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In order for the eligible spouse to qualify for any of the survivor benefits,
he/she must meet the
spousal eligibility condition
and must not have been living separate and apart at the time of the Plan
member’s death.
In order for the “eligible child(ren)” to qualify for any of the survivor
benefits, there must not be an “eligible spouse.” Or in the case of the
post-1986 service, the “eligible spouse” must have waived his/her entitlement to
post-1986 survivor benefits and the Plan member must have named the “eligible child(ren)” as a designated beneficiary(ies).
An eligible child remains eligible for the survivor benefit as long as he/she
meets the definition of eligible child.
In the case of more than one “eligible child” the survivor benefit is divided
equally amongst the eligible children. Once an eligible child no longer
qualifies for the survivor benefit, that share is then divided amongst the
remaining eligible child(ren).
Under Ontario law a child is considered a minor until the age of 18. Although an
older child may be defined as an “eligible child” under the Plan, he/she would
be regarded as an adult and not be subject to laws governing minor children.
OPTrust does not pay survivor benefits directly to a minor child because a minor
child cannot sign a valid release.
However, a member may choose to make alternate arrangements, such as having the
Court appoint a Guardian of Property to receive benefits on behalf of the minor
child (see the OPTrust Fact Sheet
Survivor benefits and
minor children for more).
A beneficiary is the person or organization designated by the member
on the Pension Beneficiary (OPTrust 1015) form to receive the vested,
post-1986 survivor benefit, in the event that there is no eligible spouse or
where the eligible spouse has waived the benefit.
In the event that the deceased Plan member has no eligible survivors and has not
named a beneficiary, then any survivor benefits
will be made to the deceased’s estate.
Revised January 2010
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