Canada Pension Plan

Marginal note:Benefits payable

• 44 (1) Subject to this Part,

  • (a) a retirement pension shall be paid to a contributor who has reached sixty years of age;

  • (b) a disability pension shall be paid to a contributor who has not reached sixty-five years of age, to whom no retirement pension is payable, who is disabled and who

    • (i) has made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period,

    • (ii) is a contributor to whom a disability pension would have been payable at the time the contributor is deemed to have become disabled if an application for a disability pension had been received before the contributor’s application for a disability pension was actually received, or

    • (iii) is a contributor to whom a disability pension would have been payable at the time the contributor is deemed to have become disabled if a division of unadjusted pensionable earnings that was made under section 55 or 55.1 had not been made;

    • (iv) [Repealed, 1997, c. 40, s. 69]

  • (c) a death benefit shall be paid to the estate or succession of a deceased contributor who has made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period;

  • (d) subject to subsection (1.1), a survivor’s pension shall be paid to the survivor of a deceased contributor who has made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period, if the survivor

    • (i) has reached sixty-five years of age, or

    • (ii) in the case of a survivor who has not reached sixty-five years of age,

      • (A) had at the time of the death of the contributor reached thirty-five years of age,

      • (B) was at the time of the death of the contributor a survivor with dependent children, or

      • (C) is disabled;

  • (e) a disabled contributor’s child’s benefit shall be paid to each child of a disabled contributor who

    • (i) has made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period,

    • (ii) is a contributor to whom a disability pension would have been payable at the time the contributor is deemed to have become disabled if an application for a disability pension had been received before the contributor’s application for a disability pension was actually received, or

    • (iii) is a contributor to whom a disability pension would have been payable at the time the contributor is deemed to have become disabled if a division of unadjusted pensionable earnings that was made under section 55 or 55.1, had not been made;

    • (iv) [Repealed, 1997, c. 40, s. 69]

  • (f) an orphan’s benefit shall be paid to each orphan of a deceased contributor who has made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period; and

  • (g) a post-retirement benefit shall be paid to a beneficiary of a retirement pension under this Act or under a provincial pension plan.

• Marginal note:Limitation

  Footnote ^*(1.1) In the case of a common-law partner who was not, immediately before the coming into force of this subsection, a person described in subparagraph (a)(ii) of the definition spouse in subsection 2(1) as that definition read at that time, no survivor’s pension shall be paid under paragraph (1)(d) unless the common-law partner became a survivor on or after January 1, 1998.

  • Return to footnote ^*[Note: Subsection 44(1.1) in force July 31, 2000, see SI/2000-76.]

• Marginal note:Calculation of minimum qualifying period in case of disability pension and disabled contributor’s child’s benefit

  (2) For the purposes of paragraphs (1)(b) and (e),

  • (a) a contributor is deemed to have made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period only if the contributor has made base contributions during the contributor’s contributory period on earnings that are not less than the contributor’s basic exemption, calculated without regard to subsection 20(2),

    • (i) for at least four of the last six calendar years included either wholly or partly in the contributor’s contributory period or, where there are fewer than six calendar years included either wholly or partly in the contributor’s contributory period, for at least four years,

    • (i.1) for at least 25 calendar years included either wholly or partly in the contributor’s contributory period, of which at least three are in the last six calendar years included either wholly or partly in the contributor’s contributory period, or

    • (ii) for each year after the month of cessation of the contributor’s previous disability benefit; and

  • (b) the contributory period of a contributor shall be the period

    • (i) commencing January 1, 1966 or when he reaches eighteen years of age, whichever is the later, and

    • (ii) ending with the month in which he is determined to have become disabled for the purpose of paragraph (1)(b),

    but excluding

    • (iii) any month that was excluded from the contributor’s contributory period under this Act or under a provincial pension plan by reason of disability, and

    • (iv) in relation to any benefits payable under this Act for any month after December, 1977, any month for which the contributor was a family allowance recipient in a year for which the contributor’s base unadjusted pensionable earnings are less than the basic exemption of the contributor for the year, calculated without regard to subsection 20(2).

• Marginal note:Proration — late applications for disability pensions

  (2.1) For the purpose of determining the minimum qualifying period of a contributor referred to in subparagraph (1)(b)(ii), the basic exemption for the year in which they would have been considered to have become disabled, and in which the base unadjusted pensionable earnings are less than the relevant Year’s Basic Exemption for that year, is an amount equal to that proportion of the amount of that Year’s Basic Exemption that the number of months that would not have been excluded from the contributory period by reason of disability is of 12.

• Marginal note:Family allowance — late applications for disability pensions

  (2.2) A contributor referred to in subparagraph (1)(b)(ii) is deemed to have made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period for the purpose of subparagraph (1)(b)(i) if

  • (a) they became disabled in a month in which they were a family allowance recipient;

  • (b) in the year in which they became disabled

    • (i) the child in respect of which they were a family allowance recipient reached seven years of age, and

    • (ii) their base unadjusted pensionable earnings were less than their basic exemption, calculated without regard to subsection 20(2); and

  • (c) in the absence of this subsection, a disability pension would not be payable to them, but had they become disabled in the year immediately before the year in which they became disabled, a disability pension would have been payable to them under subparagraph (1)(b)(ii).

• Marginal note:Calculation for other supplementary benefits

  (3) For the purposes of paragraphs (1)(c), (d) and (f), a contributor is deemed to have made base contributions for not less than the minimum qualifying period only if the contributor has made base contributions during their contributory period

  • (a) for at least one third of the total number of years included either wholly or partly within their contributory period, excluding from the calculation of that contributory period any month in a year after the year in which the contributor reaches 65 years of age and for which the contributor’s base unadjusted pensionable earnings were equal to or less than the contributor’s basic exemption for that year, but in no case for less than three years; or

  • (b) for at least ten years.