Publication of a notice

Within 90 days of receiving the written notice of termination from the employer (or the decision of Retraite Québec), the plan administrator must:

• have the termination report prepared
• send the termination report to the employer (and to the union, if any)
• send statements of benefits to members and beneficiaries
• publish a notice in a daily newspaper

After the 90-day time period is up, the administrator must send the termination report to Retraite Québec (with amendments, if any).

The plan administrator must publish a notice inviting all those who did not receive a statement of benefits and believe that they have rights under the plan or under the Supplemental Pension Plans Act, to present a claim to the plan administrator.

Under certain circumstances, the administrator does not have to publish the notice.

• Publication in a daily newspaper
• Particularities for plans with more than 1 employer
• Contents of a published notice
• Deadline for presenting a claim
• Date the notice is published
• Exemple of a public Notice
• Exemption from publishing a notice
• Legal reference

Publication in a daily newspaper

The notice must be published in a daily newspaper circulated in an area where the greatest number of active members reside as of the date of the plan's termination.

Particularities for plans with more than 1 employer

• A notice must be published for each employer party to the plan.
• Each notice must be published in a daily newspaper circulated in the area of Québec where the greatest number of active members for the employer in question live.
• The notice must be published even for an employer who no longer employs any active members. The notice should be published in a daily newspaper circulated in an area where it will reach the greatest number of non-active members and beneficiaries related to that employer.
• The administrator can publish a joint notice for several employers provided that each notice can be published in the same daily newspaper. The notice must specify the employers affected.

Contents of a public notice

To achieve its purpose, the public notice must include:

• the plan's name
• the reason for the notice's publication, that is, the pension plan termination
• the name of the employer or employers affected by the public notice
• an invitation to all those who did not receive a statement of benefits and believe they have rights under the Supplemental Pension Plans Act, to present a claim to the plan administrator.
• the deadline for presenting a claim
• the plan administrator's address.

Deadline for presenting a claim

The administrator must set a deadline for persons affected by the public notice to present a claim.

• Those persons have until the day before the expiry of the 90-day period (after the administrator receives the written notice of termination or Retraite Québec's decision) to present their claim.
• The deadline must allow for a minimum of 10 days.

Date the notice is published

• The notice should be published within days after sending the statements of benefits (and not before).
• The notice must give an expiry date - the deadline for presenting a claim - so that persons affected by the notice can present a claim.

Example of a public notice

Exemption from publishing a notice

A public notice is not required if all the members and beneficiaries who may have rights under the Supplemental Pension Plans Act have been notified personally in writing of the termination. They are members and beneficiaries affected by the termination and, if applicable, members and beneficiaries who will benefit from the allocation of surplus assets. Exemption is automatic if that condition is respected, and the administrator does not need to request Retraite Québec's authorization. However, the administrator must be able to prove that the terms mentioned above were respected if Retraite Québec requires it.

Legal reference

Section 207.4 of the Supplemental Pension Plans Act