Monday, April 21, 2014

Rules Governing Individual Pension Plans

By Essie Osborn


The sponsor of any pension plan is guided by certain regulations that define relations with contributors, management structures and funding options. Individual pension plans are only sponsored by incorporated and active companies. It means that the members on whose behalf the company makes the contributions are in their T4 or T4PS income rolls. This excludes outsiders who have no relation with the sponsoring company.

The law provides a formula for calculating the benefits to individual members. The aim is to allow signing contributors to know how much to expect within a particular period of time depending on the much they contribute. This formula forms part of the agreement and must be followed up to maturity of such a plan. It eliminates the possibility of hidden charges or fees that cannot be explained.

Each plan has unique investment engagements that ensure that money for the members is not lost. The guidelines are provided by the law and they must be strictly followed. This will protect money from contributors from loss through volatile investment vehicles. Such a scenario is likely to risk the lives and plans of thousands of people who have already bought into the plan. The guidelines are provided during registration and are to be adhered to.

Employers are allowed to make contributions from their corporate income. The amount to be remitted to the scheme is set by an actuary. Managers of such schemes are required to deal with certified actuaries at all times. There are two types of members in any IPP. The connected and non-connected members-referring to those earning hefty salaries.

Payments are not made by employers. Their role is to deduct the money from the income of their registered members and remit it to fund managers. This amount is not counted among the taxable income. Is should be entered in box 52 when filling returns to allow tax departments to make necessary adjustments. The adjustments are guided by a legally set formula.

The actuary uses a set formula to determine how much will be deducted from the income of members. Other factors to consider include the age of the contributing member. The T4 earning history of each contributor is also used to determine the amount to be paid. The final figure must also factor in a set of actuarial assumptions to take care of unpredictable circumstances and offer cushions from harsh investment climate.

The use of designated plan to describe such a scheme emanates from the fact that membership is restricted to particular individuals. This opens such schemes to maximum funding restrictions. Such a condition implies that the assumptions made by actuaries must follow within the ITR guidelines. With such restrictions, the figure obtained will be fair by considering the investment climate and expected benefits.

Some of the IPPs are not regulated in the same way as designated plans. This allows actuaries to use independent factors when making assumptions. This would give a different figure compared to those that are regulated. It is the responsibility of each contributor to be aware of the formula as much as it is that of the management to inform them. The deductions made should be reflected in income statements to members.




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