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The New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS) is a defined benefit plan. The pension will be based on factors such as the participant’s tier, retirement plan, service credit, final average salary (FAS) and age at retirement. Under New York law, pensions earned during the marriage are marital property.
Members are categorized into different groups or tiers based on their date of membership in the Retirement System. There are five tiers in the Employees’ Retirement System (ERS) based on when a participant began membership. They are Tier 1 (Before July 1, 1973); Tier 2 (July 1, 1973 through July 26, 1976); Tier 3 (July 27, 1976 through August 31, 1983); Tier 4 (September 1, 1983 through December 31, 2009); Tier 5 (January 1, 2010 through March 31, 2012); and Tier 6 (April 1, 2012 or after).
Tier status determines the following, but is not limited to: contributions; benefit eligibility; service crediting; loan provisions; death benefit coverage; and the formula used to calculate the pension benefit.
The New York State Court of Appeals determined that Retirement System benefits constitute marital property and are subject to the equitable distribution provisions of the Domestic Relations Law (Majauskas v. Majauskas, 61 NY2d 481, 474 NYS2d 699). Therefore, NYSLRS honors a properly drawn Domestic Relations Order (DRO) issued by a New York State court.
The rights of membership in the retirement system belong only to the participant. The spouse has no statutory rights or protections. As a governmental plan, NYSLRS is exempt from the provisions of the Employees’ Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Retirement Equity Act of 1984 and the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) that provide for Qualified Domestic Relations Orders (QDROs) (see ERISA Section 4 (b) and IRC Section 414 (P) (9)). The spousal notification, spousal consent and surviving spouse protections of ERISA do not apply in the case of a state governmental plan. All rights given to an ex-spouse must be set forth explicitly in the DRO or they will not exist for him or her. Learn more by reading our FAQs below.
New York State & Local Retirement System Mailing Address: 110 State Street Albany, NY 12244-0001 Phone: 1-866-805-0990 or local 518-474-7736 Service Hours: Weekdays from 7:30 am to 5:00 pm Website: https://www.osc.state.ny.us/retirement NYSLRS administers retirement benefits for New York State employees, municipal employees and non-teaching school district employees outside of New York City. With more than 1.1 million members, retirees and beneficiaries, NYSLRS is one of the largest public retirement systems in the nation.
NYSLRS administers retirement benefits for New York State employees, municipal employees and non-teaching school district employees outside of New York City. With more than 1.1 million members, retirees and beneficiaries, NYSLRS is one of the largest public retirement systems in the nation.
New York State & Local Retirement System Checklist
New York State Teachers Retirement System Checklist
New York City Employee Retirement System Checklist
A. No. Current law provides for a division of a Participant’s benefit only when a marriage has been terminated and the Retirement System has received a signed DRO, directing the Retirement System to pay a share of the Participant’s benefits to his or her ex-spouse. In addition, the Participant must provide the Retirement System with a certified copy of the judgment of divorce.
A. No. NYSLRS does not require a waiver or copies of divorce papers when the pension is not divided.
A. Yes. NYSLRS accepts an out-of-state order if a notarized Consent to New York Jurisdiction and Release is executed by the participant consenting to the laws of New York State. The Consent form authorizes NYSLRS to deduct payments from the participant’s retirement benefit according to the provisions of the out-of-state DRO and release NYSLRS from any liability whatsoever as a consequence of any payments based upon that DRO. If consent to New York jurisdiction cannot be obtained, an out of state DRO must be registered in a New York Court with jurisdiction over the Retirement System.
A. Automatic Orders place no restrictions or limitations on NYSLRS and cannot be used to restrain NYSLRS and its personnel from the performance of any statutory duties. If NYSLRS is served with a restraining order to prevent the processing of any application(s) filed by the participant during the pendency of this action, the restraining order must be directed to NYSLRS and specifically set forth any action(s) NYSLRS is prohibited from taking.
A. No, the alternate payee cannot obtain a cash payout of his or her interest in the participant’s pension benefits.
A. No, an ex-spouse cannot designate a beneficiary to receive his or her share of the pension when he/she dies.
A. No, an ex-spouse cannot obtain any benefits until the Participant actually retires and his or her pension payments have begun.
A. Yes, but the former spouse must have an income execution for support to obtain child support or alimony payments. For assistance in obtaining an income execution, contact your county office for child support services. You can also collect child support by using a Domestic Relations Order. NYSLRS cannot make payments to the former spouse until the participant actually retires and his or her pension payments have begun.
A. Effective July 7, 2008, the designation of the spouse as beneficiary of certain benefits is revoked in a divorce, annulment or judicial separation and they receive written notice, unless the participant has a DRO on file that specifies otherwise. The designation is revoked regardless of when the final decree of divorce, annulment or judicial separation is entered.
A. If he or she wishes to keep the ex-spouse as beneficiary, the participant must re-designate him or her after the date of the divorce, annulment, or judicial separation.
