12.1 Mini Dictionary

The Mini Dictionary contains all the definitions you need to become familiar with the terms used in this guide.

Active membership	Active membership begins on the date of enrolment in the Plan and usually ends on the earliest of the following: 12 months after the last job with an employer ends, at age 65, upon retirement, or death.
Average eligible earnings	The average eligible earnings of the five years where your salary was highest. Since the definition of eligible earnings differs prior to and as of January 1, 2019, two average eligible earnings will be calculated respectively.
Overtime hours	Any hour paid at a higher rate, whether it is beyond the regular schedule established by the employer or not.
Hours for determining Pension Plan eligibility	Any regular or overtime hour, as well as any hour that would have been worked if it were not for a temporary leave of absence (e.g., maternity leave, sick leave, vacation, statutory holidays, etc.).
Beneficiary (beneficiary designation)	This is the person whom you designate to receive the death benefit payable under the Plan when you die. Your beneficiary designation may be revocable (i.e., may be changed at any time) or irrevocable (i.e., may only be changed with the beneficiary's written consent). Beneficiary designations, including those in favor of a common-law spouse, are considered revocable by default, unless you make them irrevocable. However, the designation as beneficiary of the married or civil union spouse is considered, by default, irrevocable for as long as this person remains your legal spouse unless you tick the "revocable" box when you make the designation. If you hold more than one membership in the Plan, your most recent beneficiary designation applies to each of your memberships, past or future, and voids all past designations, unless there is an irrevocable one.
Estate	If there is no designated beneficiary, the death benefit is payable to your estate. Unlike the benefit payable to a designated beneficiary, the amounts payable to the estate are added to the deceased's patrimony. The payment of the death benefit to the estate also tends to take much longer, as the liquidator must take stock of all of the deceased's assets and liabilities before settling the estate.
Credited service	Period during which you make Plan contributions. A year of credited service is granted once you have made 1,664 hours of contributions. For managers and assistant managers, this number of admissible hours is limited to 37.5 per week.
Eligible earnings	The base salary received from an employer for regular hours worked in day care services. Eligible earnings may also, under certain conditions, include deferred pay leave compensation or sums received during a union leave, even when this pay is reimbursed to the employer by an accredited workers' association. Overtime salary, with the exception of the portion paid as the premium to the base hourly salary, for years of credited service prior to January 1, 2019. For years of credited service as of January 1, 2019, overtime salary, with the exception of the portion paid as the premium to the base hourly salary, only if eligible hours do not exceed the 1,664 hour threshold. Contributions will only be permitted on overtime hours that bring the total hours worked to 1,664 hours, which grants a full year of service. All compensation must be paid during the period of continuous work, or no later than 30 days after the end of that period. Retroactive salary increase, only if you are working for a participating employer or if you have terminated your employment for 30 days or less. Excluded: Any basic hourly rate increase for overtime hours, lump-sum payments for unused vacation or sick days, all types of occasional compensation, bonuses, incentives, commissions or special payments for whatever reason, expense allocations, and reimbursements for expenses incurred by the member.
Maximum eligible earnings	Pensionable earnings under the Plan are limited to $ 1,663.58 per week or $86,506 per year in 2025. This maximum is raised annually based on the wage increases granted to unionized members of the Ministère, FSSS-CSN and the CSQ.
Employer	The employers to whom the Plan applies are those who hold a CPE or day care permit issued under the Act respecting child care centres and child care services and entered into an agreement with the Ministre de la Famille.
Associations and groups	Certain associations and groups also belong to the Plan. They will make employer contributions themselves. The list of these associations and groups is included in the Plan text, which is available on the Plan’s website.
Life Income Fund (LIF)	Account to which you may transfer amounts from a pension plan or a LIRA. These accounts have rules regarding the minimum and maximum withdrawals you may make per year to ensure that you have a steady retirement income.
Locked-in retirement account (LIRA)	Retirement savings vehicle similar to an RRSP, but subject to certain restrictions, notably regarding the beneficiary of the death benefit. The contents of a LIRA must be used to purchase an annuity or be transferred to a life income fund (LIF).
Maximum contribution	Since your eligible earnings are limited, so are your contributions, in accordance to Plan rules. This limit is raised each year on January 1. In 2025, the maximum weekly contribution is $109,80 ($5,709.40 per year).
On-going disability	Successive periods of disability for the same or related reasons occurring within no more than 31 days of each other.
Past service	Number of hours worked before April 1, 2003, for which an additional pension of up to a maximum of $765 per year may be granted.
Pension adjustment (PA)	The PA reflects the tax value of the benefits you accumulated during the year. It is calculated as prescribed by the Income Tax Act. The PA determines your RRSP contribution room for the following year and is printed on the T4 slip you receive from your employer each year.
Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP)	An RRSP is a tax-sheltered retirement savings vehicle. Both your RRSP contributions and the accrued interest on these contributions are tax exempt until withdrawn from the Plan.
Serious illness	For Plan purposes, a serious illness is an illness which, according to a physician, will likely cause the member's death within two years.
Spouse	For Plan purposes, the spouse is the person who: is married to the member or has entered into a civil union with the member, has been living in a conjugal relationship with a member who is neither married nor in a civil union, for a period of not less than three years, whether this person is of the opposite or the same sex, or for a period of not less than one year if: at least one child has been born or is to be born of their union, they have jointly adopted at least one child while living together in a conjugal relationship or before, one of them has adopted at least one child who is the child of the other during such period. The quality of spouse is determined on the date the member's pension payment begins or, in the case of a death benefit before retirement, on the day preceding the member's death. A person who is legally separated from the member cannot be considered a spouse, regardless of the date of the decree of separation from bed and board.
Waiting period (termination of employment)	Twelve-month period beginning on the date of termination. If you work for more than one Plan employer, the waiting period begins when your employment ends with the last of these employers and ends at the end of the 12th month following the termination of employment.
Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE)	An amount set each year in accordance with the provisions of the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP). It is the maximum salary for which contributions can be made to the QPP during the year. In 2025, the YMPE is $ 71,300.

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12.1 Mini Dictionary

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