Taxes and Your Pension

Calculation of Income Withholding Tax

The Income Tax Act specifies that pension income from employer-sponsored pension plans is taxable income.

To calculate the tax amount to be withheld, ATRF uses the formula specified by Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) or for those members living in Quebec, Revenu Quebec. We also use the information from the last federal and provincial Personal Tax Credits Return (TD1) and source deductions return for members that live in Quebec (TP-1015.3-V), along with any Request for Additional Income Tax forms we have received from you.

Because income tax regulations and personal circumstances vary, ATRF does not provide taxation counselling. Please contact your tax adviser or the nearest District Taxation Office of CRA (Revenu Quebec) to obtain any tax law interpretations.

If you need to report any changes to us, refer to “Changing Tax Information” below.

Changing Tax Information

Income tax is deducted from each pension payment, with the amount based on one of the following:

• The CRA Personal Tax Credit Return called the TD1,
• The Source Deductions Return for Quebec residents called the TP-1015.3-V,
• or the Non-Resident Tax Return for non-residents.

The TD1 form can be obtained from the CRA and the TP-1015.3-V from Revenu Quebec. Alternatively, you may update your forms and submit them electronically through ATRF’s online member portal MyPension.

You may adjust the amount of tax withheld from your monthly pension any time your circumstances change, such as having multiple sources of income, new sources of income, or when you move to a new province, territory, or country.

If you’d like to change the taxes withheld from your pension, you can:

• Sign in to your MyPension account and select Income Tax Deduction from the Retired Member Menu.
• Submit ATRF’s Request or Change Additional Tax form or a federal TD1 form. If you’ve changed your province or territory, you will also need to submit a new provincial/territorial tax form to ATRF. You can upload these documents to ATRF via the Secure Message Centre in your MyPension account or return the form to ATRF by mail, fax, or email.

Note: If you move to a new country and become a non-resident of Canada, please provide ATRF with a copy of your Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) determination of residency status letter or contact us for assistance.

Income Tax Information Slips (T4A, NR4, and RL-2)

The CRA and Revenu Quebec require that all income tax information (T4A/NR4/RL-2) slips are mailed or made available digitally by February 28 of each year. ATRF typically mails them in early February.

Use MyPension to Access Tax Slips

Pension recipients who are registered for MyPension are able to view/print their income tax information slips sooner by accessing the site in early January. Prior year tax slips can also be accessed at any time.

You can also update your communication preferences in MyPension to receive notifications when your tax information is available.

OAS & CPP

Your ATRF pension benefit is not affected if you apply for or start to receive Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and/or Old Age Security (OAS) benefits. This is true even if you are receiving the Advance & Reduction Option.

You can find more information about OAS and CPP on the Government of Canada website.

Income Tax Calculator

Taxes are an important consideration whenever you are making decisions about your pension, so you may want to use tools like this income tax calculator to determine what the impacts of changes might be.

Please note: This calculator is provided by a third party and the information it provides is not verified by ATRF.