Buy-backs

A buy-back of service is a provision of your pension plan which, under certain conditions, allows you to have periods of work or absence recognized during your career in the public or parapublic sector for eligibility or calculation purposes, even if the ministry or agency for which you worked no longer exists.

It can apply to periods of work or absences without pay during which you did not contribute to your pension plan.

The number of days of absence that you can buy back is indicated on your Statement of Participation in your public-sector pension plan.

The following periods of work can be bought back:

• Periods of service prior to becoming a plan member and during which you received earnings, such as the service carried out:
  • at a research centre in the health and social services sector
  • at an organization that became subject to a plan further to an order-in-council issued after 30 June 2011
  • as a member of the Lieutenant-Governor’s, a Minister’s or a member of the National Assembly’s staff
  • as an active member of the Canadian Armed Forces
  • as a teacher, whether as a member of a religious order or laicized
• Casual periods of service carried out in the period from 1 July 1973 to 31 December 1986 for employees in the health and social services sector who were on a recall list 
• Casual periods of service carried out in the period from 1 July 1973 to 31 December 1987 for all employees in the public service and the education sector, as well as employees in the health and social services sector who were not on a recall list 
• Period of credited and accrued service following a change in employment status or change of employer
• Part of the years of service transfered to the Pension Plan of Peace Officers in Correctional Services (PPPOCS) that are credited for eligibility for a benefit, but not for the calculation (during the qualification period in the PPPOCS).

Some work periods may not be bought back, for example:

• Periods of service carried out when a person was not age 18
• Periods of service carried out when a person was studying or undergoing an internship.

The following periods of absence may be bought back:

• Period of absence without pay (including parental leaves following an adoption leave, paternity or maternity leave, as well as compassionate care leave) exceeding the 90‑day bank  
• Maternity leave that began before 1 January 1989. 

If the service used for the calculation of the pension is reduced during retirement (for example, when the pension is reviewed by Retraite Québec), the retiree may buy back, under certain conditions, the equivalent of the service that was reduced and therefore increase the amount of the pension.

Certain periods of absence do not need to be bought back, for example:

• Contributory absence without pay (including days of absence resulting from a strike): Since 1 January 2002, for most pension plans, you do not have to buy back periods of absence of 30 consecutive calendar days or less or a part-time leave equal to 20% or less of the regular working time. In such cases, you contributed to your pension plan the same as if you had been working full-time
• Adjustment and reduction of work hours: Your pension plan recognizes the service and salary that it would have recognized if you had not benefited from this measure even if your work schedule and salary are reduced
• Maternity leaves that began after 31 December 1988: Your pension plan recognizes the days during which you were on maternity leave and they will be credited to you at no cost and as if you had been working
• Deferred salary leave: Your pension plan recognizes the same service and salary you would have been credited under your plan had you not signed an agreement
• Absences without pay due to illness when you are receiving benefits under a mandatory salary insurance plan: The periods are automatically recognized by your pension plan for a maximum period of 3 years.

You can also transfer to your pension plan the years of service you have accrued under the pension plan that was offered by an employer who was not in the public and parapublic sectors. For further information on that matter, consult the Transfer agreement  section on Retraite Québec’s website. You will find a list of organizations and plans affected by a transfer agreement . If applicable, contact Retraite Québec at 418 643‑4881 (Québec region) or 1 800 463‑5533 if you have any question regarding this matter.

It is usually to your advantage to apply for a buy-back as early as possible, if applicable, as soon as your absence ends. The cost of a buy-back is determined using your annual eligible salary on the date your application is received at Retraite Québec. The rates that apply also vary based on your age, the type of buy-back and the years during which the periods covered by the buy-back occur. Therefore, should you decide to postpone the date on which you file your application, the cost of your buy-back will gradually increase each year. If you apply for a buy-back for a period of absence without pay within 6 months following the end of that period, the cost of your buy-back could cost less than if you file your application later.

Estimate of the cost of a buy-back

Obtain an estimate of the cost of a buy-back of your days of absence by using the Estimate of the cost of a buy-back under the RREGOP and the PPMP  tool.
By using our cost estimator tool, you will get an up-to-date estimate of the cost of the service buy-back under the Régime de retraite des employés du gouvernement et des organismes publics (RREGOP) or the Pension Plan of Management Personnel (PPMP). If you are a member of a private-sector pension plan, other than RREGOP or the PPMP, or if you need assistance, please contact Retraite Québec .

Under your pension plan, up to 90 days (called 90-day bank) can be automatically added at no cost to your years of service to offset certain periods of absence at no cost. The days in your 90-day bank are automatically credited when you are entitled to a pension plan.

When Retraite Québec processes your buy-back application, it will deduct the number of your days of absence that can be offset at no cost by the 90-day bank from the number of days of service corresponding to the period concerned by your application.

To buy back service, you must meet the following conditions:

• You must be a member of a pension plan administered by Retraite Québec at the time we receive your application for a buy-back ^{Read note content 1}. In the case of an application for buying back a period of absence, you must also contribute to the plan on the date on which your application is received, except if you are in one of these situations:
  • you are on maternity leave or you are benefitting from an exemption from contributions due to a disability
  • you are benefitting from a transfer agreement
  • you are eligible for an immediate pension. In such a case, Retraite Québec must have received your application for a buy-back by the time we receive your application for a retirement pension.
• You must have had, during the period you would like to buy back, a position covered in a ministry or an organization covered by one of the following public-sector pension plans:
  • Government and Public Employees Retirement Plan (RREGOP)
  • Pension Plan of Management Personnel (PPMP)
  • Retirement Plan for Senior Officials (RPSO)
  • Pension Plan of Certain Teachers (PPCT)
  • Pension Plan of Peace Officers in Correctional Services (PPPOCS)
  • Superannuation Plan for the Members of the Sûreté du Québec (S P M S Q).
• You must meet the specific requirements for the type of buy-back you wish to make.
• You must file the application no later than 30 December of the year in which you reach the maximum age for plan membership.

To apply for a buy-back, you must send one of the following two forms to Retraite Québec, or both, according to your situation, along with the required supporting documents, if any:

• Application for a buy-back of one or more periods of absence  (RSP‑727‑ABS form)
• Application for a buy-back of one or more periods of work  (RSP‑727A‑WRK form)

The application for a buy-back can be filed at any time after the end of the periods of service that can be bought back, but before you retire or, at the latest, on the date on which you reach the maximum age for plan membership.

In order for your application to be processed as soon as possible, please ensure that your form is duly completed and that all the requested information are provided. This information is essential to the study of your file. Any incomplete application will be sent back to you.

Buy-back proposal

Provided your application meets (in whole or in part) the conditions for a buy-back, Retraite Québec will send you a buy-back proposal. If your application does not meet the requirements for a buy-back, Retraite Québec will notify you in writing.

Depending on the periods for which you have applied for a buy-back, you could receive several proposals. The proposals are accompanied with a reply form that you must return to Retraite Québec.

Return the accepted buy-back proposal to Retraite Québec  within 60 days. The expiry date is indicated on the letter included with the proposal. If you do not accept your proposal or proposals after that date, we will consider that you never filed an application.

Your Statement of Participation under a public-sector pension plan summarizes your participation in your pension plan using the most recent participation data provided by your employer. The data provided is for the period until 31 December. If you do not have your Statement, consult the Consulting Statements of Participation  web page for more information on the different ways to obtain it.

The section entitled Days of absence that can be bought back on your personalized Statement of Participation shows whether you have days of absence that can be bought back. If there is a table showing a number of days of absence, this means that you can buy back periods of absence without pay, parental leave or compassionate care leave that were not credited to you under your pension plan. Whether you work full-time of part-time, the buy back of your days of absence could increase the amount of your pension or allow you to retire earlier.

If you bought back periods of absence before 31 December, they will no longer be indicated in the section entitled Days of absence that can be bought back, but the service recognized for that buy-back as well as the contributions paid for the buy-back will be indicated in the Years of service and contributions section.

If the periods of absence were bought back in the year of the Statement or that the buy-back is still being paid, it will be indicated in the Years of service and contributions section, on the line entitled Buy-back.

If the periods of absence were bought back during a year prior to the year indicated on the Statement and that the buy-back is paid in full, it will be indicated in the Years of service and contributions section, on the first line of the table entitled Cumulative to 31 December of the year preceding the Statement.

Days of absence that can be bought back

The following table presents an example of a number of days of absence that can be bought back according to data provided by employers. 

The table can present the following different types of absence:

• Absence without pay
• Absence for parental leave
• Absence for compassionate care leave.

Your plan provides, under certain conditions, for up to 90 days to be automatically recognized during the calculation of your pension to offset certain periods of absence. In the example above, on 126 days of absence that can be bought back, 90 days would automatically be recognized at no cost. This means that you would only have 36 days to buy-back to offset the periods of absence. The 90 days, as well as the 36 days that are bought back would therefore be taken into consideration for the estimates for a pension presented at the top of your Statement.

You become a member of a pension plan on the first day when you are employed by an employer subject to the plan.

Your membership continues as long as you work, but ends on 30 December of the year during which you reach age 69 or 41, according to the plan rules  (French only).

A person is considered to be working if he or she:

• is entitled to salary insurance benefits or that he or she is exempted from contributing to the pension plan
• is absent without pay
• is on maternal leave
• is registered on a recall list.

To contact us, please contact:

Direction générale des services de rémunération

Ministère de la Cybersécurité et du Numérique
1020, route de l’Église, 2^e étage
Québec (Québec) G1V 3V9

Toll-free: 1 888 944‑7243
Email: serviceclientele.paie@mcn.gouv.qc.ca

The information on this page is not a substitute for the applicable laws and regulations. Rather, it is provided as general information and may vary from plan to plan.