Washington Administrative Code › Title 415 - Retirement Systems, Department of › Chapter 415-02 - General provisions › PROPERTY DIVISION IN DISSOLUTION ORDERS › Section 415-02-530 - How can a property division dissolution order give my ex-spouse an interest[1] in part of my Plan 3 retirement account?

Current through Register Vol. 24-14, July 15, 2024
(1) You
MUST
use this section if you are a member of TRS
				Plan 3, PERS Plan 3 or SERS Plan 3 and do not have enough service credit to
				receive a service retirement from the defined benefit portion of your
				retirement plan when you meet the age requirement.
(2) Dividing a defined monthly retirement
				benefit (defined benefit). Your defined monthly retirement benefit may be
				divided between you and your ex-spouse.
(a)
What language must the property division dissolution order or amendment
				include to pay a portion of my defined monthly retirement benefit to my
				ex-spouse?
The order must use the language in
				RCW
				41.50.670(2), provided
				below. The order or amendment must state either a specific dollar amount or
				percentage of the benefit. It cannot state both.
If __________ (the obligor) receives periodic retirement
				  payments as defined in
				  RCW
				  41.50.500, the department of retirement
				  systems shall pay to _________ (the obligee) _________ dollars from such
				  payments or ________ percent of such payments. If the obligor's debt is
				  expressed as a percentage of his or her periodic retirement payment and the
				  obligee does not have a survivorship interest in the obligor's benefit, the
				  amount received by the obligee shall be the percentage of the periodic
				  retirement payment that the obligor would have received had he or she selected
				  a standard allowance.
(b)
How will the defined benefit portion of my retirement account be affected
				if the department accepts the property division dissolution order
BEFORE
I retire?
(i)
				Your ex-spouse will not receive any payments from your defined benefit portion
				until you retire.
(ii) If you or
				your ex-spouse dies before you retire, the portion of your defined benefit
				account awarded to your ex-spouse in the dissolution order ends.
(c)
How will the defined
				benefit portion of my retirement account be affected if the department accepts
				the property division dissolution order
AFTER
I retire?
(i) If included in the dissolution order, the
				department will begin paying your ex-spouse his or her portion of your defined
				benefit payment the first month after the department has accepted the
				order.
(ii) If your ex-spouse dies
				before you, the portion of your defined benefit payment being paid to him or
				her will be paid to you.
(iii) If
				you die before your ex-spouse, payments to your ex-spouse stop unless the
				department accepted the order at least 30 days before you retired and it
				required the department to name your ex-spouse as a survivor beneficiary. See
				RCW
				41.50.700(1) and
				41.50.790.
(d)
Is there a maximum payment amount
				of the defined benefit portion of my retirement account that the property
				division dissolution order can award to my ex-spouse?
Yes. See
				RCW
				41.50.670(4) and WAC
				415-02-500(10)
				for information.
(e)
If the
				property division dissolution order directs the department to make payments to
				my ex-spouse, how will the payments be made?
The department will make
				the required payments as specified in the dissolution order directly to your
				ex-spouse.