Bill 15: An Act Respecting Pension Benefits

This bill primarily affects employers in New Brunswick who sponsor or administer pension plans, particularly those in unionized industries operating under collective agreements or multi-employer trust arrangements — think construction, trades, or public sector adjacent organizations. Day-to-day, plan administrators will need to update how they handle small pension payouts (commuted values), track unclaimed pension property and remit it under the Unclaimed Property Act, and process non-resident member withdrawal requests using new declaration forms. The exemptions for multi-employer plans and fixed-contribution defined benefit plans under collective agreements matter most to employers coordinating pensions across multiple worksites or bargaining units, regardless of business size.