For IPERS Beneficiaries Important Information About IPERS Death Benefits

Applying for Death Benefits

To receive any death benefits you may be eligible for, you must file an application with IPERS and complete the necessary supporting paperwork.

Beneficiaries should contact IPERS as soon as possible after a member's death. Benefits must be paid by the required filing date; otherwise, benefits may be forfeited. In the event of a member's death, you should:

• Contact IPERS as soon as possible.
• Complete an application for benefits.
• Submit the completed application and supporting documentation as soon as possible.

Rolling Over Benefits

If you are a surviving spouse and elect to receive your benefits as a lump sum, you may be eligible to roll over your death benefit into another qualified retirement plan. If you are a beneficiary but not a surviving spouse, you may be eligible to roll over your death benefit to an IRA.

Maximum Death Benefits

The amount of death benefits a beneficiary is eligible to receive may be limited. For example, according to the Internal Revenue Code, preretirement lump-sum death benefits for a 401(a) plan cannot exceed 100 times the expected monthly payout the member would have received under Option 2 if the member reached normal retirement age (generally age 65 or age 62, based on years of service) at the time of his or her death. Line-of-duty death benefits may be reduced to comply with this requirement.

Stopping Monthly Benefits for Retirees

If a member dies while receiving monthly retirement benefits, the monthly payments stop the month following the member's death (for example, if a member dies in July, the last monthly pension payment will be made in July). If any additional retirement benefit payments are made after the month of the member's death, these payments must be returned to IPERS.

Tax Information

As a beneficiary, there is tax information you should be aware of if you are receiving or will receive death benefits.

You may receive one or more IRS Form 1099Rs from IPERS in the year of the member's death. If IPERS benefits are payable, one 1099R will be in the beneficiary's name. You may receive other 1099Rs in the member's name depending on your relationship to the member. You will receive one 1099R in each following year if you receive death benefits as a monthly payment.