Under the LLQP Segregated Funds and Annuities and Taxation curriculum, the rules governing annuities funded with Registered Pension Plan (RPP) proceeds are very specific. When pension funds are used to purchase an annuity, the annuity must comply with registered annuity rules, which strictly control who can be the owner and annuitant.
In Franco’s situation, the proceeds of his RPP are being transferred to an immediate life annuity. According to LLQP principles, when an annuity is funded with registered pension money, the member of the pension plan must be both the owner and the annuitant of the annuity. This requirement exists to preserve the tax-deferred nature of pension income and to ensure that the retirement income is paid directly to the individual who earned the pension entitlement.
Because the annuity is purchased with RPP funds, Franco cannot designate another person—such as his spouse—as the annuitant. Doing so would be considered an inappropriate transfer of registered pension benefits and would violate the tax rules governing registered plans. As a result, Franco must be both the contract owner and the annuitant, receiving the annuity payments himself.
It is important to distinguish this from other situations involving RRSP-funded deferred annuities, where a spouse may sometimes be named as annuitant under specific conditions. However, those rules do not apply to annuities purchased directly with RPP proceeds. The fact that the annuity is immediate further reinforces this requirement, as payments must begin right away to the pension plan member.
While Franco may be able to provide survivor benefits or a guaranteed payment period for his spouse within the annuity structure, he cannot name her as the annuitant for tax purposes.
Therefore, in accordance with LLQP-approved annuity and pension transfer rules, the correct advice is Option A: Franco cannot name his wife as annuitant because the annuity is funded by his RPP proceeds, requiring him to be both owner and annuitant.
