Other Canada Pension Plan (CPP)

Decision

[1] The appeal is dismissed.

[2] The Appellant, S. C., isn’t eligible for a Canada Pension Plan (CPP) retirement pension before November 2023. This decision explains why I am dismissing the appeal.

Overview

[3] The Appellant applied for a CPP retirement pension on October 30, 2023.^{Footnote 1} He asked to have his pension start as of January 2023.^{Footnote 2} The Minister of Employment and Social Development approved his application, but with a start date of November 2023.^{Footnote 3} The Appellant appealed the Minister’s decision to the Social Security Tribunal’s General Division. The Appellant and the Minister provided written arguments to the Tribunal.^{Footnote 4}

What I have to decide

[4] I have to decide whether the Appellant is eligible for a CPP retirement pension before November 2023.

Reasons for my decision

[5] The Appellant isn’t eligible for a CPP retirement pension before November 2023.

[6] The Canada Pension Plan says a retirement pension begins on the latest of the following dates:^{Footnote 5}

• the month after the Appellant turned 60—that is, January 2023
• the month after the Minister received his application—that is, November 2023
• the month he chose in his application—that is, January 2023

[7] The latest of these dates is November 2023. That is the earliest his payments could begin.

[8] The Federal Court of Canada has said that it isn’t the Minister’s responsibility to notify people of the benefits that they might be eligible for.^{Footnote 6}

[9] Furthermore, the Tribunal doesn’t have the authority to determine if the Minister gave the Appellant bad advice or failed to give him advice about applying for a retirement pension.^{Footnote 7}

Conclusion

[10] I find that the Appellant isn’t eligible for a CPP retirement pension before November 2023.

[11] This means the appeal is dismissed.