CRA stated :
Where an amount under an unmatured RRSP of a deceased annuitant is paid to the deceased's legal representative and the surviving spouse is the beneficiary of the estate, we consider that the spouse did not receive the amount in the RRSP due to the annuitant's death and the payment does not constitute a refund of premiums as defined in subsection 146(1). In such a situation, subsection 146(8.1) deems the amount paid to the deceased annuitant's legal representative as being received by the surviving spouse as a benefit that is a refund of premiums, and not by the legal representative, to the extent that the amount would have been a refund of premiums if it had been paid under the plan to the beneficiary spouse of the annuitant's estate and that it is designated jointly by the legal representative and the surviving spouse in prescribed form T2019 (footnote 1) filed with the Minister.
The amount qualifying as a refund of premiums is a benefit for the recipient spouse who receives it, or is deemed to have received it, and it must be included in computing his or her income pursuant to subsection 146(8) and paragraph 56(1)(h). An amount equal to the refund of premiums may be deducted in computing the spouse's income under paragraph 60(l) to the extent that it is paid by or on behalf of the spouse in the year or within 60 days after the end of the year as a premium under an RRSP, RRIF or for an eligible annuity of which the surviving spouse is the annuitant.