DCPPs
DCPPs are retirement plans that allow employees to save for retirement. DCPPs are regulated by Canada Revenue Agency (“CRA”) under the Income Tax Act and provincially under the government of each province. For example, in Ontario, DCPPs are regulated by Financial Services Regulatory Authority (“FSRA”) under the Pension Benefits Act. One of the key differences between DCPPs and GRRSPs is the additional annual filings required for DCPPs by FSRA. Assets in a DCPP are locked-in and cannot be accessed until the earliest age of 55 (in Ontario). Some exceptions apply for financial hardship, early life expectancy and small benefit amounts. When an employee terminates their employment, they will transfer their pension assets to a Locked-In Retirement Account (“LIRA”) and can continue investing their assets until retirement.

RRSPs
RRSPs assets are un-locked. This means that when an employee terminates, they can transfer their GRRSP assets to an RRSP at another financial institution or withdraw in cash, withholding taxes will apply. A GRRSP can be set up to restrict withdrawals while employed, with exception for use for the First-Time Home Buyer’s Program (“HBP”) or Life Long Learning Plan (“LLP”). GRRSPs are only regulated by CRA and thus annual filings are not required.

The bulk of the cost of offering a retirement plan to your employees will come from the employer contribution, if the employer decides to contribute to their employee plans. GRRSPs can be set up with no employer contribution, just voluntary employee contributions.
Other fees include Investment Management Fees (“IMF”) which can be paid by the employees or the employer.
For DCPPs, additional fees will include annual filing fees, and possibly auditor fees. Contact us for inquiries for setup fees.

IMFs cover the majority of the fees required to manage a retirement plan.  The fees typically cover services such as record keeping, custodian, investment management and consulting.
IMFs are equivalent to Management Expense Rations (“MER”) on the retail side.

A HCSA is a tax-deductible expense for your company and provides plan members with tax-free coverage of expenses that are not covered under their provincial insurance plan or other benefit plan sponsored by their employer. They can be set up as a stand alone plan, however they are generally added to a core plan to increase flexibility. HCSA are simple to set up and the employer chooses the annual maximum.  HCSA gives employees flexibility to direct dollars to expenses that are relevant to them.

A PSA or Wellness account provides employees with additional health and well-being options. Coverage options under a PSA are almost limitless. Employers set up their PSA and decide what will and will not be covered. They can set as many (or as few) parameters as they wish. ! When setting up a PSA, an employer will set the dollar amount available to each employee to use for eligible expenses (as determined by the employer). The amounts used from a PSA are a taxable benefit and will need to be included on an employee’s T4 statement.

Telehealth is a free, confidential telephone service providing health advice or information. A Registered Nurse will take your call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Assistance is available in more than 300 languages.

Virtual care is a broad term that encompasses all the ways healthcare providers remotely interact with their patients. In addition to treating patients via telemedicine, providers may use live video, audio and instant messaging to communicate with their patients remotely. People can see and talk to a doctor through their smartphone, tablet or computer, meaning they don't have to go to a doctor's office or sit in a waiting room. Instead, they can visit with a doctor from the comfort of their own home.