Pension Confirmation Letters

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ATRF conducts a review to confirm that pensions are being paid appropriately to eligible retired teachers and/or their nominee.

Review Process

ATRF periodically conducts a review to confirm that pensions are being paid appropriately to eligible recipients. As the plan administrator and trustee, ATRF undertakes this process as part of our ongoing efforts to protect the assets of the plans for all members by confirming that the right pension is paid in the correct amount to the intended recipient.

The confirmation process is one way the plans can reduce the risk of continuing to pay pension benefits if a recipient’s death is not reported in a timely basis, leaving your legal representative to deal with the possibility of a pension benefit overpayment.

If we do not receive your completed confirmation, your pension may be suspended. Once we receive your completed confirmation, payments will resume retroactively.

Who is Selected

ATRF selects different individuals to participate in the review each year. As a result, you may not receive a confirmation letter every year.

How to Confirm

ATRF will contact you by mail to complete the pension confirmation.

If you have been identified to participate in the review, you will have two options to complete the pension confirmation process:

  1. Complete and return the Pension Confirmation form that was mailed to you.
  2. Call ATRF to answer a series of authentication questions to confirm your identity.

If you have elected a Joint and Survivor pension, ATRF will require that both you and your nominee participate in this confirmation, even in case of separation or divorce. As the member, you are responsible for providing ATRF with your nominee’s contact information. This enables ATRF to complete the pension confirmation with them directly.

How to Prepare

Please keep your contact information current with ATRF to ensure you receive and respond to this pension confirmation review in a timely manner to prevent the suspension of the pension benefit payable. If you elected a Joint and Survivor pension, also ensure that your nominee’s contact information is current:

  • Complete and return an Information Update form to ATRF, or
  • Update your personal contact information online by signing in to your MyPension account.

During the confirmation process, you will be asked to provide ATRF with an alternate contact. In the event we are unable to contact you, we may ask your alternate contact if they can provide your current contact information in order for us to complete your confirmation with you. To provide ATRF with your alternate contact, you may:

  • Send a message to ATRF via email or the Secure Message Centre in your MyPension account that includes your alternate contact’s name, address, phone number, and their relationship to you.
  • Provide your alternate contact information when you phone to complete your pension confirmation.

If you have granted signing authority to another person, provide ATRF with a certified copy of your documents granting Power of Attorney, Guardianship, Trusteeship, etc. so that they may sign on your behalf.