Is a registered pension plan's survivor benefit automatic for a spouse, or can it be redirected by designation?

For many registered workplace pension plans, a spouse's survivor benefit is largely built into the plan by law and isn't something you can simply redirect the way you'd change a beneficiary designation on an RRSP or life insurance policy. Pension legislation applicable to the plan often requires that a surviving spouse receive a specified survivor pension or benefit, and in many cases that entitlement can only be reduced or waived if the spouse themselves signs a specific waiver. It isn't enough for the plan member alone to name someone else instead.

This is quite different from something like an RRSP, where the account holder can generally choose any beneficiary freely, and that choice controls what happens on death. A pension is more like a promise built into the plan's structure, with legislated protections for a spouse layered on top of whatever beneficiary form you might have filled out.

Because the specific rules depend on which pension legislation governs your particular plan and the plan's own terms, check your pension plan's member booklet or ask the plan administrator directly whether a spousal waiver would be needed to change who receives a survivor benefit, rather than assuming a simple beneficiary form controls the outcome.