Canadian Forces Superannuation Regulations (C.R.C., c. 396)

Recoveries

• 46 (1) Where a participant ceases to be a member of the regular force and does not become a public service participant, any contributions payable by them on the day they cease to be a member of the regular force may be recovered in one lump sum, or by instalments, from any moneys payable to or in respect of them at any time by or on behalf of His Majesty.

• (2) Where an elective participant dies, any contributions payable by them on the day of their death may be recovered from any moneys payable to or in respect of them at any time by or on behalf of His Majesty.

Service Substantially Without Interruption

47 Where, during any relevant period, a person ceases to be a member of the regular force and within three months from the day on which they so cease to be a member they again become a member of that force, their service in the regular force during that period shall, for the purposes of Part II of the Act, be deemed to be substantially without interruption.

Retroactive Increases in Pay

48 For the purpose of Part II of the Act, where a retroactive increase is authorized in the pay of a participant, such increase shall be deemed to have commenced to have been received by them on the first day of the month in which

• (a) the Governor in Council or the Treasury Board, as appropriate, approved such increase; or

• (b) written approval of such increase was duly issued by the appropriate authority in a case where approval of the Governor in Council or the Treasury Board is not required.

Proof of Age

• 49 (1) For the purposes of Part II of the Act, proof of age shall, subject to subsection (2), be established by the following evidence:

  • (a) a birth certificate issued by an appropriate civil authority;

  • (b) a baptismal certificate, issued by an appropriate religious authority, indicating that the baptism took place within five years after the date of birth; or

  • (c) an official notification issued by an appropriate civil authority indicating that the birth is registered with that authority and stating therein the date of birth.

• (2) In the event that the evidence referred to in subsection (1) cannot be obtained by the participant, proof of their age may be established by

  • (a) a document made within five years of the date of birth of the participant showing their name and date of birth or their age, or a certified copy or extract thereof;

  • (b) a document, or a certified copy or extract thereof, showing the name and date of birth or age of the participant, that is at least 20 years old at the time that it is considered by the Minister for the purpose of establishing the age of the participant, and that, except where the document is a page from the Family Bible, is wholly or partly in print; or

  • (c) one of each or two of either of the following documents, showing the name and date of birth or age of the participant, and that agree as to the month and year of their birth, or certified copies or extracts thereof, namely,

    • (i) an affidavit or statutory declaration made by a parent, brother or sister of the participant, or some other person having knowledge of the pertinent facts of their birth, or

    • (ii) a document at least 10 years old at the time that it is considered by the Minister for the purpose of establishing the age of the participant;

  • (d) evidence relating to the inability to obtain either of the certificates referred to in subsection (1) in the form of

    • (i) a letter from an appropriate authority indicating that a search has been made for a certificate of birth but that such search was unsuccessful, or

    • (ii) a statement that satisfies the Minister as to why it would not be practical to conduct a search for any of the documents referred to in subsection (1); and

  • (e) a statement, in a form prescribed by the Minister, attesting to the validity of the evidence referred to in paragraphs (a) and (b) and sworn to or affirmed by the person submitting the evidence.

• (3) A record of service in the Canadian Forces or any form prescribed by the Minister under the Act shall not be considered as evidence relating to proof of age.

• (4) A participant shall, upon demand by the Minister, file evidence as to proof of age.

Elections

• 50 (1) An election under section 62 of the Act shall be made in writing, dated and signed and sent to the Minister, or to a person designated by the Minister, within one week after the date that it bears.

• (2) An election is made on the date that it bears.

• (3) The date of the sending of the election is the day on which it is delivered or, if it is sent by mail, the day on which it is mailed. The postmark is evidence of that day.

Effective Dates of Becoming and Ceasing To Be a Member of the Regular Force

51 For the purposes of Part II of the Act,

• (a) the day on which a person becomes a member of the regular force is the earliest of

  • (i) the day on which they enrol in that force,

  • (ii) the day on which they report for continuous full-time duty after termination of a leave without pay and allowances for personal reasons if a member is granted leave with effect on the day on which they enrol in that force or on the day immediately following that day,

  • (iii) the day on which they cease to be absent without authority, if they are deemed to have ceased to be a member of the force under section 44,

  • (iv) the first day of the month following the month in which the person is considered to be a member of the regular force for the purposes of Part I of the Act and these Regulations under subsection 8.1(3), or

  • (v) the day on which they become a member of the reserve force who is on full-time service, with the approval of the Chief of the Defence Staff, in a position in a regular force establishment or as supernumerary to a regular force establishment or on either an operation or type of operation approved by or on behalf of the Chief of the Defence Staff; and

• (b) the effective day on which a person, other than a person who is an elective participant, ceases to be a member of the regular force is the last day in the month in respect of which they are or were required to contribute to the Regular Force Death Benefit Account.

• (c) [Repealed, SOR/2025-256, s. 31]

Benefits

• 52 (1) For the purposes of subsection 66(1) of the Act and subject to subsections (2) and (3) of these Regulations, the amount is the following, with respect to the deceased participant, subject to a reduction of 10%, to be made from the date that is set out in subsection (4), for every year of age in excess of 60 attained by the participant

  • (a) twice the salary of the participant, if that amount is a multiple of $250; or

  • (b) the nearest multiple of $250 above that amount, if it is not a multiple of $250.

• (2) In the case of an elective participant who has not made an election under subsection 64(2) of the Act as it read immediately before the coming into force of this section and who, on ceasing to be a member of the regular force or on ceasing to be employed in the public service, was entitled, under Part I of the Act or under the Defence Services Pension Continuation Act, to an immediate annuity or pension, the basic benefit must not be less than $5,000.

• (3) In the case of an elective participant who made an election under subsection 64(2) of the Act as it read immediately before the coming into force of this section, the basic benefit is $500.

• (4) For the purposes of subsection (1), the dates are

  • (a) in the case of an elective participant who ceased to be a member of the regular force and to whom an annuity or pension is not payable under the Act or the Defence Services Pension Continuation Act, each anniversary date of the day that is on or that follows the 61st birthday of the participant, whichever occurs first, on which an annual contribution under the Act is payable; or

  • (b) in any other case, the first day of April or the first day of October, whichever date immediately follows each anniversary of the participant’s birthday, commencing with their 61st.

• 52.1 (1) Despite section 52, if the basic benefit of an elective participant who, on ceasing to be a member of the regular force, was entitled under Part I of the Act or under the Defence Services Pension Continuation Act, to an immediate annuity or pension exceeds $5,000 and if the participant so elects, the amount of the basic benefit must, for the purposes of subsection 66(1) of the Act.

• (2) Despite section 52, if an elective participant has made an election under subsection 64(1) of the Act as it read from time to time before October 5, 1992, for the purposes of subsection 66(1) of that Act, the amount of the basic benefit is $5,000, unless, within one year after that day, the participant elected not to be subject to the presumption resulting from that election.

• (3) An election made under subsection (1) of this section or under section 64 of the Act as it read immediately before the coming into force of this section is irrevocable.

52.2 For the purposes of subparagraph 68(1)(b)(i) of the Act, the amount sufficient to cover the cost of the benefits that will become chargeable against the Regular Force Death Benefit Account is, for a given year, equal to the aggregate of all benefits payable under Part II of the Act for the preceding year.

53 The Minister may direct that a part or all of a payment payable under Part II of the Act be paid

• (a) to any person, group or association of persons towards the payment of any reasonable expenses incurred by such person, group or association of persons for the maintenance, medical care or burial of the participant; or

• (b) to the Receiver General towards the payment of any reasonable expenses incurred by His Majesty in right of Canada for the maintenance, medical care or burial of a participant.

Designation of Beneficiaries

• 54 (1) Subject to the provisions of this section, a participant may, for the purposes of Part II of the Act, name a beneficiary under Part II of the Act or substitute a new named beneficiary or cancel the naming of any beneficiary.

• (2) The naming of a beneficiary or the substitution or cancellation of a named beneficiary by a participant referred to in subsection (1) shall be evidenced in writing in a form prescribed by the Minister, dated, witnessed and forwarded to the Minister.

• (3) The naming of a beneficiary or the substitution or cancellation of a named beneficiary by a participant referred to in subsection (1) shall be effective on the date the participant executes the form referred to in subsection (2) if the completed form is received by the Minister prior to the death of the participant.

• (4) For the purposes of Part II of the Act, a beneficiary may be

  • (a) the participant’s estate;

  • (b) any person over the age of 18 years on the date of the naming;

  • (c) any charitable organization or institution;

  • (d) any benevolent organization or institution; or

  • (e) any eleemosynary religious or educational organization or institution.

Miscellaneous

55 Commencing with the quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 1974, interest shall be credited to the Regular Force Death Benefit Account in respect of each quarter in each fiscal year on the last day of June, September, December and March, calculated at the rate referred to in subsection 36(2) of these Regulations on the balance to the credit of the Account on the last day of the preceding quarter.

• 56 (1) There shall be issued to each elective participant, as evidence that they are a participant under the Act, a document

  • (a) in Form 1 of Schedule II in the case of an elective participant who ceases to be a member of the regular force and to whom an immediate annuity or pension is payable under the Act or the Defence Services Pension Continuation Act; and

  • (b) in Form 2 of Schedule II in all cases other than the case mentioned in paragraph (a).

• (2) Every document issued to an elective participant under subsection (1) shall be signed by the Chief of the Defence Staff or by a person authorized by him or her to sign such documents on his or her behalf.

• (3) The signature on each document issued to elective participants under subsection (1) may be printed, painted, engraved, lithographed, photographed or represented or reproduced by any mode of representing or reproducing the signature in a visible form.

Optional Survivor Benefit

Definitions

57 The following definitions apply in this section and sections 58 to 75.

elective beneficiary

elective beneficiary means a person to whom the contributor is married or with whom they are cohabiting in a relationship of a conjugal nature, having so cohabited for a period of at least one year, and in whose favour the contributor exercises the option. (bénéficiaire désigné)

option

option means the option referred to in subsection 25.1(1) of the Act. (option)

Exercise of Option

58 An option must be exercised in writing and must

• (a) indicate which of the following reductions, determined in accordance with section 66, is applicable:

  • (i) the reduction that is necessary in order that the elective beneficiary could be entitled to an immediate annual allowance equal to 30% of the annuity referred to in clause 66(1)(b)(ii)(A), if paragraph 66(1)(b) were read without reference to the supplementary benefits payable under Part III of the Act,

  • (ii) the reduction that is necessary in order that the elective beneficiary could be entitled to an immediate annual allowance equal to 40% of the annuity referred to in clause 66(1)(b)(ii)(A), if paragraph 66(1)(b) were read without reference to the supplementary benefits payable under Part III of the Act, or

  • (iii) the reduction that is necessary in order that the elective beneficiary could be entitled to an immediate annual allowance equal to 50% of the annuity referred to in clause 66(1)(b)(ii)(A), if paragraph 66(1)(b) were read without reference to the supplementary benefits payable under Part III of the Act;

• (b) contain proof that establishes, to the Minister’s satisfaction, the date of birth of the elective beneficiary;

• (c) contain proof that establishes, to the Minister’s satisfaction, that the contributor and the elective beneficiary are

  • (i) married, or

  • (ii) cohabiting in a relationship of a conjugal nature, having so cohabited for a period of at least one year;

• (d) if the name of the elective beneficiary indicated in the proof referred to in paragraph (b) is not the same as the one indicated in the proof referred to in paragraph (c), contain proof that the names that were indicated refer to the elective beneficiary or a statutory declaration by which the elective beneficiary declares that they are the person referred to in both cases; and

• (e) be signed by the contributor and a witness, other than the elective beneficiary, and bear the date of the contributor’s signature.