A pension waiver is a program that allows someone who resigns or is laid off because of workforce adjustment (WFA) prior to their normal retirement age (60 or 65) to receive an unadjusted pension benefit. In normal circumstances, a pension plan member who retires before their normal retirement age will incur a pension adjustment of five percent per year. This reduces the value of the pension to account for the longer benefit period. With a waiver, this adjustment is not applied – meaning a recipient obtains the full value of the pension upon retirement.
Plan members are eligible for this waiver in certain circumstances:
- the employee's position must be declared “surplus”
- the employee must be within five years of their normal retirement age
- the employee must have at least 10 years of employment in the public service and at least two years of pensionable service
An employee is only eligible for a waiver under certain conditions, including the following, which is pertinent for PIPSC members affected by WFA:
- a surplus employee who has not received a guarantee of a reasonable job offer under the WFA and who is laid-off or resigns in exchange for a payment representing payment in lieu of a surplus period.
- an employee whose services will no longer be required because of a workforce adjustment situation, who has not received a guarantee of a reasonable job offer and who is granted a Transition Support Measure in accordance with the WFA and who resigns from the public service.
- the employee cannot be in receipt of an educational allowance.
The Deputy Head or the delegated authority must confirm an affected employee meets the criteria for a pension waiver and then make the request to the Pension Centre.
This waiver is not an entitlement within the WFA provisions of the collective agreement, and questions about the waiver should be directed to your Compensation Advisor, your manager and/or the Public Service Pension Centre at 1-800-561-7930.
Deputy Heads can request a Pension Waiver using the form available at: https://www.tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca/remuneration-compensation/services-paye-pay-services/form/html/2429-eng.html
More information can be found below:
- Group 1 (retirement at 60): Pension Eligibility at Age 60 - Workforce Adjustment and Pension Waivers - Canada.ca
- Group 2 (retirement at 65): https://www.canada.ca/en/treasury-board-secretariat/services/pension-plan/plan-information/pension-eligibility-age-65-workforce-adjustment-pension-waivers.html