Transfers Into SFPP

SFPP has a transfer agreement in place with the Local Authorities Pension Plan (LAPP) and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Pension Plan. If you have earned service with LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan, you may be eligible to transfer the associated benefit entitlement into SFPP in order to increase your pensionable service with SFPP.

Pensionable service is a factor in the formula used to calculate your SFPP pension—the more pensionable service you have, the higher your pension payments and the sooner you may be eligible to begin collecting your SFPP pension. If you're interested in transferring, you can submit a transfer application via Document Centre, by mail or by fax.

If you have service with a Registered Pension Plan other than LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan, or you missed the deadline to transfer service under a transfer agreement, you may be able to purchase all or some of that service under SFPP. Read more about Buying Service.

Points to Consider Before Transferring

You must be a current member of SFPP when you apply to transfer your LAPP or RCMP Pension Plan benefit entitlement into SFPP.
You cannot be an active member in LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan at the time you apply.
Your funds must still be held in LAPP or in the RCMP Pension Plan.
You should check with your former employer or your former plan’s administrator to confirm that you are eligible to transfer out of LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan.

Cost of Transferring Service

All pension plans are "priced" differently. The benefit you earned in LAPP or in the RCMP Pension Plan might not match the cost of buying the same amount of service in SFPP. If your previous plan benefit is at least equal to the cost to purchase service under SFPP, you will not have to pay anything more, and the full amount of service will be credited to SFPP.

If the cost of buying SFPP service is more than the benefit from LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan, the difference is called a shortfall. If you proceed with the transfer, you'll receive credit for only a portion of the LAPP or RCMP Pension Plan service. You will have the option to buy the service associated with the shortfall. Paying for this shortfall means you will have a larger SFPP pension and you may be eligible to retire earlier than if you did not buy the service. Once your transfer is complete, we will send you a package with the details about buying the shortfall service before you decide.

Please note: Transferring your benefit entitlement from LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan could have tax consequences. For service after 1989, in order to proceed with your transfer, the tax rules require you to have adequate RRSP room for the associated Past Service Pension Adjustment (PSPA) to be certified.

You must consider the effect that a PSPA might have on your RRSP contribution room.

More on Past Service Pension Adjustments

Effect on Your Pension

Using SFPP’s online Pension Estimator, compare two estimates (one with the transferred service and one without) to understand the impact transferring service might have on your pension.

If there is a shortfall, you can also use the online Pension Estimator to determine what your SFPP pension would be with or without paying for the shortfall. Compare the two pension estimates (one with the transferred service and shortfall combined and one with only the transferred service) to understand the impact purchasing the shortfall might have on your SFPP pension.

Keep in mind that your salary during the transferred-in years may also affect your Highest Average Salary.

Transferred Service Upon Leaving the Plan

If you leave SFPP before turning 55 (and before you have 25 years of pensionable service) and choose to take your funds out of the Plan, your transferred-in service will not be used to calculate your Commuted Value (CV). Instead, you will receive a refund of the amount transferred from LAPP or the RCMP Pension Plan, plus interest. Please note that because the transferred-in service is not used to calculate a CV, you might not be considered vested in SFPP after that service has been excluded.

How to Apply for a Transfer from LAPP

You must have stopped participating in LAPP on or after Jan. 1, 1994.

Submit a transfer application via Document Centre, by mail or by fax, or contact us for more information.

How to Apply for a Transfer from the RCMP Pension Plan

Your transfer application must be received by us within one year of the date you joined SFPP.

To initiate a transfer, you will need to complete the Appendix A2 – Request for Transfer Estimate (transfer application). You can submit the completed transfer application via Document Centre, by mail or by fax. The application must be submitted to both SFPP and the RCMP Pension Plan.

Once we receive your transfer application, APS — our pension services provider — will work with the RCMP Pension Plan’s administrator and your SFPP employer to prepare a package of information presenting you with your transfer option.

You will have 90 days from the date this package was prepared to submit your election.