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Designating a preretirement beneficiary

Every PERS member needs to fill out a preretirement beneficiary designation form to ensure their pension and/or Individual Account Program (IAP) is left to a beneficiary if the member dies before retirement. Even if a member does not want to or does not have the option of designating a specific beneficiary, they still need to submit a form. This ensures that PERS can reach the beneficiary without complications or delay.

When filling out the forms, members should provide as much contact information about their beneficiaries as possible. This helps PERS reach them even if their phone number or email changes.

If a member has a change in marital status, this may invalidate their existing IAP beneficiary designation. PERS recommends that the member submit a new IAP designation form after a marriage or divorce.

Designating preretirement beneficiaries (for active and inactive members)

Tier One and Tier Two members

Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (OPSRP) members

These members have two forms to fill out: one for their pension and one for their IAP account. These members have one form to fill out: the IAP form.

PENSION BENEFICIARY

Tier One/Tier Two members have two choices for how to designate beneficiaries for their pension death benefits before they retire: a specific designation or a standard designation.

Specific designation: In a specific designation, the member can designate one or more beneficiaries, which can be persons, charities, trusts, or estates.

Standard designation: In the standard designation, PERS pays benefits in the order listed below (i.e., if there’s no spouse, it goes to children; if there are no children, it goes to parents; and so on):

  1. Spouse.
  2. Child or children (or grandchildren if any child predeceases the member).
  3. Parent(s).
  4. Sibling(s) (or nieces/nephews if any sibling predeceases the member).
  5. Estate.

There are more details about beneficiaries on the form.

Tier One/Tier Two Pre-Retirement Beneficiary Designation form

Always make sure to use the current version of the form by downloading it from the PERS website.


BENEFICIARY BENEFITS

The beneficiary will receive the amount of money, if any, in the deceased’s Member Account (aka Tier Account). They will also receive an amount equal to the deceased’s Member Account balance funded by the employer if they die while employed or within 120 days of terminating employment.

If their spouse is the member’s sole beneficiary, and they meet certain conditions, the spouse can opt to forgo the above benefit and instead receive the Optional Spouse Death Benefit (OSDB), which is a lifetime monthly payment based on the amount the member would have received in retirement. The percentage of the actuarial value of the member’s pension that the beneficiary receives depends on when the person died, same as in the OPSRP Beneficiary Benefits column to the right.


POLICE AND FIRE UNITS

Police and Fire units, if any, will be passed to the same beneficiary or beneficiaries designated on the member’s pension designation form.

PENSION BENEFICIARY

OPSRP members cannot designate a specific beneficiary for their pension before retirement, per Oregon law. PERS can only pay an OPSRP member’s pension death benefits to a spouse or to an alternate payee that is assigned by court order. If a member is unmarried and there is no court order directing PERS to pay an alternate payee, then no one receives the OPSRP member’s pension death benefits.

Statutory beneficiary: The spouse (and/or former spouse if there is a divorce judgment) will receive payments for life.


BENEFICIARY BENEFITS

The percentage of the actuarial value of the member’s pension that the beneficiary receives depends on when the member died:

  • If they die before they are eligible to retire, beneficiary receives 50% of the actuarial value of the pension the member would have received in retirement.
  • If they die after they are eligible to retire early, beneficiary receives the actuarial value of the pension the member would have received if they had retired early.
  • If they die after they are eligible for normal retirement, beneficiary receives 100% of the actuarial value of the pension the member would have received in retirement.

The spouse can choose to delay payment of the death benefit until the year in which the deceased member would have reached their required minimum distribution age.

IAP for all members

All PERS members (i.e., Tier One, Tier Two, and OPSRP) with any marital status fill out the same form. The form must be signed and notarized. Many banks offer free notary services for their customers.

IAP Pre-Retirement Designation of Beneficiary form

Always make sure to use the current version of the form by downloading it from the PERS website.


IAP BENEFICIARY

Married member: Their spouse must be the sole primary beneficiary unless they consent to a different beneficiary by filling out an additional section on the form.

Single member: The member can select a standard designation or can name specific primary and alternate beneficiaries.

Newly divorced or married member: If the member has a change in marital status, PERS recommends that they submit a new designation.


BENEFICIARY BENEFITS

When a PERS member dies before retirement, PERS pays their entire IAP balance to their beneficiary.


EMPLOYEE PENSION STABILITY ACCOUNT (EPSA) BENEFICIARY

If the PERS member has EPSA funds to pay to a beneficiary, they will be paid to the IAP beneficiary.

To submit forms

Once forms are completely filled out, printed, and signed (and notarized if an IAP form), submit to PERS by mail, fax, or drop-off.

Attention: PERS Member Services.

Mail PO Box 23700
Tigard, OR
97281-3700
Fax 503-598-0561
Drop-off 11410 SW 68th Parkway
Tigard, Oregon
97223