Reporting the death of a member

It’s stressful to deal with the affairs of a loved one who recently passed away. Whether you’re a family member, friend or executor (or a combination), we’re here to help you through the process of reporting a plan member’s death to the pension plan.

How to let us know

Using our online form is the easiest way to let us know of a plan member’s death. You can call us if you would rather speak to someone.

If you choose to use the online form, you can upload a digital copy of the death certificate and provide us with:

• The member’s name, address, date of birth and date of death
• The executor/administrator contact information
• The name and contact information of the member’s spouse, if applicable
• The name of the member’s employer, if the member was active

If the death certificate isn’t available at this stage, we will ask the executor for it at a later date.

Let us know as soon as possible

It’s important to let us know of a member’s death as soon as you can, especially if they were already receiving their pension. Waiting can mean pension payments and health or dental claims may need to be paid back. It may also delay delivery of tax slips. Waiting also slows down the process of paying any eligible benefit to the beneficiary or estate.

Overpayments and taxes
If the member was receiving their pension when they passed away, their estate is entitled to the pension payment received during the month in which they passed away. Any pension payments made after the month of death need to be paid back to the plan.

Once overpayments are paid back to the plan, we will issue a T4A to the estate for the year of death.

Health and/or dental coverage
If the member’s spouse or dependants were covered under extended health or dental benefits, any claims paid after the month of the member’s death are ineligible and need to be paid back to the carrier.

Beneficiary benefits
Before we can set up a beneficiary pension, all pension overpayments and ineligible health and dental claims must be paid back.

If the member was not yet receiving their pension, let us know of their death as soon as possible so we can close their account. After that, we can make any eligible benefit available to the beneficiaries.

Who else to contact

In addition to the Public Service Pension Plan, you may need to contact government agencies such as Service Canada. They can help you finalize the deceased’s Canada Pension Plan and/or Old Age Security.

For information on additional resources and who else to contact, see the Government of British Columbia’s After a Death Checklist.