Overview
Some adults who receive government payments have difficulties managing their money and remembering to pay their bills. Informal trusteeship is a no-cost way for someone – an informal trustee – to manage the adult’s benefits.
An informal trustee may be helpful for adults who:
- are having problems managing their benefits
- don’t have assets like real estate or investments
- are willing to let someone help them
What an informal trustee does
An informal trustee:
- receives the adult’s monthly government benefits
- pays the adult’s monthly expenses and other needs
- saves for the adult’s future needs
Informal trustees cannot manage any of the client’s assets other than the benefit. Examples of things an informal trustee cannot do are:
- managing the adult’s financial investments
- selling any of the adult’s personal or real property
Other options
Depending on the adult’s situation, you may need to consider other options, such as:
Who can be an informal trustee
This depends on the government department that issues the monthly benefit. In general, they require that an informal trustee:
- must be over 18 years old
- must have a trusting relationship with the adult
- may be a relative or friend of the adult
The adult who wants an informal trustee must be receiving a regular monthly payment – from a government department that has an informal trustee program – such as the following:
- Old Age Security
- Guaranteed Income Supplement
- Canada Pension Plan
- Alberta Seniors Benefit
- Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH)
- Income Support
Name an informal trustee
You must contact the government department that issues the adult’s payments to name an informal trustee. The department will tell you:
- who can act as an informal trustee
- what forms you need
- where to get the forms
- how to fill out the forms
- how to submit the forms
- how long it will take before an informal trustee is appointed
Complaints about an informal trustee
Contact the government department that issues the monthly benefit. The department will:
- tell you how to submit a complaint
- decide if they will investigate the informal trustee
- decide if they will remove the informal trustee’s authority to manage the adult’s income
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