Evidence of meeting #113 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 44th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was residency.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
I think that's a Sun Life number. Our number is about 80%.
It's not a disapproval. It's whether or not we can process it. I want to let the committee know that if we're not able to process their claim because, let's say, they didn't have a particular document, they can reapply and then we can process the claim.
Liberal
Arielle Kayabaga Liberal London West, ON
Sun Life, do you mind sharing the approval and rejection rates for applications that were Canadian PRs or citizens? How does that data align with the 97.5%?
Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.
Yes, absolutely. Thank you for the question.
The 97.5% is our total applications processed in the timeline I shared, since the start of 2021. We received 14,590, and we approved 14,238. That's the 97.5% that I referred to in my remarks.
In terms of Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents, we've declined a total of two. You'll see in the chart that we shared with the committee that there are six listed. Four of those we assisted in reapplying, and they were subsequently approved.
At the end of the day, there are two Canadian citizens and Canadian permanent residents who have been declined who have not yet reapplied and received their early withdrawal.
Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.
That was from January 2021 until the end of March 2024.
Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.
That's based on our real application data. The team pulled the applications and reviewed them.
Liberal
Arielle Kayabaga Liberal London West, ON
Regarding your internal policy on applications from individuals who have BNO passports, is there a difference in the way that you process these applications?
Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.
Let me split it into two groups.
If someone has Canadian permanent residency or Canadian citizenship, regardless of whether they entered the country on a BNO passport or anything related to the BNO, they meet the criteria. We are approving those applications, and that's reflected in our numbers.
If they are applying solely based on the BNO and they haven't yet obtained Canadian permanent residency, that means they haven't yet met the criteria for early withdrawal, so we're unable to process those applications at that time. As soon as they receive their Canadian permanent residency, they are of course welcome to reapply, and we'll process the applications then.
Liberal
Arielle Kayabaga Liberal London West, ON
Ms. Greenwood, is it a similar process that you have in your internal policy?
Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
Yes, it is. The process is set forth pretty specifically, and I can walk you through it if you wish.
The customers who apply for an early withdrawal submit a form, and they make a statutory declaration that they have departed or will depart from Hong Kong to reside elsewhere with no intention of returning to Hong Kong for employment or resettlement. The form is prescribed by the regulator. It includes fields like personal information, contact information and reason for departure. They're also required to provide documentary proof that they are permitted to permanently reside in a place outside Hong Kong, which could be a foreign passport, evidence of foreign citizenship, or permanent residency.
I can continue to go through the process, if you wish, but the short answer to your question is that it's basically the same process. It's prescribed in regulation that all of the MPF trustees follow, including ourselves and Sun Life.
Liberal
Arielle Kayabaga Liberal London West, ON
In a case where individuals are denied despite holding PR or citizenship, are they provided clear explanation, documentation, why their application was unsuccessful?
Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
The answer is yes. They would receive a letter, or they could talk to a customer service person who would say, for example, in the case of 214 people coming to Canada, that they applied with a study visa, and unfortunately that wouldn't be sufficient proof of permanent residency. They would be given that counselling, and they would be able to reapply if they have additional documentation that meets the criteria.
Liberal
Arielle Kayabaga Liberal London West, ON
Ms. Hewitt, is it a similar process for you guys? Do you provide a clear explanation to the clients, whether or not they hold PR or citizenship, when they are not successful, explaining why they were not successful?
Senior Vice-President and Head, Global Government Affairs and Public Policy, Sun Life Financial Services of Canada Inc.
We send them a letter as well, which outlines the reason why they have not been approved, and it proactively gives them the contact information for our pension services hotline. As I said in my comments earlier, there's that example of the four Canadian permanent residents who didn't complete their forms correctly, who were able to get in contact with us, filled out the forms again, and subsequently reapplied and were approved. We have people on standby to help our clients work through the process.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
That was six minutes and 21 seconds.
Now we will go to Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe. Please go ahead for six minutes.
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Ms. Hewitt and Ms. Greenwood, welcome back to the committee. We're delighted to have you with us today.
Do your insurance companies process applications for early withdrawal of pension funds in cases where a simple acknowledgement of receipt of the application for permanent residency from IRCC is presented as proof of residency?
My question is for Ms. Greenwood or Ms. Hewitt.
Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
If I understand the question, you are asking whether, if someone has permanent residency in Canada, we process the application. The answer is yes, assuming that the other criteria I mentioned are also met—the signatures match and that sort of thing.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
I'd like to be clear.
Ms. Greenwood, do you consider that a simple acknowledgement from IRCC that the department is processing an application for permanent residency is sufficient proof to allow someone to withdraw the money paid into their pension fund?
Global Head, Government Relations, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company
Pardon me. I didn't understand.
They have to have a permanent residency card. It can't be an application.
Liberal
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Will you give me back some time, Mr. Chair? There may have been some confusion following the interpretation.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
I'll give an example, Ms. Greenwood.
A person wishes to withdraw his pension fund. She sends you, as proof that she will no longer be returning to Hong Kong, an acknowledgement of receipt from IRCC that the department is processing her application for permanent residency. She has not yet received the Confirmation of Permanent Residence, but we know that IRCC is reviewing the file.
Do you consider this sufficient proof to allow you to transfer funds to this person?