| 19(1) | File No. 5-9671 |
| W.C. Harding | |
| (613) 957-8953 |
March 9, 1990
Dear Sirs:
This is in reply to your letter of March 2, 1990 in request of our opinion as to whether or not the spouse of a deceased annuitant of a registered retirement savings plan (RRSP) could obtain and transfer a refund of contributions to another RRSP where:
1. A few months after marriage, an individual dies intestate as a result of an accident;
2. The Mother of the deceased is the beneficiary under his RRSPs as they arose prior to marriage. The beneficiary had not been changed;
3. The spouse of the deceased, at law, is the sole beneficiary of the deceased's estate; and
4. The mother of the deceased has signed a disclaimer of interest in the deceased's RRSPs with the result that, at law, they pass to the spouse of the deceased.
In our opinion where a beneficiary makes a disclaimer of an interest in a deceased annuitant's RRSP which is not in favour of any person, such that the interest falls to the deceased's estate, then the beneficiary's spouse who is the sole beneficiary of the deceased's estate may make a joint election with the deceased's legal representative under subsection 146(8.1) of the Income Tax Act. Accordingly any amount elected upon may be treated as a refund of premiums received by the spouse and can be transferred to an RRSP using form T2019.
We hope our comments are satisfactory to your needs.
Yours truly,
for Director Financial Industries Division Rulings Directorate