Order Fixing December 17, 2025 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act and of An Act to amend the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts Come into Force: SI/2025-112

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 159, Number 26

Registration
SI/2025-112 December 17, 2025

PUBLIC SECTOR PENSION INVESTMENT BOARD ACT
AN ACT TO AMEND THE CANADIAN FORCES SUPERANNUATION ACT AND TO MAKE CONSEQUENTIAL AMENDMENTS TO OTHER ACTS

Order Fixing December 17, 2025 as the Day on Which Certain Provisions of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act and of An Act to amend the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts Come into Force

P.C. 2025-887 December 5, 2025

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of National Defence,

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order fixes December 17, 2025, as the date on which certain provisions of the Public Sector Pension Investment Board Act, S.C. 1999, c. 34 (PSPIBA) and of An Act to amend the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts, S.C. 2003, c. 26 (AACFSA), come into force.

Objective

The objective of this Order is to bring into force legislative provisions that repeal elements under Parts I and II of the Canadian Forces Superannuation Act (the CFSA or the Act) and replace them with regulation making authorities. The Order will bring into force related authorities under the PSPIBA and the AACFSA to amend the Act. These authorities will allow for the administration of the Canadian Armed Forces (Forces) pension plan through the Canadian Forces Superannuation Regulations (CFSR).

The amendments will support the transition of plan rules from statute to regulation to enhance administrative flexibility and maintain the existing structure of pension entitlements.

Background

The Act governs pension arrangements for members of the regular force and those members of the reserve force who contribute to the Forces pension plan. This defined benefit plan provides benefits based on years of service and salary, including provisions for survivor benefits, service buybacks, disability retirement and supplementary death benefits.

Historically, the Act included prescriptive provisions that governed benefit entitlements, contribution rates, and administrative rules directly in the statute. This structure limited the Government’s ability to modernize plan administration or respond to emerging operational or demographic considerations without legislative amendment. In 1999, Parliament enacted the PSPIBA, which transferred investment management responsibilities for the Forces pension plan to the Public Sector Pension Investment Board. The PSPIBA also introduced amendments to the CFSA to repeal statutory rules governing the supplementary death benefits and to establish regulation-making authorities in their place. Only the investment-related provisions were brought into force at the time.

In 2003, further amendments were enacted through the AACFSA. These amendments replaced provisions of the Act with new authorities to make regulations concerning service buybacks, deemed pay, contribution crediting, pension portability between federal plans, and re-enrolment following release. The legislative intent was to enable a more streamlined and coherent administration of the plan through regulation, while preserving benefit entitlements. The amendments were also intended to enhance consistency with other federal superannuation statutes and to support the administration of complex military careers that do not follow a linear employment trajectory.

Although these provisions received royal assent in 1999 and 2003 respectively, they were not brought into force, as their implementation required the development of supporting regulations. Due to competing departmental priorities, this work was not pursued until now.

Bringing into force the remaining provisions of the PSPIBA and the AACFSA enables the shift from a statutory to a regulatory framework under the Act.

Implications

Once the amendments are in force, the Governor in Council will have the authority to prescribe by regulation matters previously set out in Parts I and II of the Act. These include contribution rates, eligibility and terms for service buybacks, and the calculation and payment of supplementary death benefits. A related regulatory package addressing the repealed provisions through amendments to the CFSR will come into force at the same time.

The amendments under the PSPIBA repeal the legislative framework governing the supplementary death benefits, including definitions, contribution rates and payment rules, and replace them with regulatory authorities. As a result, terms such as “basic benefit” and “salary” previously defined in Subsection 60(1) of the Act are now set out in the CFSR. Additionally, where previously the Act established a fixed contribution rate for the death benefit, the legislative amendments will now allow the funding formula to be set by regulation. This change enables greater flexibility to adjust contribution rates based on actuarial advice. The contribution rate for the benefit, formerly fixed in section 65 at 5 cents per $250 coverage, is now established through CFSR with the same payment and benefit calculation rules. A technical amendment to paragraph 68(1)(b) of the Act replaces the former “not less than” funding floor with a “greater of” formulation. This change modernizes the statutory method for determining the government credit to the death benefit account without altering participant contribution rates and aligns the funding framework with industry standards by ensuring that the amounts credited annually remain sufficient to meet projected obligations.

The provisions under the AACFSA repeal the legislative rules governing service buybacks, deemed pay, contribution crediting, tri-plan mobility, and re-enrolment following release and replace them with regulatory authority so they can be addressed in the CFSR. As a result, the types of service eligible for buyback, the terms of payment and the conditions under which an election may be void are set out in amendments to the CFSR.

Provisions governing mobility between the Canadian Forces pension plan and other federal public sector plans, such as those under the Public Service Superannuation Act and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Superannuation Act, have also been repealed and replaced by regulatory authorities. This includes the determination of how transferred or surrendered service is treated, how related contribution amounts are calculated and credited, and the cessation of entitlements under the originating plan.

The repeal of section 41 and related amendments transfer the rules applicable to re-enrolled contributors from the Act to CFSR. These changes authorize a regulatory framework intended to enable individuals who return to service and become entitled to a lesser benefit to restore their original annuity or receive a return of contributions.

The amendments bring into force a new enabling provision that authorizes the Governor in Council to prescribe by regulation lump-sum small benefit payments in cases where the annual value of a periodic pension is below a prescribed threshold. While no such benefits are currently prescribed, this provision provides a mechanism to pay low-value entitlements should the regulatory framework be developed. Another new provision authorizes the Governor in Council to prescribe the conditions under which a person may receive a lump-sum payment in lieu of a periodic benefit, where the annual value of that pension is below a threshold.

These changes to the Act do not affect benefit levels or eligibility. The purpose of the amendments is to relocate the authority to make rules from the Act to the CFSR and to enhance administrative flexibility. The Forces pension plan remains unchanged, and the corresponding amendments to the CFSR are designed to reflect the existing scheme.

Consultation

The amendments to the CFSA were enacted through the PSPIBA and the AACFSA, both of which were reviewed by Parliament during their respective legislative processes, including a review by the House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs, as well as a debate and approval in both the House of Commons and the Senate. No additional public consultations were conducted, as parliamentary review and legislative scrutiny served as an alternative mechanism for stakeholder input and public accountability. As the amendments do not introduce a new policy, but give effect to previously enacted authorities, further consultation was not undertaken.

Contact

Stephen Irwin
Director
Pension and Social Programs
Commander Military Personnel Command
Department of National Defence
Telephone: 613‑294‑4957
Email: Stephen.Irwin@forces.gc.ca