Manitoba
Life Students: New Initiative from ICM |
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The Insurance Council of Manitoba
is asking all Life students to complete a seminar/course
evaluation after completing a Life Insurance course.
While completing the evaluation is optional, we have
added a link to the form at the top of our Life Insurance
page so that you may easily fill it out if you wish.
Completed evaluations will be sent directly to the Insurance
Council of Manitoba.
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BC
Students: Live CAIB 2 Preparation Immersion Class: April
16-20 , 2007 |
Students who wish to attend a live CAIB 2 Preparation
Immersion Class will have the chance in mid-April.
The course, taught by West Coast Training's Todd Hochban,
will give students all the tools, knowledge and resources
required to successfully challenge the CAIB 2 Exam on
May 2.
This immersion course will take place at BCIT in Vancouver
from April 16 - 20. However, the exam
registration deadline is March 30.
Hochban has over 28 years of experience in the Canadian
Property and Casualty Insurance industry and has been
a full-time trainer for over 16 years.
For more information or to register for this course,
visit: http://westcoasttraining.ca/
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New
Book Exchange Forum |
| ILS Learning Corporation is happy
to announce the launch of our brand new book exchange
forum.
If you have texts from any of the
CAIB courses or from the BC Fundamentals of Insurance
course and want to sell them, this is the forum for
you.
Or, if you are in need of previously-used
books for any of the above-mentioned courses, come and
see what kinds of deals you can find.
Register today for the brand new
forum at ilslearningcorporation.ca/books
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Industry Briefs |
February was
a good month for Canadian workers
Last month 14,200 jobs were filled in Canada, edging
the country's unemployment rate down to 6.1 percent.
This new rate matched the 30-year low that was set three
times in the past year.
Employment gains were reported in the service industry,
with many finance, transportation and health care positions
being filled. February was also a good month for the
construction industry with quite a bit of job creation
despite a drop in housing starts.
Manufacturing employment, however, took a hit last
month with the loss of over 34,000 factory jobs, many
of them in Quebec.
Alberta continues to have the country's lowest unemployment
rate at 3.5 percent, especially as 6,200 new jobs were
created. British Columbia's jobless rate is at a record
low of 4 percent.
Economists were pleasantly surprised by the job gains;
they had previously expected the unemployment rate to
remain steady at 6.2 percent. February was the sixth
consecutive month that the country has seen an increase
in employment.
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New insurance option for Canadian physicians
seeking protection from cross-border litigation
Canadian physicians can face legal action resulting
from the care they provide to non-Canadian patients
in Canada. There have been questions and concerns about
the liability coverage Canadian doctors have on non-Canadian
patients, and many doctors report not treating foreign
patients on a proactive basis as a means to reduce the
potential liability.
MINT Canadian Specialty, writing business through Lloyd's
of London, has introduced Latitude Advantage MD, a new
insurance product for doctors providing coverage for
such claims.
The policy offers options that include per claim limits
of up to $1 million. The per policy aggregate is $3
million and the lowest available deductible is $1,000
per claim.
The company says that the rates are affordable for
almost any physician, the medical services most affected
by this new product will include dermatology, cosmetic
and plastic surgery and orthopedic and sports medicine
specialties.
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Earlier Daylight Savings Time may make roads
safer
The move to "spring" clocks forward three
weeks earlier than usual might do more than reduce energy
costs as intended. According to Transport Canada, the
extension of daylight time could make Canadian streets
safer.
Ten years of statistics were examined and the findings
revealed that most traffic accidents in Canada occurred
between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m., mainly in months where there
was no daylight time and the sun set earlier.
Transport Canada says that from 1992 to 2001, pedestrian
fatalities occurred most often from late summer to late
fall. The correlation to shortened daylight hours is
worthwhile to note.
Susan Ferguson, former vice-president of the Insurance
Institute for Highway Safety in the U.S. now runs a
consulting firm in Virginia. She says that there would
be about 200 fewer pedestrian fatalities each year if
daylight time was used year-round.
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Which Canadians spend the most for car insurance?
According to a recent study by the Fraser Institute,
British Columbia drivers are paying the most for their
car insurance premiums at an average of $1,440 per driver.
Ontario drivers see the second-highest rates: an average
of $1,347 per year. Saskatchewan and Manitoba residents
round out the top four, with residents in these provinces
paying more for auto insurance than their counterparts
in the rest of Canada.
The study suggested that the cost of auto insurance
increased in B.C., Saskatchewan and Quebec. Each of
these provinces have government-run car insurance. In
the remaining provinces and territories, drivers can
chose from private auto insurers, allowing for more
competitive premium rates to be offered.
--
Canada's Employment Insurance surplus hits
$51 billion
According to newly released documents, Canada’s
federal Employment Insurance surplus has reached $51
billion.
Payments that are over and above what the government
needs to cover EI benefits go into general coffers and
can be used at the government’s discretion, on
anything from new spending to tax cuts.
Critics believe that the abundance is a "cash
cow fed by overtaxed workers." The Canadian Taxpayers
Federation believes EI premiums should be cut so that
the money paid into the program by workers and employees
does not over-exceed the benefits paid out.
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Caribbean
Cruise - Sail Away With Us – Again!
We're happy to announce that the Second Annual
ILS CE Cruise is taking place from January 27 to February
3, 2008!
Spaces on board the ship have been reserved,
exciting seminars are being planned and your CE credits are
waiting for you at sea.
The Ports of Call for the ILS CE Cruise 2008 are:
- Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
- San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Tortola, British Virgin Islands
- Casa de Campo, Dominican Republic
- Labadee, Haiti
For more information or to book now, visit:
http://www.ilscorp.com/cruise/
Space is limited and the cruise will sell out, so book soon!
The Mass Employment Exodus is Beginning
 Baby
boomers – those born between 1946 and 1964 – are
getting ready for retirement. Just as Boomers flooded the
workforce between 1960 and 1980, they are now going to leave
it en masse.
In 2005, an estimated 3.6 million workers were within 10 years
of, or older than, the median retirement age of 61. They represented
22.1 percent of the total employed and employable Canadians.
The Human Resources and Social Development agency estimates
that retirement among Boomers started slowly in 2005 and will
reach its peak in 2011. With more than 20 percent of Canadians
planning to be out of the workforce by 2020, Canada is sure
to face a labour shortage.
The impact of large-demographic retirement is already being
felt in numerous Canadian industries. Health, education and
public service sectors are already feeling the crunch. Throughout
the country, employers are feeling anxious about filling the
established positions. A PricewaterhouseCoopers business survey
found that more than 60 percent of Canadian companies felt
a shortage of skilled workers was slowing their growth, including
75 percent in Alberta and 71 percent in Quebec.
What do you think? Are you ready for a labour shortage?
Retirement Planning: RRSPs Popular but Discover Another
Method
With RRSP season now officially over, the numbers are in
and many eligible Canadians made a contribution for 2006.
According to a poll conducted for Investors Group, 42 percent
of eligible Canadians made an RRSP for the 2006 tax year.
Albertans made the most contributions, with 53 percent topping
up their retirement funds. Fifty-one percent of baby boomers
also contributed.
RRSPs are not the only retirement plan. Last month we told
you about the booming Individual Pension Plan (IPP) market
in Canada. Peter Merrick, BA, FMA, CFP, FCSI, President of
Merrick Wealth Management and author of "The Essential
Individual Pension Plan Handbook" says that while
there are currently about 8,500 IPPs in Canada, 15 years from
now there will be approximately 300,000. The market is hot
and it’s time to get involved.
"Al and the Individual Pension Plan"
is a new online course created specifically
with ILS Learning Corporation subscribers in mind. Written
by Quigley Consulting Inc.'s Ian Quigley, MBA, CFP, CIM, this
course will help financial planners, Life agents or anyone
else who wants to know more about IPPs get the information
they need to successfully sell the product.
Quigley's innovative and relevant course takes a thorough
look at IPPs while using Al's process as a guide. Upon completing
the course, students will feel confident in their ability
to establish IPPs for their clients.
For more information on this course or to find out more about
our one-year subscriptions, contact us at 1-800-404-2211 or
by email at info@ilscorp.com
Federal Budget
2007 Recap
by Ian Quigley, MBA, CFP, CIM
March 19, 2007
After a few minutes with Canadians left hanging waiting to
see if opposition parties would accept the federal budget,
the 2007 Federal budget has landed. The budget often represents
a priority list of which Canadians will get special attention
in the coming year(s). Those saving for retirement and/or
education will want to pay special attention to this budget,
as they were included with those receiving some "special
attention" this year.
Jim Flaherty, the Minister of Finance, released a budget
that focused on spending programs more than tax cuts. Almost
$40 billion of spending is planned, represented largely by
transfers to provinces to assist with everything from education
to healthcare to schools to infrastructure.
The green transformation continued in Canada with a $2000
rebate for fuel efficient cars and a green levy of up to $4000
for SUVs and other less efficient vehicles. The EcoTrust fund
will launch with $1.5 billion dollars while tax breaks in
the oil patch will start to disappear. Numerous other green
incentives were created.
It appears that families are clear winners in this budget.
Numerous tax enhancements were offered to families
that include:
- A new tax credit of $2000 per child under the age of
18.
- A new refundable tax credit of up to $500 per working
adult is available to encourage employment, called the Working
Income Tax Benefit (WITB). This is available to low income
Canadians with a claw-back that starts at $9,500 of income.
- A new Registered Disability Savings Plan (RDSP) launches
for parents wanting to save for the long-term financial
security of a disabled child who qualifies for the Disability
Tax Credit (DTC). This program will be designed similar
to the Registered Educational Savings Plan (RESP) with a
federal grant and tax sheltered investing. Deposit up to
$200,000 will be allowed with no annual deposit limit. Grants
(called CDSGs) depend on family income and are capped annually
at $2,500 assuming at least $1500 in deposits are made.
Grants are available until age 49 and the cumulative grant
cannot exceed $70,000. A special bond (CDSBs) is available,
in addition to the grants, for low income families offering
$1000 per year. The RDSP program must start pushing income
out to the disabled beneficiary by age 60.
- The Registered Educational Savings Plans (RESP) also
saw improvements in the budget as well. There is no longer
a $4,000 annual contribution limit and the lifetime contribution
limit has been increased from $42,000 to $50,000. The 20%
annual grant (CESG) will be increased to from $400 to $500
(requires a $2,500 new deposit to capture) unless previous
year’s grants were left unclaimed. In this case, the
annual grant can go up to $1,000 (requires a $5,000 new
deposit) until previous year grants are caught. The lifetime
grant limit remains at $7,200 and can be captured faster
thanks to the budget. Part-time students can more easily
access RESP funds with more relaxed eligibility for those
in part-time studies to access RESP funds.
- A slightly increased basic personal amount ($8,929) and
a slightly more generous spousal credit ($7,581) exists
that will offer a couple of hundred dollars ($209) tax relief
to many Canadians.
- Canadians now have the ability to include scholarships
as tax-free income for not just post-secondary education
but elementary and secondary school.
- An enhanced public transit tax credit now exists that
allows for electronic payment cards and weekly passes to
receive the credit.
- Those saving for retirement in an RSP account will see
an increased list of qualified investments to include most
investment-grade debt and publicly listed securities effective
March 19, 2007.
On the downside, there is nothing reported in the budget
on further GST reductions as many hoped. In summary, families
buying fuel efficient cars, struggling at a low income level
and/or saving for a child’s education will be most favoured
in today’s budget.
Seniors also received some special attention
in the budget with regards to their taxes. In summary:
- An increase to the RRSP/RPP maturation age limit from
69 to 71 years. This will allow the deferral of taxable
income, if desired, two years.
- Minimum RRIF income will be waived for those aged 69-71
in 2007 and 2008 so those currently with RRIFs won’t
be discriminated with these changes.
- More flexibility for registered pension plans to cater
to phased retirements.
- As previously announced, seniors will be allowed pension
income splitting opportunities to share the tax burden on
income coming from registered plans and accounts.
In summary, small enhancements should please many seniors
in Canada thanks to the budget. Business owners and
managers will also see some tax benefits in the budget
to include:
- Small business owners, farmers and fishers will be see
the lifetime capital gains exemption rise from $500,000
to $750,000 effective March 19, 2007.
- A reduction in the Federal general corporate income tax
rate to 18.5% from 21%, as well as other relatively minor
corporate tax rate improvements including some special provisions
for struggling manufacturing industries.
- Ability for an employer to create daycare spaces for
employees and receive various tax credits that can carry
back 3 and forward 20 to assist with the cost of setting
up the daycare facility.
- With enhanced scholarships available, many more businesses
will now be tempted to offer scholarship programs to their
employees.
In summary, little was seen for the corporate world in the
budget except for the capital gains limit increases that should
please small business owner-managers. On the down-side, previous
comments by Stephen Harper on possibly eliminating the capital
gains taxes were left untouched in the budget.
In all, the budget was certainly a good news budget with
small benefits for almost all Canadians. While tax cuts were
slim, spending programs were large leaving the Federal plan
on track to pay down the Federal debt in the coming years.
Ian Quigley, MBA, CFP, CIM, is a financial planner,
investment manager and author at Quigley Consulting Inc. Ian
is a Strategic Partner of ILS Learning Corporation and has
recently written "Al and the Individual
Pension Plan" - a course specifically for
ILS Life students.
Have you ever had a question about ILS?
Have you ever wondered why you might not be able to print
out a certificate after completing a course? Or maybe you
wondered if you even need to print out your certificate. Have
you wondered what time we're open or encountered a technical
issue that needed attention?
Now you can check out our new Knowledgebase to find the answers
to these questions and more. Start looking and learning here:
http://www.ilslearningcorporation.ca/kb/
The new Knowledgebase replaces our old FAQ section and is
constantly being updated to ensure that no question is left
unanswered.
If you would like to submit a question, send it to us at
info@ilscorp.com. Of
course, we're always happy to help you via telephone or email,
as well.
Did you know...
March is Pet Health Insurance Month?
 Pet
health insurance is a booming business. Petplan Insurance,
Canada's oldest and largest pet health insurance company,
estimates that policies for our furry, feathered and scaled
friends are growing by as much as 35% a year. Since the company's
inception in 1989, over $60 million in claims have been paid
out.
Many in the insurance industry and out believe that pet health
insurance is important. But is it worth it? Considering how
high the cost for veterinarian services can be, it just might
be. A study by the American Animal Hospital Association found
that 73% of pet owners would go into debt to provide for their
pet’s well-being.
ILS Learning Corporation has created "Pet Insurance
- Insurance For Man's Best Friends", a General Insurance
course with more information on pet health insurance. Take
this course today and you can receive 2 CE credits towards
your mandatory CE requirements.
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