FAQs > Questions from pensioners
Here are broad answers to general questions often asked by those who receive a retirement pension from CARRA.
The questions are related only to the following plans:
If you opted for direct deposit, your retirement pension is paid, throughout your life, on the 15th of each month or on the preceding work day if the 15th is not a work day. However, if your pension is paid by cheque, it is issued no later than 48 hours before the 15th of each month.
In 2013, your pension is paid through direct deposit on the following dates:
|
January 15 |
May 15 |
September 13 |
|
February 15 |
June 14 |
October 15 |
|
March 15 |
July 15 |
November 15 |
|
April 15 |
August 15 |
December 13 |
Yes. CARRA must deduct federal income tax and Québec income tax from your pension. To determine the amount of the deductions, CARRA assumes that your retirement pension is your sole income.
Click on the link below to access the table that shows the approximate net amount of your annual pension (after tax) calculated from the gross amount.
Yes, it is possible to ask for an increase or a reduction of the income tax deductions made on your pension with the following forms:
|
For your federal income tax |
|
If you find that the amount of the deductions is not sufficient, you can ask to increase it. Please fill out the "Additional tax to be deducted" section on page 2 of the form. If you reach 65 years of age during the year, you can ask for an age exemption. Please fill out the "Age amount" section on page 1 of the form.
Note: Please complete the "Identification" section on page 1 of the form. Be sure to sign and date the form in the "Certification" section on page 2.
|
|
For your Québec income tax |
|
If you find that the amount of the deductions is not sufficient, you can ask to increase it.
If you reach 65 years of age during the year, you can ask for an age exemption.
|
Once they are completed, send them to:
Commission administrative des régimes
de retraite et d’assurances
475, rue Saint-Amable
Québec (Québec) G1R 5X3
Your income tax slips are delivered in February of each year.
Yes, provided the association you wish to join has signed an agreement with CARRA.
If your association has an agreement with CARRA and you wish to have your membership fees deducted from your pension benefits, you must contact your pensioners association directly.
To know which associations have concluded such an agreement with CARRA:
Yes. However, in order to sign an agreement with CARRA, an association must meet the requirements listed in the following document (in PDF format):
Yes. Your pension is indexed on January 1 of each year and you are informed of the new amount around January 15.
It depends on the date on which you retired.
Depending on your situation (1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 below), here is how your pension is indexed.
Situation 1: You retired before July 1, 1982Your pension is fully indexed to the rate of increase of the Pension Index determined by the Régie des rentes du Québec. In 2013, this rate is 1.8%. |
Situation 2: You retired after June 30, 1982 but before January 1, 2000Your pension is indexed as follows:
|
Situation 3: You retired after December 31, 1999 but before January 1, 2012Your pension is indexed as follows:
|
Situation 4: You retired in 2012Your pension is indexed as follows:
In addition, since your pension is indexed for the first time on January 1, 2013, please note that indexation for 2013 is proportional to the number of days for which your pension was payable in 2012. |
Situation 5: You retired in 2013On January 1 of each year, your pension will be indexed as follows:
Since your pension will be indexed for the first time on January 1, 2014, please note that indexation for 2014 will be proportional to the number of days for which your pension was payable in 2013. |
For more information about the indexation of retirement pensions, read the chapter entitled "Will your pension be indexed?" in the following document (in PDF format):
Yes. When you turn 65, your pension plan will take into account the fact that you also receive a pension under the QPP, which will result in a reduction of the pension you receive from CARRA. This is what is called "integration".
The reduction will apply to your pension as of the month following your 65th birthday.
Like many pension plans offered by employers, your pension plan is integrated with the QPP. As a result of that integration, the total of the pensions you can receive from the QPP and your pension plan corresponds to approximately 74% of your average salary before retirement, if you had 38 years of service (as at December 31, 2013).
No. The pension you receive from CARRA will be reduced only from the month following your 65th birthday, even if you receive your QPP pension before 65.
Benefits accrued in a pension plan during a marriage or a civil union are part of the family patrimony. The value of these benefits can therefore be partitioned in the event of a legal separation, divorce, annulment of marriage, payment of a compensatory allowance, dissolution or annulment of civil union.
If there is partition of the value of these benefits, CARRA will transfer to your spouse the sum allocated to him or her. Then, it will determine what is called a "reduction following partition." Your pension will be reduced by that amount.
No. Only married or civilly united spouses are subject to the rules of partition of the family patrimony.
You will find more information in the following document (in PDF format):
The rules vary according to the pension plan under which you receive your pension (RREGOP, the PPMP, the TPP or the CSSP).
Under RREGOP or the PPMP, your spouse will receive a surviving spouse’s pension.
For more information about the pension payable to your spouse, read the chapter entitled "What happens in the event of your death?" in the following document (in PDF format):
Under RREGOP or the PPMP, your heirs will receive an amount equal to the result of the following subtraction:
|
Your total pension plan contributions, plus the interest accrued as at the date of your retirement |
|
|
- |
Total of what you received in pension benefits |
|
= |
Amount paid to your heirs |
Under the TPP or the CSSP, a pension will be paid to your spouse and your single children under age 18, or under age 21 provided they are full-time students in a recognized educational institution, who depend on an adult for their subsistance, regardless of filiation.
For more information about the pension payable to your spouse or children, read the chapter entitled "What happens in the event of your death?" in the following document (in PDF format):
Under the TPP or the CSSP, if you have no spouse or children at the time of your death (or if your children do not meet the requirements in point 2.1 above), your heirs will receive an amount equal to the result of the following subtraction:
|
Your total pension plan contributions |
|
|
- |
Total of what you received in pension benefits |
|
= |
Amount paid to your heirs |
If you are not married or civilly united to another person, your pension plan will recognize as your spouse the person of the opposite sex or of the same sex that you presented as your spouse and who, at the time of your death, was not married or civilly united to another person and had been living in a conjugal relationship with you since at least three years.
This period can be only one year (instead of three) if:
As we explained before, the act governing your pension plan already contains provisions regarding the beneficiary of your pension plan. Rules vary according to the plan under which you receive your pension: RREGOP, the PPMP, the TPP or the CSSP:
Regardless of your will, the law provides that the beneficiary of your pension plan is your spouse. The same applies if you did not make a will.
Your pension plan will become part of your estate. Therefore, the heirs you designated will benefit under your will. If you did not make a will, your estate, including your pension plan, will be transferred to your heirs in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code of Québec.
Regardless of your will, the law provides that the beneficiaries of your pension plan are your spouse and your single children under age 18, or under 21 provided they are full-time students in a recognized educational institution, who depend on an adult for their subsistance, regardless of filiation. The same applies if you did not make a will.
Your pension plan will become part of your estate. Therefore, the heirs you designated will benefit under your will. If you did not make a will, your estate, including your pension plan, will be transferred to your heirs in accordance with the provisions of the Civil Code of Québec.
At the death of a member or pensioner, pension plans provide for the priority payment of a pension to his surviving spouse. The rights of a surviving spouse are different according to the pension plan of the deceased member or pensioner and according to his status in the plan at the time of his death.
The spouse may however waive his spousal benefits in favour of the heirs of the member or pensioner, or subsequently revoke such waiver by written notice to CARRA. The notice must be received by CARRA no later that the day before the death of the member or pensioner, the date of receipt by CARRA being the date considered for the study of the file. If the notice is incomplete when CARRA receives it, the waiver or the revocation of the waiver will be deemed invalid.
For the waiver or the revocation of a waiver to be valid, the following conditions must be satisfied.
No, the waiver under RREGOP is not valid.
When a member or pensioner participates in more than one plan, a waiver is needed for each plan. Also when a member changes plans, a new notice must be filed with CARRA.
The rules vary according to the pension plan under which you receive your pension (RREGOP, the PPMP, the TPP or the CSSP).
Going back to work either in the public or the private sector will not affect your pension. You will receive both your full pension and your salary. Note, however, that you will not participate in a pension plan.
If you are under age 71, going back to work in the Québec public service, the education or the health and social services sectors or for any employer in the public sector, on a full-time or a part-time basis or as a casual employee, could cause the suspension or the reduction of your retirement pension.
To learn more on that subject, click on the following link:
However, going back to work in the private sector will not affect your pension.
Remission of a debt is when CARRA renounces claiming an amount that is due to it, which has the effect of releasing the debtor from reimbursing the amount due. Debt remission can be total or partial.
To be granted a debt remission, you must first apply for it. You will have to provide certain proofs. Simply send your request to:
Commission administrative des régimes
de retraite et d’assurances
475, rue Saint-Amable
Québec (Québec) G1R 5X3
You will have to demonstrate that your income and those of your dependents, from all sources, are below the low income threshold calculated by CARRA on the basis of the data published by Statistics Canada (www.statcan.gc.ca). If this is your case, you could be granted a total debt remission. However, if your incomes are equal to or higher than the low income threshold, the remission of your debt will be reduced by 20% for every $1 000 of excess income. You will therefore be granted a partial debt remission.
For more information about debt remission, go to the section entitled
Cahier des normes et dictionnaire 
on our Web site.
For more information on processing times, consult the table of processing times.
If you need more information on your pension plan, we suggest that you read the following publication (in PDF format):
