If you are supporting a minor child of the deceased and that person contributed sufficiently to the Québec Pension Plan, you may receive an orphan’s pension until the child reaches the age of 18. You must ascertain whether the definition of dependent child applies to your situation. The orphan’s pension is payable as of the month following the parent’s death. Almost without exception, the pension is paid retroactively for up to 12 months. If you are already receiving a surviving spouse’s pension, the orphan’s pension is added to your payment.
An orphan’s pension is paid by the Régie des rentes du Québec to a person or organization that supports the minor child of a deceased person, provided the deceased contributed sufficiently to the Québec Pension Plan. The pension is paid until the child turns 18.
If the child is being supported by the surviving spouse, the orphan’s pension and the surviving spouse’s pension can be combined into a single payment.
However, only one pension is paid if both parents are deceased.
Clientele
A person or organization supporting the minor child of a deceased person. A child of the deceased person can be either of the following:
- a child who is related to the deceased by blood or by adoption;
- any other child who had been living with the deceased for at least one year and for whom the deceased stood in the place of a parent.
Conditions
The deceased person must have contributed sufficiently to the Québec Pension Plan.
If the deceased contributed to a pension plan in a country that has signed an international social security agreement with Québec, the contributory years under that plan may be taken into account in determining whether the person has contributed sufficiently to the Québec Pension Plan.
Amount as of January 1, 2013
The amount of the orphan’s pension is $228,66 per month for each child. It is paid on the last working day of the month.
The orphan’s pension is taxable and must be reported in the child’s income. It is indexed annually.
