To add a new beneficiary and benefit designation, click "Add New Beneficiary." On the following screen, select an existing beneficiary from the drop-down menu or click "Add New Beneficiary." Then, select the type of beneficiary from the next screen, and provide all required information on the screen that follows. Finally, you will be asked to add benefit designations for this new beneficiary on the next screen.
To remove the benefits designated for a beneficiary, click "Remove" for the applicable beneficiary.
To update the benefits designated for a beneficiary, click "Update" for the applicable beneficiary.
The "Back" button will bring you back to the previous screen.
On the Add or Update screens, click "Use My Address" if you would like to use the address TRS has on file for you as your beneficiary's address.
Individual
- Enter full names (e.g., Mary K. Doe, not Mrs. John K. Doe).
- Enter beneficiaries separately (not "Mr. and Mrs." on one line).
- Do not list unborn children.
- Provide Social Security number and date of birth for each beneficiary (do not use dashes when entering SSN).
- Choose the appropriate relationship status and gender.
- Enter beneficiary's address.
- Select contingency level (see "Level" note below).
- Select a Distribution Type of "Equal" or "Proportional." If you choose Proportional, indicate the Percentage (see "Distribution Type: Equal or Proportional" note below).
Please note:
- If your beneficiary is also a TRS member, the information you enter must match the information TRS has on file.
- Providing both your beneficiary’s Social Security number and Date of Birth will help TRS process any future benefits due in a timely manner.
Estate
- The estate name will be prepopulated with your name (e.g., Estate of “Your Name”).
- The payment will be paid to the executor or administrator of your estate.
- If you name your estate as primary beneficiary, do not name a contingent beneficiary. A contingent beneficiary would only be entitled to a benefit if the primary beneficiary ceases to exist before the member’s death.
- Select contingency level (see "Level" note below).
- Select a Distribution Type of "Equal" or "Proportional." If you choose Proportional, indicate the Percentage (see "Distribution Type: Equal or Proportional" note below).
Organization
- Enter the organization's full name and provide all required information.
- Select contingency level (see "Level" note below).
- Select a Distribution Type of "Equal" or "Proportional." If you choose Proportional, indicate the Percentage (see "Distribution Type: Equal or Proportional" note below).
Trust
- The trust must be a valid trust under state law.
- If you designate a trust as beneficiary, you are required to also submit a Verification of Trust Instrument Legality form (code EN4). You can upload your completed form or send it by mail to the address indicated on the form.
- You may also be asked to provide TRS with a copy of the trust or other information TRS considers necessary to administer payments to a trust beneficiary.
- Enter the trust’s full name and date of the trust. For example, “Smith Family Trust dated 08/15/2021.”
- Enter the trust’s Employee Identification Number (EIN). If you do not have the EIN, enter your own Social Security number.
- Provide the mailing address, phone number and email of the trust’s trustee who would file for any death benefits dues. Claim letters explaining how the trust’s trustees or successor trustees should claim the benefit will be sent to this address. If you are the only trustee of the trust during your lifetime, provide the address of a successor trustee. Please keep this address, phone number, and email up to date by submitting new information if the trustee or successor trustee or any information provided changes.
- If your trust instrument is amended or other information is changed, please provide TRS with the updated information in the secure beneficiary section of our website or an updated copy of the trust, if requested.
- Select contingency level (see Level note below).
- Select a Distribution Type of “Equal” or “Proportional.” If you choose Proportional, indicate the Percentage (see “Distribution Type: Equal or Proportional” note below).
Note for Retirees: Depending on the payment option you selected at retirement, you may be able to update the beneficiaries you designated (e.g., guaranteed number of payments).
You will be able to add or update beneficiaries for your fractional payment, which represents a portion of your retirement allowance for the month in which you die. If you were to die on the last day of the month, no benefit would be payable to any fractional beneficiaries, since you would have been paid the full retirement allowance payment.
If you are a Tier II, III, IV, or VI member, you may also be able to add or update beneficiaries for the lump-sum Death Benefit #2.
For more information about retirement payment options, please refer to the Retirement Payment Options: Tiers I/II and TDA Annuitization Options brochure or the Retirement Payment Options: Tiers III/IV/VI brochure.
The beneficiary designations you are able to update will be displayed on the screen.
Contingency Level: Any number of primary and contingent beneficiaries may be named, but you must designate at least one primary beneficiary. The same person or persons cannot be designated as both primary and contingent beneficiaries. TRS would make a payment to contingent beneficiaries only if all primary beneficiaries die before you do. In the event that all designated beneficiaries have predeceased you, the death benefit would be payable to your estate.
A contingency level of 1 indicates a primary beneficiary who would be eligible for payment after your death. A contingency level of 2 indicates a secondary beneficiary who would be eligible for payment only if all the primary beneficiaries at contingency level 1 have predeceased you. Similarly, beneficiaries with contingency levels greater than 2 (e.g., 3) would be eligible for payment only if all beneficiaries at previous levels have predeceased you.
Distribution Type: Equal or Proportional: You may choose "Equal" instead of designating a percentage of the benefit for each beneficiary to receive. If you are designating only one beneficiary, or want all beneficiaries to receive an equal share of the benefit, select "Equal" from the drop-down menu. If you have designated equal shares, and a beneficiary predeceases you, the surviving beneficiaries would share equally in the benefit payable. If all other beneficiaries but one predecease you, the survivor would receive 100% of the benefit payable.
Share: This figure is the percentage of your death benefit that you elected for your beneficiary to receive. For primary beneficiaries, the numbers must total 100%. If you designate percentages for contingent beneficiaries, those numbers must also total 100% (for each contingency level). Please note that, if you designate specific percentages for your beneficiaries, they cannot receive more than the percentage you have chosen for them to receive. Therefore, if a beneficiary predeceases you, the percentage you assigned to the deceased beneficiary would not be split among other beneficiaries; it would be payable to your estate.