In the 2018 budget, the Government of Canada announced its initiative to discontinue CRA policies regarding health and welfare trusts (HWTs) and require conversion of HWTs to employee life and health trusts (ELHTs). The amendments to the Income Tax Act required to implement this initiative came into force on June 29, 2021. The deadline for conversion remains January 1 ...
On February 4, 2022, the federal government released a set of draft legislative proposals relating to the Income Tax Act (Canada) for public comment. Many of these proposals implement changes previously announced or confirmed in Budget 2021: A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth, and Resilience.
This article discusses the draft proposals that are of interest to ...
On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic. As financial markets became turbulent and many plan sponsors were forced to alter their businesses due to COVID-19 precautions, pension regulators across Canada responded by announcing special measures to help protect the interests of pension plan members, assist pension plan ...
In response to industry feedback after its initial release of the Information Security Guideline, BC Financial Services Authority (BC FSA) has issued:
- A revised version of the Information Security Guideline and
- The new Outsourcing Guideline.
BC FSA advised in its Advisory 21-015 that accompanied the revised Information Security Guideline that the revisions reflect ...
In May 2021, the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA) released updated Guideline No. 7, Pension Plan Funding Policy Guideline. CAPSA was engaged in a consultation process in the fall of 2020 and the updated Guideline is the result of that consultation process.
The updated Guideline No. 7 maintains the useful and clear guidance on pension plan ...
On April 30, 2021, Bill C-30, the most recent federal budget implementation bill, underwent first reading in the House of Commons. Bill C-30 contains the amendments to the Income Tax Act that are required to effect the health and welfare trust to employee life and health trust (ELHT) conversion initiative that was first announced by the government of Canada in the 2018 ...
In 2019, the federal government announced its intention to amend the tax rules for Specified Multi Employer Plans (SMEPs) to prohibit contributions in respect of employees over age 71 and re-employed retirees. Two years later, the government is moving ahead with these changes.
While these rules are not yet in force, the legislation that will enact those rules (Bill C-30
In April, the Government of Canada released Budget 2021: A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth, and Resilience. Characterized as a plan to finish the fight against COVID-19 and ensure a robust economic recovery to benefit all Canadians, it contained several measures that will impact pension and benefit plans.
The first steps to implementing many of these measures were taken ...
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, pension regulators across Canada have been announcing special measures to help protect the interests of pension plan members, assist pension plan administrators and ensure the ongoing financial health of pension plans, particularly given the negative impact that current financial market conditions have had on the funded status of ...
In response to COVID-19, the federal government and the provinces have introduced various measures to mitigate the financial impact across the country. One of these measures is the introduction of a new type of type of unpaid, job-protected leave related to COVID-19.
As of the date of this bulletin, BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, New Brunswick, Prince ...
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Lawson Lundell's Pension and Employee Benefits Law Blog provides updates on the most recent legal developments impacting pension and employee benefit plans. We cover a range of topics, including recent case law and changes to relevant provincial and federal legislation.
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