NL’s College of Physicians and Surgeons latest employer to join DBplus pension

Pension and retirement plan members in Newfoundland and Labrador can now designate beneficiaries through electronic means.

The amendment allows individuals to name beneficiaries electronically for certain types of plans, including a workplace pension, retirement, welfare or profit-sharing fund or plan, a registered retirement income fund, a registered retirement savings plan or a tax-free savings account.

Read: Saskatchewan permitting electronic naming of beneficiaries for pensions, retirement plans

In other news, Manitoba is amending its pension legislation to permit legal representatives of plan members to make a beneficiary designation in the event the member can’t make the designation themselves.

However, the amendment — which received royal assent and will come into effect following proclamation — allows a representative to designate a beneficiary only if the plan renews, replaces or converts a plan made by the participant and the same person is the designated beneficiary of both the new plan and the plan that it replaced.

Read: Manitoba amends pension rules to strengthen regulatory, solvency system