• Home
  • Public Sector Pensions
    • Plans
      • Public Service Pension Plan - PSPP
        • Plan Provisions
          • Transfer Pension Credits to Other Pension Plans

Transfer Pension Credits to Other Pension Plans

There are vehicles that allow pension credits accumulated, under a previous pension plan, to be transferred to the plan members' current pension plan, provided that the pension contributions with the previous plan have not been refunded. These vehicles are "The Portability (of Pensions) Act" and "Reciprocal Agreements".

What if plan members change pension plans within the public sector?

The Portability of (Pensions) Act, provides for the transfer of service between the following Plans, as long as the contributions paid under the former plan have not been refunded:

• Public Service Pension Plan
• The Uniformed Services Pension Plan
• The Teachers' Pension Plan
• The Memorial University Pension Plan
• Members of the House of Assembly Pension Plan

Plan members must complete a Portability of Pensions Application (24 KB) in consultation with their employer to initiate the transfer process. Upon receiving the application the Pensions Administration Division will then prepare and send to the employer an Appendix “B” that will include details of the transfer for the plan member’s consideration. The transfer will not occur until the plan member completes and returns the Appendix “B” within the prescribed time period.

What if plan members become members of a pension plan outside the public sector?

If plan members become members of a pension plan with which the PSPP has a reciprocal transfer agreement; provided that they meet the criteria for transfer, they have the option of transferring their pension credits to the new plan. The main criteria for eligibility for transfer are that they did not receive a refund of contributions and they are not in receipt of any form of pension benefit from the plan of which they were formerly members. Plan members should be aware of the possibility that due to plan differences or differences in calculation assumptions a lesser amount of service may be credited under an importing plan. Currently the PSPP has reciprocal arrangements with thirty-one pension plans.

Adobe® Acrobat® Reader software can be used for viewing PDF documents. Download Acrobat® Reader for free.