January 2020 Edition

For the ninth consecutive year, Mediacorp has recognized the strengths and qualities Desjardins has as an employer by naming us one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers External link. Opens in a new window..

This award recognizes the best places to work in Canada, based on a number of criteria: physical workplace and overall atmosphere; health, financial and family benefits; vacation and time off; employee communications; performance management; training and skills development; and community involvement.

Happy employees = happy clients

Over the past two years, Desjardins Group’s senior management wanted to focus on what matters to employees. To do so, a number of new initiatives were rolled out: telemedicine; improvements to health and family-friendly benefits; feedback surveys; teamwork; mentorship programs; opportunities for advancement, etc.

These employee-focused initiatives have helped make people feel like they really belong at Desjardins. They’ve also had positive effects on our client relationships. "It doesn’t matter if you started a week ago or a decade ago—you’re always growing. And you’re getting support, not just from your manager, but also from your colleagues," says Keith Fernandes, Instructional Designer for the Competency Development Team at Desjardins. "You feel the difference that you’re making, not just for our clients, but also for our community."

The 13^th edition of the defined contribution conference organized by Avantages, the French-language sister publication of Benefits Canada, took place on November 26 in Montreal. The conference brought together plan sponsors and other industry players to discuss industry trends and strategies to help plan members achieve their retirement savings goals.

On the strength of Desjardins’s expertise in RI, Deborah Debas, an RI specialist for Desjardins Wealth Management, gave a presentation on how RI fits into retirement savings. She talked about the different approaches used in RI and the different types of investment products available. She also explained the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria used to select and manage investments and gave concrete examples of how these criteria are applied. She debunked myths that surround RI and showed both its environmental benefits and the impact it can have on annual returns. Watch her presentation External link. Opens in a new window. (in French only) to find out more.

Desjardins and Responsible Investing

Desjardins believes that money should be at the service of human development, and that’s precisely the goal of RI. Desjardins has been a leader in RI since 1990, when we started offering investors the ability to use their savings to drive change and participate in sustainable development and the greater well-being of communities.

To find out more about Desjardins and RI, contact your client relationship manager or visit https://letsthinkri.com/ External link. Opens in a new window..

Because 2020 is a leap year and the deadline falls on a weekend, the RRSP/VRSP contribution deadline is Monday, March 2. Let your plan members know.

Print the poster to let your plan members know when the deadline is and what the advantages of contributing in the first 60 days are.

8.5 x 11 poster (PDF, 552 KB) Opens in a new window.

Plan members have until March 2, 2020, to contribute to their RRSP/VRSP and claim a deduction for contributions made between January 1 and March 2, 2020, from their:

• 2019 taxable income or
• 2020 taxable income

Watch this short video: First-60-days rule External link. Opens in a new window.

Desjardins Insurance must receive payments and contribution files by March 2, 2020, for contributions to be included on RRSP and VRSP receipts for the first 60 days of the year.

How can plan members make lump-sum contributions?

2 methods are available:

1. Online, at dfs.ca/participant (a quick and efficient solution). Plan members must submit their contributions by 11:59 pm on March 2, 2020, under My transactions > Managing my account > Contribute.
2. By cheque: the envelope must be postmarked no later than March 2, 2020. It’s important that plan members write their full name, group number and plan member number on the back of the cheque.

This is the complete schedule for the production and mailing of tax receipts and slips. You can find the same information in the Message centre at dfs.ca/plansponsor and dfs.ca/participant.

Tax receipts (RRSP and VRSP)

Tax slips

The dates shown may vary by a day or two.

Our fifth educational video explains the benefits of joining a group plan, in clear and simple language. In less than two minutes, it shows all the benefits that a group plan can offer.

It will be posted online at dfs.ca/participant in the Message centre. Feel free to post it on your own intranet, screen it on your cafeteria TV or include it in your internal newsletter.

Want to share our previous educational videos?

• If your plan includes a group RRSP, share our HBP video, available in English External link. Opens in a new window. and French External link. Opens in a new window. and the one about the first-60-days rule in English External link. Opens in a new window. and French External link. Opens in a new window..
• If you offer matching contributions, you can share our video on this topic, available in English External link. Opens in a new window. and in French External link. Opens in a new window..
• Are any of your plan members 50 or over? Invite them to view the video about Preparing for Retirement in English External link. Opens in a new window. or in French External link. Opens in a new window..

In the coming months, we’ll be sending emails to plan members announcing the Start the year on the right foot contest and we’ll be including appropriate videos. The videos are also posted on the home page and in the Message centre at dfs.ca/participant.

Our educational videos are designed to help our plan members achieve financial wellness. For over ten years, we’ve been making a conscious effort to clarify and simplify the financial information we provide our plan members, so they can focus on retirement planning rather than financial jargon.

Plan sponsor services

Transactions submitted after 4 pm (ET) or on a holiday will be processed the next business day.

Customer Contact Centre (CCC)

Scheduled RRIF and LIF payments that fall on a holiday will be issued the next business day.

Each year, employers and Desjardins must issue the various slips required for employee tax returns.

We’ve put together a cheat sheet on the slips you need to produce for the plan(s) you offer.

This quick reference guide is intended for general information only and should not be construed as tax advice. While reasonable steps have been taken to ensure the accuracy of this information, Desjardins makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of this information, which may no longer be complete, accurate or up to date.

Slip	Plan	Issued by the employer	Issued by Desjardins	Frequency	Details
T4 (and RL-1 in QC)	RRSP - DPSP - SPP - DCPP - TFSA - NRP - VRSP - RRIF		—Not Applicable.	Annually at the end of February (for the previous year)	Salary, tips, employment commissions and other remuneration (e.g., employer contributions)
Pension adjustment (PA)	DPSP - SPP- DCPP		—Not Applicable.	Annually	To be entered on the T4
T4A (and RL-2 in QC)	DPSP - SPP - DCPP - VRSP	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Plan withdrawal or death
T4RIF (and RL-2 in QC)	RRIF	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Plan withdrawal, plan payment or death
T4RSP (and RL-2 in QC)	RRSP	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Plan withdrawal or death
T3 (and RL-16 in QC)	TFSA	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Income earned between the time of death and the withdrawal
T3 or T5 (and RL-16 or RL-3 in QC)	NRP	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Income, capital gains and losses allocated by the fund (including those resulting from a withdrawal)
T10	DPSP - DCPP	*	*	March, June, September, December	PAR (restores RRSP room after the forfeiture of unvested contributions)
NR4 (non-resident)	RRSP - DPSP - SPP - DCPP - TFSA - NRP - VRSP - RRIF	—Not Applicable.		Annually	Plan withdrawal or death
Tax receipt	RRSP - VRSP	—Not Applicable.		January	Contributions for the previous year
* You may have to produce the T10. Please check your contract.

With tax season just around the corner, it’s time to start thinking about producing your employees’ T4s and RL-1s.

Please refer to the table below to see how to calculate the total amounts to include on these slips. (Please note that the information has been updated in the December edition.)

How to calculate the total amounts

Include all contributions made between January 1, 2019, and December 31, 2019.

Registered Pension Plans (RPP): SPP and DC¹

DPSPs (Deferred Profit Sharing Plan)

To learn more, go to Employers’ Guide - Filing the T4 Slip and Summary External link. Opens in a new window. on the CRA website.

Contribution limits

DPSP: The total must be the lesser of 18% of an employee’s current annual compensation External link. Opens in a new window. and the maximum annual contribution allowed under a DPSP.

RRP: The total must be the lesser of 18% of an employee’s current annual compensation and the maximum contribution allowed under a DC for a given year.

You can find the annual contribution limits on the CRA website External link. Opens in a new window..

The information included in this article is intended for general information only and should not be considered as tax advice. While reasonable steps have been taken to verify its content, Desjardins makes no representations or guarantees concerning the accuracy, completeness or currency of this information.