Fees

Facts about fees

Fund management fees

As a DC member, you benefit from investment fees that are typically lower than the fees of comparable individual funds offered through other financial institutions retail, which average between 2.0% and 2.5% per year. Fees for the funds included in the Canada Post DC pension are about 1.5% lower on average. This difference in fees compounds over the life of your investments and can make a big difference down the road when you are ready to retire. Over a 25-year period, these lower fees could provide as much as 20% more in retirement savings.

All the investment management fees (IMFs*) and fund operations expenses (IMFOEs**) you pay are available online. Simply sign into mycanadalifeatwork.com or refer to Defined Contribution (DC) and Voluntary Savings Plan (VSP) Investment Guide.

*Investment management fees (IMF) represent fees paid to the investment manager for their professional services including the daily management of each fund. It also includes Canada Life’s fees for the cost of administering and providing services to the plan. IMFs are based on the asset value of each fund and are paid directly from the fund each day.

**Fund operating expenses (FOE) are fees charged directly to the fund to cover costs including audit and custodial fees, fund transaction costs, taxes paid by the fund, bank fees, fund valuation and reporting. FOEs may be associated with third party investment manager underlying funds and/or Canada Life’s segregated funds. The total amount of FOE is calculated at the end of each year. The amount reported to you will usually be the previous year end charges calculated as a percentage of the fund.

Transfer fees

If you decide to transfer money between funds, these transfers are free of charge.

Frequent trading is an investment strategy that’s detrimental to other members invested in the same variable fund investment options. Canada Life monitors this activity. If it’s determined that excessive trading is occurring, a frequent trading fee may be charged (currently up to two per cent of the amount exchanged) or a transfer may not be allowed in accordance with administrative rules.

Other fees

There may be other fees for specific transactions or requests. For a full listing of fees, go to mycanadalifeatwork.com.