About the Registered Plans Directorate

Mandate
Organizational chart
Directorate Divisions

Mandate

The Registered Plans Directorate is responsible for all program activities related to the provisions of the Income Tax Act for the registering and monitoring of employee pension plans, retirement savings plans, retirement income funds, deferred profit sharing plans, supplementary unemployment benefit plans, education savings plans and registered investments. In particular, the Directorate is responsible for:

• national registration program for compliance with the Income Tax Act, Income Tax Regulations, and related administrative rules;
• national audit program for registered plans;
• verification of actuarial liabilities for pension plans and approval of contributions made to such plans;
• national enquiries service for deferred income plans, as well as the calculating of pension adjustments and past service pension adjustments by employers and plan administrators; and
• information, communication, and education programs for all aspects of registered plans, including publications on deferred income plans, as well as participating at conferences, consultations, meetings, and speaking engagements.

Organizational chart

Director General - Annelisa Gillespie (613) 954-0933

The Director General heads the Directorate which is responsible for all program activities under the Income Tax Act that pertain to the registration and monitoring of pension and other deferred income plans. Reporting to the Assistant Commissioner of the Policy and Planning Branch, the Registered Plans Directorate is responsible for:

• administering a national registration program in accordance with the Income Tax Act, regulations and related administrative rules;
• selecting, reviewing, monitoring, and auditing registered plans, including approving the deductibility of contributions made to defined benefit pension plans;
• assisting with the calculation of pension adjustments, pension adjustment reversals and past service pension adjustments by employers and pension plan administrators;
• operating a national information service for registered plans;
• providing information/communication/education programs concerning all aspects of registered plans including participating at conferences, consultations, meetings and speaking engagements;
• providing specialized assistance, when requested, to the Department of Finance with respect to the formulation of new income tax legislation for registered plans;
• providing assistance to the Department of Justice in handling appeals to the courts in respect of ministerial decisions to refuse or revoke a plan's registration; and
• providing specialized actuarial expertise to other Branches of the Agency, as required.

Located in Ottawa, we have four divisions supported by a Directorate Management Services Section.

Directorate Divisions

Actuarial
Compliance
Policy and Communications
Registration

The following is a brief overview of each Division's responsibilities.

Actuarial Division
Director - Janice Laird (613) 990-9267

The Actuarial Division is responsible for the assessment of the funding contributions to, and transferred from, defined benefit registered pension plans for compliance with the provisions of the Income Tax Act, regulations and generally accepted actuarial practice. It provides actuarial services and advice to the other Divisions in the Directorate, other Directorates and Branches in the Agency, as well as external clients across Canada.

Compliance Division
Director - John O'Meara (613) 954-0925
Audit Manager - André Martin (613) 954-0922
Audit Manager - Tina Flichel Fawcett (613) 954-0411
Audit Manager - Curtis Bell (613) 946-3278

The Compliance Division ensures that all deferred income plans are operated in accordance with the provisions of the Income Tax Act through desk and field audits.

Policy & Communications Division
Director - Patricia Spice (613) 954-0402
Manager, Policy & Systems - Mark Legault (613) 954-0406
Manager, Technical Services Section - Mike Godwin (613) 954-0980

The Policy and Communications Division manages Directorate information systems, training and publications and communicates technical opinions, policies and procedures with internal and external audiences. It also liaises with Finance Canada and federal and provincial pension regulatory bodies regarding legislation that governs deferred income plans, and is the Directorate's representative on the Canadian Association of Pension Supervisory Authorities (CAPSA). The Division organizes annual consultation sessions for members of the registered pension plan industry, and another session for representatives from the RRSP/RRIF/RESP industries.

Registration Division
Director - Roxanne Descôteaux
Manager, English Enquiries, DPSPs - Bob Reynolds (613) 941-6324
Manager, French Enquiries - Josée Lafontaine (613) 954-0975
Manager, RRSPs, RRIFs and RESPs - Claire Thivierge (613) 954-0928
Manager, Pensions - Elisabeth Van Vliet (613) 946-7933
Manager, Pensions - Jeff Boxer (613) 946-3426
Manager, Pensions - Liz Scobie (613) 941-6326

The Registration Division reviews pension, deferred profit sharing and supplementary unemployment benefit plan texts as well as education savings plan, retirement savings plan and retirement income fund contracts for registration and compliance under the Income Tax Act. It also answers phone and written enquiries on all deferred income plans.