Single Life or Joint Allowance: Choosing Your NYSLRS Pension Option
The basics: The Single Life Allowance pays the highest monthly pension and ends when you die. A Joint Allowance pays a smaller monthly pension and keeps paying your spouse for life. Pension elections are one time and irreversible and will impact your spouse.
Can I change my option later?
NYSLRS gives you up to 30 days after the last day of your retirement month to change your payment option. After that, the beneficiary on a joint option stays in place for life. That makes this decision worth one thorough conversation before you file.
What are the NYSLRS pension payment options?
Single Life Allowance. The highest monthly payment. It ends at your death.
Joint Allowance, Full or Half. A reduced pension for you. After your death, your spouse receives all or half of it for life.
Pop-Up/Joint Allowance. The same protection for your spouse. If your spouse dies first, your pension rises to the Single Life amount. The reduction is a little larger than a regular Joint Allowance.
NYSLRS also offers options that cover more than one beneficiary.
How much smaller is the joint pension?
The reduction is based on your age and your spouse's age. NYSLRS shows the dollar amount for every option in Retirement Online. Review your actual pension benefit statement so you can start with your real numbers.
What should we ask each other before choosing?
If I died first, what income would you have? Remember that when one spouse passes, the remaining spouse will only collect one Social Security check, although it will be the larger of the two.
If you died first, would I want my pension to go back up?
How do our ages and health compare?
How much have we saved outside the pension?
What life insurance do we already own?
How I help
I sit down with couples at my Chittenango office and put the NYSLRS estimate, both Social Security statements and your savings side by side. You see what each option means for each of you, in dollars, and you decide. Bring your estimate and let's talk.
Jessica Champion, RICP®, is a fee-only fiduciary financial advisor in Chittenango, NY. Advisory services are offered through Champion Method LLC, an investment adviser registered with the state of New York. This article is general education and is not tax, legal, or investment advice.
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