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Bill 33 Amends the Pension Benefits Standards Act
British Columbia recently brought into force Bill 33, Pension Benefits Standards Amendment Act, 2023, which amends the province’s Pension Benefits Standards Act (“PBSA”).
Amendments related to funding requirements on termination of a defined benefit (“DB”) component came into force effective April 30, 2026.
Effective October 30, 2026, the following amendments to the PBSA come into force:
- Defined contribution plans may now provide for increases in member contributions where prescribed notice is given and the member does not opt out after receiving notice.
- The classes of persons on behalf of whom an annuity may be purchased (and with respect to whose benefit liabilities a statutory discharge may be provided) are expanded to include surviving spouses and active members who are no longer accruing benefits.
- Clarity that surviving spouses entitled to a pre-retirement death benefit must be able to choose a pension directly from the plan or a lump-sum transfer, except where the small benefit rules apply.
Click on ‘More information’ below to read Bill 33:
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