases to be a member of the regular force or dies, and that annuity or other benefit shall, subject to this Act, be based on the number of years of pensionable service to the credit of that person.

The Permanent Services Pension Account in the accounts of Canada, established pursuant to the former Act, is hereby continued under the name of the Canadian Forces Superannuation Account.

A member of the regular force, except a person described in subsection (6), is required to contribute to the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, in respect of every portion of the period beginning on January 1, 2013 by reservation from salary or otherwise, at the contribution rates determined by the Treasury Board in respect of that portion on the joint recommendation of the President of the Treasury Board and the Minister.

A person who has to his or her credit, on or after January 1, 2013, a period of pensionable service — or a period of pensionable service and other pensionable service — totalling at least 35 years is not required to contribute under subsection (1) but is required to contribute, by reservation from salary or otherwise, to the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, in respect of the period beginning on the later of January 1, 2013 and the day on which the person has to his or her credit those 35 years, in addition to any other amount required under this Act, at the rates determined by the Treasury Board on the joint recommendation of the President of the Treasury Board and the Minister.

In determining the contribution rates for the purposes of subsections (1) and (2), the rates must not exceed the rates paid under section 5 of the Public Service Superannuation Act by Group 1 contributors who are described in subsection 12(0.1) of that Act.

For the purpose of subsection (2), other pensionable service means years of service, other than service credited under a plan established in accordance with Part I.1, giving rise to a superannuation or pension benefit of a kind specified in the regulations that is payable

out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund, or out of any account in the accounts of Canada other than the Superannuation Account; or

out of the Public Service Pension Fund within the meaning of the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Pension Fund within the meaning of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act.

Despite anything in this Part, no person shall, in respect of any period of his or her service on or after December 15, 1994, make a contribution under this Part in respect of any portion of his or her annual rate of pay that is in excess of the annual rate of pay that is fixed by or determined in the manner prescribed by the regulations.

The exceptions are

a member who, immediately before March 1, 1960, was a member of the regular force but not a contributor under Part V of the former Act and who has not elected under subsection 18(2) of the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act, chapter C-9 of the Revised Statutes of Canada, 1970, to become a contributor under this Act; and

a person on leave of absence from employment outside the regular force who, in respect of current service continues to contribute to or under any superannuation or pension fund or plan established for the benefit of employees of the employer from whose employment the member is absent.

Subject to this Act, the following service may be counted by a contributor as pensionable service for the purposes of this Act, namely,

non-elective service, comprising,

in the case of a contributor who, immediately before March 1, 1960, was a contributor under Part V of the former Act, any period of service that he would have been entitled to count for the purposes of computing any pension or gratuity under that Part had he, at that time, retired from the regular force, except any such period for which he elected under that Part to pay, and

in the case of any contributor,

any period during which he or she was required by subsections 5(1) and (1.01), as they read on December 31, 2012, to contribute to the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, and any period during which he or she is required by subsection 5(1) to contribute to the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, and

any period of service that may be counted by him as pensionable service pursuant to section 41; and

elective service comprising

any period of service for which a contributor has elected to pay under the provisions of this Act as it read immediately before the coming into force of this paragraph,

any period of service for which a contributor elects to pay under section 7, and

any period of service for which a contributor elects to pay under section 8.

[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 5]

A contributor may, subject to regulations made under subsection (2) and paragraphs 50(1)(b) and (c), elect to pay for any period of service, or part of a period of service, of a kind prescribed in the regulations.

For the purposes of subsection (1), the Governor in Council may make regulations

prescribing periods of service of a kind for which a contributor may elect to pay;

prescribing the terms and conditions on which a contributor may elect to pay for periods of service, including terms and conditions on which a contributor may elect to pay for part only of a period of service and on which a contributor may be required to repay an amount that was paid to the contributor in respect of an annuity, annual allowance, pension or gratuity;

respecting the manner of determining the amount that a contributor is required to pay for elective service and the terms and conditions of payment for that service, including terms and conditions for payment by instalments and the bases as to mortality and interest on which instalment payments are to be computed; and

prescribing the circumstances in which an election made by a contributor is void.

Any amount required to be paid by a contributor in respect of any period of service for which they have elected to pay under this Part after the coming into force of this subsection shall be paid into the Canadian Forces Pension Fund.

Any amount that is required to be paid by a contributor after the coming into force of this subsection for a period of service for which they have elected to pay under the provisions of this Act as it read immediately before that coming into force shall be paid, in accordance with those provisions, into the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, as the case may be.

A contributor may, within two years after the coming into force of this section, elect, in accordance with subsection (2) or (3), as the case may be, to pay for any period of service that they would have been entitled to count as elective service under section 6 of this Act as it read immediately before that coming into force if they were a member of the regular force continuously from the day immediately before that coming into force until the day on which they make the election.

If a contributor makes an election under subsection (1) to pay for a period of service for which they would not have been entitled to make an election under section 7, the provisions of this Act, and the regulations made under it, as they read immediately before the coming into force of this section, apply to an election under that subsection.

If a contributor makes an election under subsection (1) to pay for a period of service for which they would also have been entitled to make an election under section 7, then subsection 7(3) and the regulations made under subsection 7(2) apply to the election made under subsection (1), except that the contributor may further elect, in accordance with the regulations, for the provisions of this Act, and the regulations made under it, as they read immediately before the coming into force of this section, to apply to the determination of the amount to be paid for the period of service and the terms and conditions applicable to payment for that service.

[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 5]

If, under any regulations made under paragraph 50(1)(e), a contributor is required to count as pensionable service for the purposes of this Act a period of service that exceeds three months, the contributor may, despite those regulations, elect, in accordance with the regulations, not to count as pensionable service that portion of the period that is in excess of three months.

Despite section 5, a contributor who makes an election under subsection (1) is not required to contribute to the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund under that section in respect of the portion of the period to which the election relates.

A contributor who makes an election under subsection (1) in respect of a period of service that ended before December 1, 1995 and who has, before that day, made some but not all of the contributions that are required to be made by the contributor to the Superannuation Account in respect of that period shall, at the time the election is made, cease to be required to make any further contributions to the Superannuation Account in respect of that period and shall count as pensionable service for the purposes of this Act such portion of that period as is prescribed by the regulations.

An election under this Part may be amended by the elector, within the time prescribed by the regulations for the making of the election, by increasing the period or periods of service for which they elect to pay, and is otherwise irrevocable except under such circumstances and on such terms and conditions, including payment by the elector to Her Majesty of such amount in respect of any benefit accruing to the elector during the subsistence of the election, as a consequence of their having so elected, as is prescribed by the regulations.

Despite anything in the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act, on the making of any election under this Act to pay for service that they have to their credit under either of those Acts, the contributor so electing, and any person to whom any benefit might otherwise have become payable under the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act, as the case may be, in respect of that contributor, cease to be entitled to any benefit under that Act in respect of any service of that contributor to which that election relates.

The Governor in Council may make regulations prescribing the manner of determining the amount to be charged to the account maintained in the accounts of Canada, or the pension fund established pursuant to the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act, as the case may be, and credited to the Canadian Forces Pension Fund or to the Superannuation Account, as the case may be, in respect of a contributor who elects to pay for a period of service that they were entitled to count for pension purposes under the Public Service Superannuation Act or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act.

In this Act, except Part I.1,

annuity means an annuity computed in accordance with section 15; (annuité)

cash termination allowance[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 7]

deferred annuity means an annuity that becomes payable to the contributor at the time he reaches sixty years of age; (annuité différée)

immediate annuity means an annuity that becomes payable to the contributor immediately on his becoming entitled thereto; (annuité immédiate)

recipient[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 7]

return of contributions means a return of to the extent that the amount remains to his or her credit in the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund, together with interest, if any, calculated pursuant to section 13; (remboursement de contributions)

the amount paid by the contributor into the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund but not including any amount so paid pursuant to subsection 39(7) of the Public Service Superannuation Act or subsection 24(6) of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act, and

any amount paid by him or her into any other account or fund, together with interest, if any, that has been transferred to the Superannuation Account or the Canadian Forces Pension Fund,

transfer value means a lump sum amount, representing the value of the contributor’s pension benefits, as determined in accordance with the regulations. (valeur de transfert)

Where an annuity or an annual allowance becomes payable under this Part to a contributor, it shall, subject to the regulations, be paid in equal monthly instalments in arrears and shall continue, subject to this Part, during the lifetime of the contributor and thereafter until the end of the month during which the contributor dies, and any amount in arrears thereof that remains unpaid at any time after their death shall be paid as provided in section 26, in respect of a death benefit.

When an annual allowance becomes payable under this Part to a survivor or child, it shall, subject to the regulations, be paid in equal monthly instalments in arrears and shall continue, subject to this Part, until the end of the month during which the recipient dies or otherwise ceases to be entitled to receive an annual allowance, and any amount in arrears that remains unpaid at any time after the death of the recipient shall be paid to the estate or succession of the recipient or, if less than one thousand dollars, as the Minister may direct.

If a contributor has exercised an option under this Part, the option may be revoked and a new option exercised by the contributor, in accordance with the regulations.

For the purposes of the definition return of contributions in section 10, interest shall be calculated in the manner that the regulations provide and on the balances that are determined in accordance with the regulations,

at the rate of four per cent, compounded annually, for any period before January 1, 2001; and

at the rates established in the regulations made under paragraph 50(1)(j) compounded quarterly, for any period beginning on or after January 1, 2001.

[Repealed, 2003, c. 26, s. 11]

The amount of any annuity to which a contributor may become entitled under this Act is an amount equal to the aggregate of

an amount equal to multiplied by

the number of years of pensionable service to the credit of the contributor occurring in the period preceding the day on which this subsection comes into force, not exceeding thirty-five, divided by fifty,

the average annual pay received by the contributor during any five-year period of pensionable service selected by or on behalf of the contributor, or during any period so selected consisting of consecutive periods of pensionable service totalling five years, or

in the case of a contributor who has to the contributor’s credit less than five years of pensionable service, the average annual pay received by the contributor during the period of pensionable service to the contributor’s credit, and

an amount equal to multiplied by the lesser of

the number of years of pensionable service to the credit of the contributor occurring in the period on and after the day on which this subsection comes into force, not exceeding thirty-five years less the number of years of pensionable service to the credit of the contributor under subparagraph (a)(i), divided by fifty,

the average annual pay received by the contributor during the period referred to in subparagraph (a)(ii) or (iii), as applicable, and

the annual rate of pay that is fixed by the regulations made under paragraph 50(1)(g), or that may be determined in the manner prescribed by those regulations, and in force on the day on which the contributor most recently ceased to be a member of the regular force.

Notwithstanding subsection (1), unless the Minister is satisfied that a contributor there shall be deducted from the amount of any annuity to which that contributor is entitled under this Act an amount equal to the percentage, as set out in subsection (2.1), of multiplied by

has not reached the age of sixty-five years, and

has not become entitled to a disability pension payable under paragraph 44(1)(b) of the Canada Pension Plan or a provision of a provincial pension plan similar to the Canada Pension Plan,

the average annual pay received by the contributor during the period of pensionable service described in subsection (1) applicable to him or her, not exceeding his or her Average Maximum Pensionable Earnings,

the number of years of pensionable service after 1965 or after he or she has attained the age of eighteen years, whichever is the later, to the credit of the contributor, not exceeding thirty-five, divided by fifty.

For the purposes of subsection (2), the percentage that applies in respect of a contributor is

35%, if the contributor was born before 1943;

34.25%, if the contributor was born in 1943;

33.5%, if the contributor was born in 1944;

32.75% if the contributor was born in 1945;

32%, if the contributor was born in 1946; and

31.25%, if the contributor was born after 1946.

For the purposes of subsection (2),

Average Maximum Pensionable Earnings means, with respect to any contributor, the average of the Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings for the year in which he or she ceased to be a member of the regular force and for each of the four preceding years; (moyenne des maximums des gains ouvrant droit à pension)

Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings has the same meaning as in the Canada Pension Plan. (maximum des gains annuels ouvrant droit à pension)

For the purposes of this section, a contributor who has to their credit pensionable service that includes any period of service referred to in paragraph 6(b) is deemed to have received during that period pay determined in accordance with the regulations.

For the purposes of subparagraphs (1)(a)(ii) and (iii), a period of service during which a person continues to be a member of the regular force and is required to make contributions under subsection 5(2), or was required to make contributions under subsection 5(2), (3) or (4) as it read on December 31, 2012, is deemed to be a period of pensionable service to his or her credit.

Subparagraphs (1)(a)(ii) and (iii), as enacted by subsection 14(1) of the Budget Implementation Act, 1999, apply with respect to benefits payable to or in respect of a person who contributes under section 5 or 75 on or after the day on which this subsection comes into force but do not apply to a person who became entitled to an annuity before the coming into force of this subsection and is a person described in section 41 and who is only entitled to a return of contributions in respect of the period of service in the regular or reserve force after the time of his or her re-enrollment within the meaning of that section.

The definition Average Maximum Pensionable Earnings in subsection (3), as enacted by subsection 14(2) of the Budget Implementation Act, 1999, applies only with respect to deductions from annuities made under subsection (2) that take effect on or after the day on which this subsection comes into force.

A contributor who ceases to be a member of the regular force and who has to their credit two or more years of pensionable service is entitled to an immediate annuity if

they have completed not less than 25 years of Canadian Forces service as prescribed by regulations made under paragraph 50(1)(m);

they have reached 60 years of age;

they have reached 55 years of age and have to their credit not less than 30 years of pensionable service;

they are disabled and have to their credit not less than 10 years of pensionable service; or