Your beneficiary and investment fund for the Basic Retirement Plan, 403(b) SRA and 457(b) will be a default until you take action to change them.
The investment fund default is an age-appropriate Lifecycle Index Fund if you select TIAA and a Freedom Index Fund if you select Fidelity Investments. If you do not have a U.S. street mailing address, the default investment fund for TIAA will be CREF Money Market.
Designating a beneficiary is critical to ensure that your retirement account is paid to the person you choose in the event of your death, and it helps avoid legal disputes over your account. If you don’t designate a beneficiary for the retirement savings plans, for both TIAA and Fidelity the account will be paid according to person or persons surviving you in the following order: spouse, children, parents, siblings, personal representative (executor or administrator).
Your beneficiary designations do not carry over between plans, between investment companies, or from life insurance to the retirement savings plans. In addition, enrolling in Wolverine Access does not automatically declare your beneficiary to TIAA or Fidelity. You need to make your fund and beneficiary designations for each type of plan in which you enroll and for each investment company you select.
Select Your Funds and Beneficiary with TIAA
You can create your account, select your investment funds and designate your beneficiary online at any time instead of waiting for your welcome packet by going to tiaa-cref.org/umich.
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Select “Enroll Now”
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Click on the type of plan for which you are creating an account: Basic Retirement Plan, 403(b) SRA, 457(b).
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Follow the online prompts and enter your selections.
Call TIAA at 1-800-842-2252, Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. (CT). A consultant will help you make the appropriate beneficiary designations for your retirement planning needs and record your investment fund selections.
Select Your Funds and Beneficiary with Fidelity Investments
You can create your account, select your investment funds and designate your beneficiary online at any time instead of waiting for your welcome packet by going to netbenefits.com/uofm.
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Select “Enroll”
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Click on the type of plan for which you are creating an account: Basic Retirement Plan, 403(b) SRA, 457(b). NOTE: You will need to open an account under two different plans for the Basic Retirement Plan. Open an account under 401(a) Base Plan 86503 for the U-M contribution and open an account under 403(b) Base Plan 72104 for your contribution.
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Follow the online prompts and enter your selections.
Contact a Fidelity Retirement Services Specialists by calling 800-343-0860, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to midnight, Eastern time if you have questions or need assistance.