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Divorce and Your Other NYSLRS Benefits — Part 2

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divorce and your other nyslrs benefitsWe’ve written about how divorce may affect your pension. However, as a NYSLRS member, you have other benefits divorce may affect.

If your ex-spouse will receive a share of your retirement benefits, domestic relations order (DRO) must be filed with NYSLRS. A DRO is a court order specifying how your pension should be divided as well as the distribution of other benefits discussed below.

Death Benefits and Your Beneficiaries

As of July 7, 2008, beneficiary designations for certain death benefits are automatically revoked when a divorce, annulment or judicial separation becomes final. If you are divorced, it is especially important to review your beneficiary designations to ensure your benefits will be distributed according to your wishes and your divorce agreement.  

If your ex-spouse is awarded a portion of your death benefits, a DRO will specify how much your ex-spouse will receive and direct you to name your ex-spouse as a beneficiary. You should file the DRO with NYSLRS as soon as it’s officially accepted by the court and choose additional beneficiaries for the remainder of any benefits. However, if your designations conflict with the terms of the DRO, the DRO will take precedence over any other beneficiary designations.

The best way to view and update your death benefit beneficiaries is by using Retirement Online. If you are already retired, visit our Death Benefit page for retirees for information about available death benefits and how to update your beneficiaries and their contact information.

Ordinary Death Benefit

Your ordinary death benefit would be payable to your beneficiaries if you die in active service (before retiring).

Post-Retirement Death Benefit

Most members of the Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) are covered by a post-retirement death benefit, which provides a one-time, lump sum payment to your beneficiaries if you die after retiring.

Accidental Death Benefit

Your accidental death benefit may be payable to certain beneficiaries if you die as a result of an on-the-job accident. The beneficiaries of this benefit are designated by law, and only those beneficiaries may receive this benefit — even if there is a DRO.

Loans

NYSLRS members who meet eligibility requirements can take out a NYLSRS loan by borrowing a percentage of their contribution balance. Even if you are eligible, a DRO may be written to prohibit you from taking future loans.

If you retire with an outstanding loan balance, your pension will be reduced. The ex-spouse’s share of the pension will also be reduced unless the DRO specifically states the ex-spouse’s share should be calculated without reference to outstanding loans.

Contribution Refunds

Occasionally, NYSLRS may refund a member’s contributions because of a tier reinstatement, membership withdrawal or membership transfer. Some members are eligible to make voluntary contributions and withdraw them as excess contributions. Generally, if a DRO doesn’t mention a contribution refund, the member will receive the full amount.

For More Divorce Information

Visit our Divorce and Your Benefits page for more information, including how divorce can affect service credit, disability benefits or cost-of-living adjustments.

Know Your Benefits: Death Benefits

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NYSLRS membership provides more than just retirement benefits. For most members, if you die while in active service, your beneficiary may be eligible to receive a death benefit. Here is an overview of member death benefits. If you are retired, visit our Death Benefit page for retirees to learn about your available benefits.

death benefits

Types of Death Benefits

Most members who die while they’re still working will leave their beneficiaries what’s called an “ordinary death benefit.” This is a lump sum payment that’s usually equal to one year of your earnings per year of service, up to a maximum of three years. 

Generally, to leave your beneficiaries this death benefit, you must have at least one year of service credit and your death must occur while you are on the public payroll.

Some members who die because of an on-the-job accident (not due to their own willful negligence) may leave their beneficiary an accidental death benefit. The accidental death benefit is a pension payable to your spouse. Other beneficiaries, as specified by law, may be eligible if there is no spouse.

  • For Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) Tier 4, 5 and 6 members, the benefit would be 50 percent of your earnings from your last year of service.
  • For most other members, the benefit would be 50 percent of your final average earnings (less any workers’ compensation benefit).

There is no minimum service credit requirement to leave an accidental death benefit.

The specific death benefits that may be available to your beneficiaries depend on your tier and retirement plan. Find Your NYSLRS Retirement Plan Publication and check it for specific benefit amount and eligibility information.

Note: For public employees who contract COVID-19 on the job and die from COVID-19, their beneficiaries may be eligible for an enhanced death benefit. Find out more about the Enhanced Death Benefit for Survivors of COVID-19 Victims.

Review and Update Your Beneficiaries

You should periodically review your beneficiary designations. Life circumstances sometimes change, and the beneficiary you may have named before might not be the one you would choose today. You should also make sure your beneficiary’s contact information is up to date so we can find them when needed.

Retirement Online is the best way to manage your beneficiary information. Sign in to Retirement Online today and click “View and Update My Beneficiaries” to review your named beneficiaries, and update them if needed.

Reporting a Death

NYSLRS cannot pay out death benefits until after we are notified of a member’s death and have a certified copy of the death certificate. The fastest way for survivors to report a member’s death to NYSLRS is using our online form on our website. Survivors can also upload a copy of the certified death certificate, which enables us to start reaching out to the beneficiary. It’s important to talk with your family about your benefits and how to report your death to NYSLRS.

Payment of Death Benefits

NYSLRS will reach out to your beneficiaries on file and send them the application and instructions for receiving benefits. NYSLRS can pay death benefits once it receives the required documentation.