Pensions in Alberta - Overview
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There are several types of pensions for people in the province of Alberta. Most pension plans fall into one of four categories:
- Private sector employment pensions - pension plans established by private sector employers (or groups
of employers or unions) for their employees;
- Public sector employment pensions - pension plans for employees working in the public sector, (provincial and municipal public service, health and education);
Are you a member of one of the public sector pension plans?
See more information, or visit the Alberta Pensions Services Corporation (APS) website.
Are you a member of the Teachers' Pension Plan or Private School Teachers' Plan?
See more information, or visit the Alberta Teachers' Retirement Fund Board (ARTF) website.
- Retirement income programs administered by the federal government
for Canadians - these include the Canada
Pension Plan (CPP), Old
Age Security (OAS) and the Guaranteed
Income Supplement (GIS). The provinces are joint stewards
of the Canada Pension Plan along with the federal government and
help establish policy for the Canada Pension Plan; and
- Alberta Seniors Benefit Program – provides support in addition to the federal benefits received under Old Age Security, Guaranteed Income Supplement, Federal Allowance and the GST credit. It is based on income and provides monthly benefits to eligible seniors.
For more information on benefits and programs for seniors, see:
Quick Facts - Programs and Services for Seniors (pdf) - from the Alberta Seniors website.
Note that pension plans established by companies in federally regulated industries such as banks, airlines, and telecommunications companies are governed by the federal pension standards legislation, the Pension Benefits Standards Act, (1985) (Canada). The federal government's Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions is the primary regulator and supervisor of federally regulated private sector pension plans. The federal government also manages the pension plans for federal public service employees.
For general information on pensions, click here for the “Time to Start a Pension” guide.
For information on accessing pension funds, click here for the “Accessing Pension Funds guide.
Pensions News and E-Update Service
E-Update Service
December 12, 2011 - Website Updates
Various documents and tables on the website have been updated to reflect the 2012 Year's Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE) amount.
November 15, 2011 - New CAPSA Guidelines
The Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA) has released two new guidelines that are of interest for pension plan administrators, and their service providers:
- CAPSA Guideline No. 6 – Pension Plan Prudent Investment Practices is intended to help plan administrators demonstrate the application of prudence to the investment of pension plan assets. The guideline also includes an associated Self Assessment Questionnaire on Prudent Investment Practices.
- CAPSA Guideline No. 7 – Pension Plan Funding Policy, which is intended to provide guidance on the development and adoption of funding policies for pension plans that provide a defined benefit.
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