Death Benefits

Contact us as soon as possible when anyone receiving or eligible for a PERA benefit dies. This includes members, retirees, benefit recipients, or a named survivor for a benefit option. 

Notification of the death can be made by a family member, friend, employer, funeral home, or others. You can call us or complete a form to provide the information. The person providing the death notification will be asked to identify the individual's name, date of birth, address, and date of death, as well as their relationship to the deceased and contact information for the survivor or beneficiary. 

After reviewing the information, we will send a letter explaining next steps for the PERA account.

If you die before any payment begins in your account, PERA provides benefit options depending on your plan and status:

• Lifetime Monthly Benefit for Surviving Spouse: If you are vested at the time of death, your spouse will have an option to receive a monthly benefit for their lifetime.
• Term-Certain Benefit Option for Surviving Spouse: Some plans offer term-certain options for a surviving spouse. The term-certain options would provide monthly benefits over 10, 15 or 20 years.
• Lump-Sum Refund: Another option available is a lump-sum payment of the account to those listed as beneficiaries. This option may not be available if there are other monthly benefit options payable.
• Dependent Children’s Benefits: Some plans also offer benefits payable to dependent children.

Benefits are based on what you elected on your benefit application.

If you die first:

• Single Life Option: Upon your death, your benefit account will close. Any remaining member contributions not paid to you as a benefit would be distributed to your named beneficiaries as a lump-sum payment. If you do not have any named beneficiaries, the payment will be sent to your estate.
• Survivor Option: The benefit will be payable to your survivor beginning the month after your death and will continue for your survivor’s lifetime.

If your survivor dies first:

• Bounce back to Single Life: Your benefit will bounce back to the current value of the Single Life option. 

After PERA is notified, we will send important paperwork to eligible recipient(s). PERA requires a copy of the certified death certificate along with the application for benefits.

If we do not receive the pre-retirement paperwork within five years after you die, your member contributions and interest will be forfeited and your family and beneficiaries will not receive any benefits.

Under state law, the beneficiary designation by a PERA member is automatically revoked on the dissolution or annulment of a marriage. If the former spouse is intended to remain designated as a beneficiary for the marital portion of any refund after the dissolution, the court order must specifically include such a provision. For more information, see Divorce and your pension section.