Decide on one page. Write down the fee gap between your current group RRSP and a written proposal, in dollars a year, on the same all-in basis. Write the service beside it. Write what a transition would cost and require. Then choose one of three honest outcomes: keep the plan, ask the current provider to reprice it, or move it. Keep that summary with the written proposals and supporting evidence. It explains your reasoning without claiming to complete every aspect of plan oversight.
This is for the CFO or owner who has the information in front of them and needs to explain a decision. The current plan may still fit well. The existing-plan review covers gathering and understanding the information; this post is about the reasons for the next step.
What does "worth it" mean in dollars?
Take a hypothetical plan with 60 members and an average balance of $40,000, giving $2.4 million in assets. Assume every dollar is subject to the same all-in member-paid annual fee in each comparison: 1.85 percent in one scenario and 0.95 percent in the other. The difference is 0.90 percentage points. Applied to a constant $2.4 million balance for one year, that is $21,600, or $360 per member on average.
These are illustrative inputs, not current market prices or a provider quote. The calculation holds balances and fee rates constant and ignores returns, new contributions, withdrawals and turnover. The per-member figure is an average, not an equal saving for employees with different balances. A default-fund rate cannot stand in for all plan assets unless that assumption is justified.
At 25 members and a $15,000 average balance, the same hypothetical rate difference applied to $375,000 is $3,375 for one year. Neither calculation predicts a future result or decides whether to move.
For your plan, identify the actual holdings, charges and payer. Compare the same period and inclusions, including applicable taxes. Separate recurring member costs, employer-paid costs and one-time transition costs. A member-fee difference does not become a saving in the employer's budget.
What belongs beside the number?
The service, in the same words for both plans. Who runs enrolment, and how. Where members take account questions and which appropriately registered professional addresses individual investment questions. How payroll submits contributions and who fixes an error. What reporting and review support is included, and on what agreed schedule. Whether advice is available to members, from whom, and at what cost.
Write the answers for both plans side by side. A fee gap with worse service is a different decision from the same gap with better service, and a page that only has the number on it will be read as a page that only cared about the number.
How do you give your current provider a fair chance to reprice?
Give the current provider a clear description of the concern and ask for written revised terms where appropriate. Use a consistent cost and service basis, and agree a response date that works for your decision.
Ask which charges or service terms can change, what conditions apply and when any change would take effect. Keep the response with the comparison. Repricing is not guaranteed, and a written explanation that terms will stay the same is still useful information.
What goes on the one page?
The date, and who was involved. The two all-in figures and the basis they are on. The dollar gap, with the arithmetic shown. The service comparison. The transition line: which plan terms can carry across and which would change, confirmed by the receiving provider; contractual notice and transfer restrictions; written charges, any reimbursement conditions and who pays the remainder; separate payroll-cutover and existing-asset timing estimates; and required employee actions and consents. Name who reconciles the first credited contributions. The incumbent's written response. The decision, with one paragraph of reasons. The date of the next review.
Keep the summary with the evidence it refers to. A short memo helps another person understand what was considered and why. It is one part of the plan's records, not proof that all governance responsibilities have been met. CAPSA Guideline No. 3 provides guidance, not legislation, and the responsibility stays with the sponsor.
When is moving the right answer?
Consider a move when the evidence supports a meaningful improvement for your plan and the transition is workable. Explain the tradeoffs across cost, employee support, administration and plan terms. A lower fee alone does not answer those questions.
Resolve receiving-plan terms, costs and reimbursement conditions, employee actions and payroll responsibilities before committing. If something material remains unknown, record it and obtain an answer. The switching guide covers the next discussion.
A review that ends with "keep the plan" is a successful review. So is one that ends with a repriced fee and no move at all. The point of the page is that whichever way it goes, the people responsible for the plan can say why.
Questions employers ask
Can we reduce our group RRSP fees without switching providers? It may be possible. Ask the current provider which terms can change, on what conditions and from what date. Compare the written response with the other options; a reduction is not guaranteed.
How often should we review our group RRSP fees? CAPSA Guideline No. 3 says periodically, and it does not name an interval. Set a review cycle the sponsor can keep to, and record the date each time. If the date of the last documented review is not on record, that is the practical signal to run one.
Does a review commit us to moving? No. A documented review can support keeping the plan, repricing it or moving it, and a review that ends in "keep" is a good outcome with a record behind it.
Is a lower fee automatically better? No. The guideline itself is careful to say that the cheapest option is not always the best one. Compare service, advice access and administration beside the fee, on the same basis, before deciding.
Who pays the fee, the employer or the employees? Check the written terms for each charge. Costs deducted from member investments affect members; separate employer-paid charges affect the company's budget. Employer contributions are another budget item. Do not assume one payer for every cost.
The fee figures in this post are illustrative arithmetic, not a quote, a market benchmark or a projection of any particular plan.
Sources: CAPSA Guideline No. 3, on periodic review of member-borne fees, governance records and value considerations; guidance rather than legislation. Fee examples are illustrative inputs chosen for arithmetic, not observed market pricing.
RiskX helps employers understand group RRSP and DPSP questions, connect with relevant providers and coordinate agreed support. The employer retains responsibility for its plan. RiskX does not provide legal, tax or securities advice, recommend individual investments or guarantee compliance, savings or investment outcomes. Confirm plan-specific questions with the appropriate provider or qualified adviser.
The existing-plan review explains the starting conversation. RiskX's current group-retirement service is for employers outside Quebec.