Standard Life and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) Thursday announced, PrimaPension, a new retirement savings product designed specifically to meet the requirements of small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs) and their employees.
PrimaPension will be distributed through Nexim Canada, a CFIB and Standard Life partner, and will help SMEs implement easily and promptly a Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP) or a Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (VRSP). Employees enrolling in PrimaPension will also benefit from life insurance policy coverage based on age and assets held in their accounts.
“In Quebec, under the new VRSP Act, SMEs with five or more employees are required to offer a retirement savings solution to their employees,” stated Martine Hébert, Senior Vice President and National French Spokesperson at CFIB. “
Although Quebec employers’ obligations to offer a retirement savings solution to their employees will become effective as of 2016, the new product is immediately available to CFIB business members.
“More than half of SMEs in Canada do not provide their employees with a retirement savings solution, as they are often put off by the complex administration of such a program,” explained Philippe Toupin, vice president, group solutions, Standard Life. “The solution we have developed can be easily set up by employers and will help more workers access an attractive retirement savings program.”
PrimaPension, which also includes the Pooled Registered Pension Plans (PRPPs), will be available in other Canadian provinces where retirement plan regulations will permit.