Peter. K. Noack (613)957-8963
January 26, 1988
Dear Sirs:
We reply to your letter of December 14 concerning the transfer of an annuity contract under an unmatured RRSP by the issuer on behalf of the annuitant to the annuitant's self-directed RRSP of another issuer. You are concerned that such a transfer would be prohibited by the requirement for registration in paragraph 146(2)(c) of the Income Tax Act (Act) that retirement income may not be assigned.
Subsection 146(16) of the Act provides for the transfer on behalf of the annuitant under the plan, referred to as the transferor, of any property thereunder to any issuer of another RRSP under which the transferor is the annuitant. Assign means to transfer or set over to another. Issuers of RRSPs have no beneficial ownership of the property under the plans. A transfer of such property on behalf of the annuitant is not an assignment because there is no change of the beneficial ownership of the plan as a result of the transfer.
Yours truly,
for Director Financial Industries Division Rulings Directorate