Participating in
the Plan
Permanent full-time employees under 65 must join the New Brunswick Municipal Employees Pension Plan (“Plan”) on their first day of employment.
Other employees under 65 join on the first of the month after meeting one of these conditions:
- Working 24 months and earning at least 35% of the Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE) for two years in a row
- Becoming a permanent full-time employee
Contact your employer to obtain and complete an enrollment form to join the Plan.
This form allows your employer to automatically deduct contributions from your pay and deposit them into the pension fund and lets you name a beneficiary who will receive any death benefit payable to a beneficiary.
Permanent full-time employees under 65 must join the New Brunswick Municipal Employees Pension Plan (“Plan”) on their first day of employment.
Other employees under 65 join on the first of the month after meeting one of these conditions:
- Working 24 months and earning at least 35% of the Year’s Maximum Pensionable Earnings (YMPE) for two years in a row
- Becoming a permanent full-time employee
Contact your employer to obtain and complete an enrollment form to join the Plan.
This form allows your employer to automatically deduct contributions from your pay and deposit them into the pension fund and lets you name a beneficiary who will receive any death benefit payable to a beneficiary.
Regular employees contribute 7.41% of earnings up to the YMPE and 9.88% above the YMPE.
Police and firefighters contribute 8.20% of earnings up to the YMPE and 10.93% above the YMPE.
Your employer matches these contributions. All contributions are saved in a pension trust. The YMPE in 2025 was $71,300.
Note: Contribution rates are tax-deductible and may change based on the Plan’s financial situation. Current rates have remained unchanged since January 1, 2013.
Example
In 2025, a regular employee earned an annual salary of $85,000. Since the salary is above the YMPE for the year ($71,300), contributions on earnings up to the YMPE will be calculated at 7.41% and contributions above the YMPE ($85,000 – $71,300 = $13,700) will be calculated at 9.88%.
Annual pension contribution calculation:
7.41% | x | $71,300 | = | $5,283.33 |
9.88% | x | $13,700 | = | $1,353.56 |
Total | $6,636.89 |
If the above member was a police or firefighter, then the contributions would have been calculated at 8.20% rather than 7.41% and 10.93% rather than 9.88%, as follows:
8.20% | x | $71,300 | = | $5,846.60 |
10.93% | x | $13,700 | = | $1,497.41 |
Total | $7,344.01 |
Your annual pension is calculated as follows:
- For service before January 1, 1998: 1.8% x (final average earnings up to the YMPE average) x (years of service)
- For service after January 1, 1998: 1.5% x (final average earnings up to the YMPE average) x (years of service)
- For all service: 2.0% x (final average earnings over the YMPE average) x (total years of service)
Your final average earnings are based on your highest-earning five-year period within your last ten years of service.
The YMPE average is calculated over the final three years of service.
Example
An employee is retiring at their normal retirement date with final average earnings of $85,000 and with 30 years of service (four are prior to January 1, 1998, and 26 years are after). The YMPE average at retirement is $68,800. The average earnings over the YMPE average is $16,200 ($85,000 – $68,800).
Annual pension calculation:
Pre-1998 service: | 1.8% | x | $68,800 | x | 4 years | = | $4,954 |
Post-1998 service: | 1.5% | x | $68,800 | x | 26 years | = | $26,832 |
Earnings above YMPE: | 2.0% | x | $16,200 | x | 30 years | = | $9,720 |
Total pension: $41,506 per year ($3,459 per month) | |||||||
If the member retires before age 65 (or age 60 for police and firefighters), early retirement reductions would apply. If the member retires after age 65, a late retirement adjustment would apply.
Furthermore, if you have a spouse at retirement, your pension will be adjusted to account for the additional cost of providing a survivor pension to your spouse following your death. More information is found under the “Beneficiary designation” tab.
When you join the Plan, you will be asked to name a beneficiary for any benefits payable on death before retirement. You can change this beneficiary at any time.
If you have a spouse when you retire, your pension must provide at least 60% to your spouse after your death, unless legally waived. Other options providing a higher percentage to your surviving spouse are available.
A reduction will be applied to your pension if you choose a pension that continues to your surviving spouse after your death. The reduction depends on your age and your spouse’s age at retirement and the percentage of the pension continuing to your spouse.
Under the Pension Benefits Act, a “spouse” means either of two people who:
- are married to each other;
- are married to each other by a marriage that is voidable and has not been voided by a declaration of nullity; or
- have gone through a form of marriage with each other in good faith that is void and have cohabited within the preceding year.
Under the Plan, “spouse” includes common-law partners. A “common-law partner” means a person who has lived with the member in a conjugal relationship for at least two continuous years immediately prior to the time in question.
If a member has both a spouse and a common-law partner, the spouse has priority for benefits.