1. Are the Great-West Life claim forms available online?
2. When are the pension pay dates?
3. Can you tell me what my annual pension amount is, including the inflation adjustment?
4. Will my pension increase for the cost of living every year?

1. How do I change or update my banking information?
2. I’ve recently moved. How do I update my mailing address?
3. I want to change my beneficiary information, is this possible?
4. How much will my surviving spouse receive when I die?
5. My marital status has changed since I’ve retired. Can I provide my new spouse with a survivor benefit?
6. Can I view my personal pension information online?

1. When does CPP integration happen?
2. Will OPTrust be sending out the CPP cheques?
3. Does OPTrust make the arrangements with CPP for me to get my cheques?
4. My spouse is also receiving CPP. Will this affect my OPTrust pension?
5. My friend's pension didn't decrease as much as mine did at age 65. Isn't the reduction the same for everyone?

1. I received a T4 and a T4A. What is the difference between them?
2. Why is there no PA (pension adjustment) information on my T4A from OPTrust?
3. Why is the amount on my T4A different from the amount I receive in the bank?
4. What is "other income"?
5. Where can I get other pension related information?

1. Q. Are the Great-West Life claim forms available online?

   A. Yes. You can download the dental and medical claim forms from the Great-West Life site. The forms are generic and do not list the mailing address. Send the completed forms to:

   Great-West Life
   Toronto Benefit Payments
   P.O. Box 4076, Station A
   Toronto, ON   M5W 3A3

You can also contact Great-West Life at 1-800 874-5899 or (416) 440-0406.

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2. Q. When are the pension pay dates?
   
   A. Pensions are paid on the 26th of every month. If the 26th falls on a weekend or holiday, the pension is paid the previous Friday. Our online Pension Pay Date calendar lists the dates every year.

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3. Q. Can you tell me what my annual pension amount is, including the inflation adjustment?
   
   A. Yes. OPTrust provides pensioners with a Pensioner Information Change Statement, which is issued every January, and whenever there is a change in your monthly payment (e.g. inflation adjustment, change in insured benefits premiums, new tax rates, etc). The statement shows your monthly gross pension, income tax and other deductions and net pension payment. Pensioners with an Online Services account can check their statements each month.
   
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4. Q. Will my pension increase for the cost of living every year?
   
   A. Yes, every January your pension, or that of your survivor, is adjusted for the increase in the cost of living. The inflation adjustment reflects the increase in the cost of living in Canada (as measured by the Consumer Price Index). The maximum escalation in any single year is 8%. OPTrust announces the inflation adjustment in the December issue of the Pension Connection and on our website.
   
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1. Q. How do I change or update my banking information?
   
   A. You must provide us with a void cheque for your new financial institution or bank account. You may also update your banking information online by registering for OPTrust’s secure Online Services. We cannot accept bank account changes over the telephone or by e-mail.

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2. Q. I’ve recently moved. How do update my mailing address?
   
   A. It’s important to provide OPTrust with your new mailing address. You can update your mailing address through OPTrust’s secure Online Services, once you are registered. If you receive your pension by direct deposit, you can contact OPTrust at (416) 681-6100 or 1-800-637-0024 to update your address. If you receive your pension by manual cheque, you must complete a Personal Information Change Request form.

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3. Q. I want to change my beneficiary information, is this possible?
   
   A. Yes, after retirement, you may add or change a beneficiary designation. To change your beneficiary designation, you must complete an Pension Beneficiaries form. You can also update or change your beneficiary information through OPTrust’s secure Online Services. We cannot accept beneficiary changes by telephone or e-mail.
   
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4. Q. How much will my surviving spouse receive when I die?
   
   A. If your spouse qualifies as “eligible” (see Your Pension During Retirement), he or she is entitled to 60% of your pension, at no additional cost to you. If you die before age 65, your spouse will receive 60% of your pension until the date you would have reach age 65. At that time, your pension would have been integrated for CPP, so your spouse’s pension is reduced to 60% of your CPP-integrated pension.

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5. Q. My marital status has changed since I’ve retired. Can I provide my new spouse with a survivor benefit?
   
   A. Under the OPSEU Pension Plan, for a spouse to be eligible to receive survivor benefits, the person must have been your spouse when you terminated from the Plan and when your pension began. However, if you do marry after retirement or acquire a common-law spouse you may request that a survivor pension be established for your new spouse. A number of conditions must be met before a new spouse can be set up for a survivor pension. For more information refer to page 42 in our booklet Your Pension during Retirement.
   
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6. Q. Can I view my personal pension information online?
   
   A. Yes, once you register for secure Online Services you can view and update your banking and TD1 information, update your insured benefits coverage, view a copy of your 2010 T4A form, and update your mailing address.
   
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1. Q. When does CPP integration happen?

   A. CPP integration occurs at age 65, even if you take a reduced retirement CPP pension at an earlier age.

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2. Q. Will OPTrust be sending out the CPP cheques?

   A. No. OPTrust only pays your OPTrust pension. The federal government, through Service Canada makes the Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security payments.

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3. Q. Does OPTrust make the arrangements with CPP for me to get my cheques?

   A. No. To apply for CPP you must complete their application forms. The application forms are available from the Service Canada website. CPP suggests that you apply for your pension six months before you wish to receive it so it can be processed on time.

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4. Q. My spouse is also receiving CPP. Will this affect my OPTrust pension too?

   A. No. Your OPTrust pension is based only upon your contributions and service credit in the Plan. Your spouse's income has no bearing on the formula for calculating your pension benefit or your spouse's survivor benefit.

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5. Q. My friend's pension didn't decrease as much as mine did at age 65. Isn't the reduction the same for everyone?

   A. The formula for calculating the reduction is the same for every pensioner at OPTrust, but unless you and your friend had exactly the same average salary, amount of service credit and retired the same year, your reduction amount would be different. The main variables in the formula are:

   • length of credited service after 1965, and
   • the lesser of the average five-year YMPE or your five-year average salary.

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1. Q. I received a T4 and a T4A. What is the difference between them?

   A. A T4 is issued by your former employer and reflects the income you earned while you worked as well as any deductions you had such as CPP, and Employment Insurance (EI). The T4A is issued by a pension plan administrator, such as OPTrust or CPP and reflects the pension income you received from a pension source. T4As will not have figures listed for CPP or EI contributions since these are not deducted from pension income.

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2. Q. Why is there no PA (pension adjustment) information on my T4A from OPTrust?

   A. The PA is a value that represents your accrued benefit in the pension plan. As a pensioner you are no longer accruing a benefit in the Plan, so there is no PA reported. Each year Canadians are allowed to contribute up to 18% of their earned income to tax-sheltered registered retirement vehicles (e.g. pension plans, RRSPs etc.) This is called your contribution room. While you are employed, your employer lists on your T4 how much of this contribution room you have used up in that year by accruing benefits in your pension plan. This dollar amount is the figure shown on your T4 as the pension adjustment "PA". When Canada Revenue Agency receives their copy of the T4 from your employer, they confirm the PA that you recorded on your income tax return and subtract that amount from your contribution room available for the year. The difference is the amount that you are able to contribute to your RRSP in the following year. Each year, when you receive your income tax Notice of Assessment from Canada Revenue Agency, you will notice that they tell you how much contribution room you have to contribute to your RRSP.

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3. Q. Why is the amount on my T4A different from the amount I receive in the bank?

   A. The T4A income reported is your gross income — the amount before deductions. It represents your taxable income. The amount you receive each month in your bank account is your net income, or the amount of pension payable to you after deductions. Deductions from your gross pension amount may include items such as income tax, premiums for Great-West Life, hearing aids and vision care plan coverage, supplementary life insurance, or family support payments.

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4. Q. What is "other income"?

   A. As a former OPS employee, if you receive benefits along with your pension, you may be eligible for the basic life insurance coverage which comes as part of the policy. If you have basic life insurance, the premiums are entirely paid for by your employer, on your behalf. However, these premiums represent a "taxable benefit" to you in retirement, the same way they did when you were working and must therefore be reported on your T4A as "other income".
   
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5. Q. When are the T4A/NR4/RL2 forms mailed?
   
   A. Every year we mail the pensioner tax forms during the second week of February. Pensioners also have the option to view their T4A form online through our secure Online Services.
   
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6. Q. Where can I get other pension related information?

   A.

   • Benefits Canada
   • CAAT
   • Canada Pension Plan
   • OMERS
   • Ontario Pension Board
   • Ontario Government
   • Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan
   • OPSEU
   • Financial Services Commission of Ontario
   • Canada Revenue Agency

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Revised January 2011