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Applying for CPP Survivor Benefits
June 6, 2017
7:46 pm
Cranston
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I am helping my mother in law with boosting incoming revenue since her husband recently passed. Working with DVA was a delight as she unknowingly had it 90% in place. I just have to set up direct payment and for two of her daughters with consent to speak to DVA on her behalf.

BUT CPP....you must apply with correct SIN number and the name as it exactly shows on the SIN card. My mother in law and now deceased husband had a card with their SIN number and name on it that was sent to them from Health and Welfare and is NOT a SIN card and we cannot find the real deal. I wonder how many elderly folks could make a mistake on this. I see now that the blue card they have has been later issued with name only and no SIN number. Makes sense as it is supposed to only prove you are a senior. We called CPP and no way would they confirm name on card to allow us to forward the form. Luckily we have some older friends with the blue card with name only and confirmed the name is same as their SIN card so that is what we will go with. And oddly enough the had 2 SIN numbers. I don't know how that will work out.

So the moral of the story is to safekeep your SIN card or file a pic of it. A SIN number is now issued on paper and not meant to be a wallet card.

Ps. I am over 65 and did not receive this blue card.

June 6, 2017
8:09 pm
rqs
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If your mother ever filed a tax return, her SiN is on the front page.

June 6, 2017
8:23 pm
Cranston
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rqs said
If your mother ever filed a tax return, her SiN is on the front page.  

Thanks. It is her husbands info we need. And yes, his SIN number is on her taxes as well. BUT must have the exact name and or initials as shown on the card. I don't know about you, but I have no idea what is on mine either....all I know is that my SIN number is permanently embedded in my memory 🙂 When we called CPP they said it would be the same as the sticker that they mail for your income tax form......and those stickers were sent in the dark ages 🙂 🙂 Far outside of the 7 year retention of tax forms.

June 6, 2017
8:28 pm
AltaRed
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A social insurance number (and plastic white card) is unique to every individual in Canada. The number should never be used for anything else, including health card numbers issued by provinces. Every province has a different system and card colour for their health cards (no idea what Cranston is talking about).

A SIN card should also never be carried on one's person. It should be kept locked away as it is a critical entry point for identity theft.

The only time one should ever give out their SIN number is to: 1) financial institutions as they need it to ensure income data is sent to CRA and for anti-money laundering operations, and 2) government services such as CPP, OAS, and other social programs, and 3) for some? all? credit checks.

June 6, 2017
8:49 pm
Cranston
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AltaRed said
A social insurance number (and plastic white card) is unique to every individual in Canada. The number should never be used for anything else, including health card numbers issued by provinces. Every province has a different system and card colour for their health cards (no idea what Cranston is talking about).

A SIN card should also never be carried on one's person. It should be kept locked away as it is a critical entry point for identity theft.

The only time one should ever give out their SIN number is to: 1) financial institutions as they need it to ensure income data is sent to CRA and for anti-money laundering operations, and 2) government services such as CPP, OAS, and other social programs, and 3) for some? all? credit checks.  

Yes I know and agree.

The card information we used was incorrect but the only thing we could find. It is a card issued by the federal government department of Health and Welfare. It is and ID card only saying you are a senior that is eligible for seniors discounts. A feeble attempt of the gorvernment taking care of seniors. It has a blue background and has name and SIN number and later cards are sans SIN number. I can see seniors thinking they received a new SIN card. I tried to find one online....but no success. Maybe some of the elders here can confirm.

Ps. BC has a combined DL and medical card with picture and you can have option for Medical card and DL that look identical other than the titles and clarifications noted on them.

June 6, 2017
8:54 pm
NorthernRaven
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If your mother-in-law was out of the workforce caring for children under 7 at some point, make sure to look into the "child-rearing provision" of CPP. This lets people drop those child-caring years from their CPP calculations, and can result in higher CPP payments.

I think the the CPP applications for the last 15 years or more asks those questions, but back in the 90s I don't think it did, and some women may not have had their full CPP entitlement. It is possible to claim it retroactively if missed.

June 6, 2017
9:02 pm
Cranston
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Thanks.....will work with her on that as well. Great tip!!

June 7, 2017
6:58 am
AltaRed
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I thought this thread was about applying for CPP survivor benefits, i.e. from mother-in-law's deceased husband. To the extent MIL had made CPP contributions over the years from having worked, and has been collecting her own CPP shouldn't change any of that.

In other words, the SIN numbers for both MIL and deceased husband would already be known from their CPP deposits and tax returns.... and the T4A(CPP) tax slips. What am I missing here?

June 7, 2017
8:27 am
Cranston
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AltaRed said
I thought this thread was about applying for CPP survivor benefits, i.e. from mother-in-law's deceased husband. To the extent MIL had made CPP contributions over the years from having worked, and has been collecting her own CPP shouldn't change any of that.

In other words, the SIN numbers for both MIL and deceased husband would already be known from their CPP deposits and tax returns.... and the T4A(CPP) tax slips. What am I missing here?  

Both SIN numbers known. The exact name/initials on the SIN card are not.

June 7, 2017
3:12 pm
Loonie
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Perhaps people who do have their original SIN cards can comment on the format of the name and that will help OP, especially if issued in the same time period originally.
Mine was issued in the 1960s. I am not exactly sure where it is at the moment (no doubt in some safe place!sf-embarassed), but I am pretty sure the format is:
First name, middle name, surname (all in full).
Perhaps others can confirm or amend. They likely used the same format for all of them during the same time period.

June 7, 2017
5:43 pm
Cranston
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Loonie said
Perhaps people who do have their original SIN cards can comment on the format of the name and that will help OP, especially if issued in the same time period originally.
Mine was issued in the 1960s. I am not exactly sure where it is at the moment (no doubt in some safe place!sf-embarassed), but I am pretty sure the format is:
First name, middle name, surname (all in full).
Perhaps others can confirm or amend. They likely used the same format for all of them during the same time period.  

Do you have one of those blue cards from Health and Welfare?

June 7, 2017
8:26 pm
AltaRed
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Loonie said
Perhaps people who do have their original SIN cards can comment on the format of the name and that will help OP, especially if issued in the same time period originally.
Mine was issued in the 1960s. I am not exactly sure where it is at the moment (no doubt in some safe place!sf-embarassed), but I am pretty sure the format is:
First name, middle name, surname (all in full).
Perhaps others can confirm or amend. They likely used the same format for all of them during the same time period.  

Same for me... First, Middle, Surname.... issued in the 1960's.

Re: Cranston.... never heard or seen a blue card from Health and Welfare.

June 7, 2017
8:53 pm
Cranston
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Thanks AltaRed. I have to check mine and wife's and take pics of them for my excel file. They are in a safe.

Just talked to my brother and he has one of those blue cards too. He is 72. He tried to use it for ID on BC Ferries and they said it was not acceptable.

June 8, 2017
7:04 pm
Loonie
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Mine is red and white plastic. Have never seen a blue one. However, it has no info other than name and number, so the plastic one would not be good for BC Ferries anyway.

June 8, 2017
7:51 pm
Cranston
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I am going crazy!!! I cannot find a pic of the blue card issued by Health and Welfare with name and SIN. But I have found it was last issued in 2008 and a few FI's accept it as ID to open an account. So I know feel quite sure it reads same as an issued SIN card.

But the moral of the story is....make sure you have an original SIN card or a pic of it in your personal records. I have also found that a card is no longer issued....it is a paper document now.

June 10, 2017
9:06 am
Norman1
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That blue card from Health & Welfare may have been some kind of employee health plan benefits card and not an actual piece of ID. Some health plans use the employee's SIN as the employee identifier instead of issuing their own identifier. That may be why you saw the SIN on the card.

Are you sure you need the name on the SIN card?

I had a look at the form ISP-1300 and its instructions ISP-1300A at Canada Pension Plan Survivor's Pension and Child(ren)'s Benefit(s), Application Kit.

Name on the deceased's SIN card in field 4C is only filled in if different from his usual name in 4A. Otherwise, 4C should be left blank. Same with field 4B, the name at birth, if it is also the same as his usual name in 4A.

The instruction sheet ISP-1300A says "Fill out as much of the application form as you can." on page 1. On page 3, it notes that "If the deceased had more than one Social Insurance Number, please attach a note to your application, listing all numbers assigned to the deceased."

SIN number and birth date together are unique. I think the rest are to help deal with situations where there was a screw up and the birth dates on the different documents (marriage certificate or death certificate) don't match the birth date on the SIN record.

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