The Annual Information Return (“AIR”) is required to be filed pursuant to the Ontario Pension Benefits Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. P.8, as amended (the “PBA”) and the Federal Income Tax Act, R.S.C. 1985 (5th supp.), c. 1, as amended (the “ITA”). The AIR is a joint filing with the Canada Revenue Agency and the information on Schedule A is collected solely under the authority of the ITA.

The AIR is required to be filed electronically via the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario’s (FSRA) Pension Services Portal (PSP). If you have not received your user ID and temporary password to access the PSP, please contact FSRA either by e-mail or mail.

Plan administrators, or their agents, must complete all relevant sections of the AIR accurately (including Schedule A) and submit the return via the PSP within the prescribed time period.  Late or non-filings are subject to financial penalties under s. 162(7) of the ITA as well as summary administrative monetary penalties under the PBA.  In addition, registration of the plan may be revoked under ss. 147.1(11) and (12) of the ITA if the AIR is filed late.

The sections in these instructions correspond to the sections on the AIR. Please follow these instructions carefully to avoid submitting inaccurate AIRs.

Change to Section(s) of the AIR

An amendment is required to be filed with FSRA for changes to these sections of the AIR:

  • Pension Plan Name;
  • Plan Type;
  • Benefit Type;
  • Plan Administrator’s legal Company Name;
  • Plan Sponsor’s legal Company Name;
  • Pension Fund Trustee’s legal Company Name;
  • Pension Fund Custodian’s legal Company Name;
  • *Collective Bargaining Agent
  • *Participating Employer

* If defined in the plan terms

Please do not change the information on the above-noted sections of the AIR via the Contacts page through the PSP.

Please submit the appropriate amendment to the plan text, custodial agreement or trust agreement (including any board resolution) to FSRA by submitting an application for registration of an amendment through the PSP. Instructions can found here.

Once the amendment has been received and registered, we will update our records accordingly. To see our updated records on the AIR, you will need to abandon the previously started AIR and start fresh again on the PSP.

For contact changes to any other sections of the AIR, please change the information through the PSP Contacts page.

The sections are:

  • Contact Person’s name;
  • Title;
  • Address;
  • Email Address;
  • Telephone Number;
  • Fax Number.

Electronic Revision of the AIR

Once you submit the filing, you cannot make any changes to it.  To make a correction to a previously submitted filing, you must make a re-filing request through the PSP. To revise an AIR submitted on the PSP, please refer to the following weblink: Instructions for Making A Re-filing Request

Identification

Registration Number

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the registration number on the AIR is incorrect, please contact FSRA either by e-mail or mail.

Name of Pension Plan

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the name of the pension plan on the AIR is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Plan Type

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the plan type on the AIR is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Benefit Type

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the benefit type on the AIR is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Plan Reporting Period

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the plan reporting period on the AIR is incorrect, please contact FSRA either by e- mail or mail.

Please remember to quote the name of the pension plan and the registration number in any e-mail or mailing to FSRA.

Language

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the language on the AIR is incorrect, please update your language preference on the PSP “My Profile” page.

Plan Administrator

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the plan administrator information on the AIR is incorrect, refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Contact to Section(s) of the AIR”. As defined under section 8 of the PBA, the plan administrator refers to the entity, responsible for the administration of the plan.

Plan Sponsor

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the plan sponsor information on the AIR is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”. Please note that the plan sponsor is the entity that is sponsoring the pension plan.

Pension Fund Trustee (including Insurance Company)

Please select the applicable type of Pension Fund Trustee, and provide details if “Other” is selected.

The remainder of this section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. The AIR can display only one pension fund trustee. To view all pension fund trustees associated with the plan, please go to the “Contacts” page in PSP. If the pension fund trustee information on the “Contact” page is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Custodian (Entity holding the Pension Fund Assets)

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. Please note that the AIR can display only one custodian. To view all custodians associated with the pension plan, please go to the “Contacts” page in PSP. If the custodian information on the “Contacts” page is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Location of Books or Records

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the location of books or records on the AIR is incorrect, please change the information on the AIR through the PSP.

*Collective Bargaining Agent

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. The AIR can display only one collective bargaining agent. To view all collective bargaining agents associated with the pension plan, please go to the “Contacts” page in PSP. If the collective bargaining agent information on the “Contacts” page is incorrect but does not require an amendment for the change, please change the information on the “Contacts” page through the PSP. If more than one collective bargaining agent information is incorrect, and none of the changes require amendments, please contact FSRA either by e-mail or mail.

If an amendment is required to change a Collective Bargaining Agent, please refer to the above-noted heading “Changes to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Please remember to quote the name of the pension plan and the registration number in any e-mail or mailing to FSRA.

Participating Employer

This section is automatically populated based on FSRA’s records. If the participating employer information on the AIR is incorrect, please refer to the above-noted heading “Change to Section(s) of the AIR”.

Employers at End of Reporting Period

Enter the number of employers who participated in the pension plan. Please note this is only required to be completed for those plans with multiple participating employers.

Funding Information for the Reporting Period

Please provide detailed information concerning contributions required and actually remitted to the pension fund in respect of the reporting period referenced in the Plan Reporting Period section of the AIR form.

Required contributions based on the most recent Form 7 or Actuarial Report

Note that [101] to [109] is not required to be completed for defined contribution plans.

For other plans, please ensure that the information entered in [101] to [109] is based on the most recently filed actuarial valuation report for defined benefit pension plans or the most recent collective bargaining agreement for multi-employer pension plans that are not required to file actuarial valuation reports.

[101] Employer normal cost / current service contributions are the employer portion of the cost of pension and ancillary benefits accrued during the reporting period.

If your pension plan has been amended to freeze current service accruals and the appropriate amendment has been filed with FSRA or there are no “active” members remaining in the pension plan, please contact FSRA either by e-mail or mail to update the status of the pension plan to permit zero current service contributions.

[102] Plus: Employer special payments. Employer special payments may be required in defined benefit plans as well as in certain combination plans to cover any unfunded liabilities or solvency deficiencies. Please include any special payments that are due for this period in this box.

If a cost certificate covering an earlier period or periods was filed during the current reporting period, and if additional payments due in respect of the preceding period(s) were identified in the cost certificate, please also include those payments in this box.

[103] Less: Reduction of employer required contributions include actuarial gains applied to reduce employer contributions for normal cost.

[104] Less: Other adjustments include forfeitures of non- vested employer contributions, as well as the prior year credit balance available at the beginning of the reporting period and other items that do not fall under [103].

[105] is automatically populated.

[106] Member required contributions are the contributions, if any, required to be made by the plan members in respect of the reporting period as set out in the pension plan text.

[107] Less: Reduction of member required contributions includes actuarial gains applied to reduce member contributions for normal cost.

[108] Less: Other adjustments includes all other items that do not fall under [107].

[109] is automatically calculated.

Actual contributions made in respect of the reporting Pension Fund Information period

[110] Employer contributions are the amount of actual contributions made in respect of the reporting period by the employer. This amount is determined from the actual employer contributions remitted during the reporting period, adjusted for any in-transit amounts at the beginning and end of the reporting period.

[111] Member contributions are the amount of actual contributions made by the members in respect of the reporting period. This amount is determined from the actual member contributions deducted and remitted during the reporting period, adjusted for any in-transit amounts at the beginning and end of the reporting period. Do not include member additional voluntary contributions in [111].

[112] Member additional voluntary contributions are any additional amounts voluntarily contributed by the members in respect of the reporting period. Note that this does not include contributions made by members that are above the minimum amount the members are required to contribute and that result in a corresponding contribution from the employer. Such contributions should be included in [111].

Information for Defined Contribution (DC) Plans or DC Components of Plans

This section is to be completed by DC plans or the DC components of combination DB/DC plans.

Please review all questions and complete as best as possible.

Note: If a plan has fund-of-funds options or target date funds, then those should each be counted as one investment option for the purpose of answering the question “Number of investment fund options offered to DC members”.

For the purpose of answering questions about fees, the fees we are referring to are all-in fees. This would typically include investment management, custodial and plan administration fees.

Active Membership Information at the End of the Reporting Period

Information for [113] to [127] is to be based on the active membership as at the end of the reporting period as referenced in the Plan Reporting Period section of the AIR, split by sex and employment in the appropriate location/area.

Active members include those members who are not accruing future service benefits under the pension plan by virtue of a transaction under s. 80 or s. 81 of the PBA but are accruing benefits under a successor plan. Do not include former members in these boxes.

Note that [126] is not used in the January 2024 version of the AIR.

[113c] to [127c] A member’s employment is considered to be “included employment” as defined under the federal Pension Benefits Standards Act, regardless of the member’s physical place of employment.  The number of “included employment” (Federal) members is a subset of the Total number of members in each location/area.

[128] to [129] are automatically populated.

Active Membership by Benefit/Status Type

Fill in the number of active pension plan members split by the applicable benefit type. Do not include former members or retired members in these boxes.

The membership information in this chart is in aggregate and is not based on sex or location/area of employment.  Also, there should be no double counting of memberships. 

Descriptions of the various plan benefit/status types are as follows:

(A) DEFINED CONTRIBUTION ONLY:

Defined Contribution (DC) Only

The plan provides defined contribution benefits only.

(B) DEFINED BENEFIT (DB) ONLY:

Defined Benefit Only - Open & Accruing

The plan provides defined benefits only, allows new members to join and members accrue future-service benefit.

Defined Benefit Only - Closed & Accruing

The plan provides defined benefits only and does not permit new members, but allows existing members to accrue future-service benefits.

Defined Benefit Only - Closed & Frozen

The plan provides defined benefits only, does not permit new members nor does it allow members to accrue any further benefit.

(C) DB / DC COMBINATION BENEFIT OR OTHER BENEFIT TYPE:

Defined Benefit (any DB Open & Accruing) / Defined Contribution

The plan has a DB and DC component and new members can join and accrue both DB and DC benefits.

Defined Benefit (all DB Closed & Accruing) / Defined Contribution

The plan has a DB and DC component but new members are not eligible to join and accrue DB benefits. Existing members under the DB provisions continue to accrue a DB benefit. Members can also accrue DC benefits.

Defined Benefit (all DB Closed & Frozen) / Defined Contribution

The plan has a DB and DC component but the DB component is closed to all new members. Accruals for existing members under the DB provisions have ceased but the plan continues to hold DB liabilities. Members can also accrue DC benefits.

Other Benefit types

The plan type does not fit into any of the previous categories (e.g. hybrid plans).

Membership Reconciliation

Note that [130] to [138] is not required to be completed for defined contribution plans.

For other plans, please complete [130] to [131] as applicable.

[132] is automatically populated.

Please complete [133] to [136] as applicable.

[137] to [138] are automatically populated.

Former Members, Retired Members and Other Beneficiaries at the End of the Reporting Period

A “former member” is a person who has terminated employment or membership in the pension plan and is entitled to a deferred pension or any other payment from the pension fund.

A “retired member” is a person who has terminated employment or membership in the pension plan and is receiving a pension from the pension fund, is entitled to begin to receive a pension from the pension fund, elected to receive an early retirement pension, or elected to begin payment of a pension.

“Other beneficiaries” include any person who is the surviving spouse or beneficiary of a former member or retired member of a pension plan, if the surviving spouse or beneficiary is receiving a pension from the plan as a result of the death of the former member or retired member.

[139] Enter the total number of former members, retired members and other beneficiaries in the plan at the end of the reporting period.

[140] Enter the number of former members, retired members and other beneficiaries from [139] whose benefits under the plan are in relation to employment in Ontario.

Missing Members Information

Please review all questions and complete as applicable. All answers should be positive values or zero. FSRA is attempting to quantify the missing member numbers and the estimated value of benefits for missing members.

FSRA appreciates that providing specific missing member numbers may be challenging for administrators. As a result, approximate or estimated answers are acceptable.

For the data gathered here, “missing member” means a former member, retired member or other beneficiary with an entitlement under the plan, who the plan administrator is unable to locate or communicate with, and for whom the administrator reasonably believes it does not have a valid address.

Pension Fund Information

[141] Amounts transferred in from other plans is the total actual amount transferred into the pension fund from other registered pension plans (“RPPs”), deferred profit-sharing plans (“DPSPs”), registered retirement savings plans (“RRSPs”), registered retirement income funds (“RRIFs”), locked-in retirement accounts (“LIRAs”), life income funds (“LIFs”) and locked-in retirement income funds (“LRIFs”).

[142] Payment of benefits from the plan is the total amount of benefits paid to former members and beneficiaries. Note: Not required to be completed for defined contribution plans.

[143] Transfer of benefits to other plans is the total actual amount of all transfers to other plans, including RPPs, RRSPs, RRIFs, LIRAs, LIFs and LRIFs. Note: Not required to be completed for defined contribution plans.

Please complete [144] to [146] with the information from the pension plan or pension fund financial statements covering the reporting period of the AIR. Note that [144] and [146] are not required to be completed for defined contribution plans.

Confirmation of Compliance

Please review questions (a) through (f) and complete as applicable.

For question (a) the word “Other” means any of the documents that support the pension plan, such as insurance contracts and trust agreements. If any of these documents have been changed, please check the “Other” box and specify the document(s) that changed.

For question (d), the requirement to file an auditor’s report does not apply to defined contribution plans.

For question (e), if the pension plan is a multi- employer pension plan established pursuant to a collective or trust agreement, please prepare a separate listing of the name, address, city, province/state, country and telephone and fax number of each member of the Board of Trustees that administers the plan and e-mail or mail the list to FSRA. Note: Not required for defined contribution plans.

Further Inquiries

For further inquiries about the AIR, view the Instructions for E-filing the AIR, e-mail or call the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario at:

(416) 250-7250,
Toll-free:1-800-668-0128,
TTY: 416-590-7108
TTY toll-free: 1-800-387-0584,

Certification

The certification of the AIR is completed when the plan administrator or an authorized delegate completes the submission process.

Although some information, advice and assistance might have been obtained from accountants, investment managers, actuaries or other service providers when completing the AIR, the administrator of the pension plan or its authorized delegate(s) is responsible for certifying the AIR.

Please remember to quote the name of the pension plan and the registration number in any e-mail or mailing to FSRA.

Instructions for Completing the CRA - Schedule A

The numbers below correspond to the questions on the CRA - Schedule A.

1 Did the pension plan terminate or become inactive prior to or in this reporting period?

A plan terminates when contributions have ceased and members have ceased to accrue benefits. An inactive plan is one which has terminated but the total plan funds have not been disbursed.

If the plan contains a defined benefit provision please complete questions 2 and 3 otherwise continue to question 4.

2 Actuarial liabilities resulting from plan obligations

Enter the actuarial liability based on a funding method that matches contributions with accrued benefits on a reasonable basis.

3 Date of last actuarial assessment

Date of the last calculation of actuarial liability from plan obligations.

4 How many active members were persons connected with the employer?

An active member is an employee who accrues benefits in a defined benefit plan, or who makes contributions or on whose behalf the employer makes contributions to a defined contribution plan.

According to the Income Tax Regulations, a connected person is generally one who:

  • owns, directly or indirectly, 10% or more of the issued shares of any class of the capital stock of the employer or a related corporation;

  • does not deal at arm’s length with the employer;

    or

  • is a specified shareholder of the employer by reason of s. 248(1) of the ITA.

For a complete definition, please see s. 8500(3) of the Income Tax Regulations.

After question 4, Multi-Employer Plans proceed to question 9, although Specified Multi Employer Plans need not continue. Other plans continue with question 5.

8 During this reporting period, has a person or group acquired control of the corporation that is sponsoring the pension plan?

If the plan sponsor is a corporation, indicate if the corporation underwent a change of control during the plan year. If the sponsor is not a corporation, check the box for “not applicable”.

Questions relating to sections 1 to 10 inclusive should be directed to:

Canada Revenue Agency
Registered Plans Directorate
General Enquiries Services

  • 613-954-0419
  • 1-800-267-3100 toll free (English)
  • 1-800-267-5565 (French/ français)