NYSTRS – Everything you need to know

NYSTRS – Everything you need to know

What Tier am I?

• Tier 3 – Joined between 7/27/1976 and 8/31/1983
• Tier 4 – Joined between 9/1/1983 and 12/31/2009
• Tier 5 – Joined between 1/1/2010 and 3/31/2012
• Tier 6 – Joined on or after 4/1/2012

Want to learn more about your NYSTRS benefits and general financial planning concepts?

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ENROLL NOW IN THE COURSE

We go over several tips and guidelines for you to review on your own time and at your own pace (with a little help from me!).

Member Contributions

• Tier 3 and 4 – You are required by law to contribute 3% of your salary until you have been a member for 10 years or accrue 10 years of total service credit, whichever comes first.
• Tier 5 – You are required to contribute 3.5% of your salary throughout your active membership
• Tier 6 – You are required to contribute a percentage of your salary throughout your active membership as follows:
• Salary of $45,000 or less you must contribute 3%
• Salary of more than $45,000 to $55,000 you must contribute 3.5%
• Salary of more than $55,000 to $75,000 you must contribute 4.5%
• Salary of more than $75,000 to $100,000 you must contribute 5.75%
• Salary of more than $100,000 to $179,000* you must contribute 6%

Pension Calculations

• Uses the 3 year Final Average Salary (FAS). FAS is the average of your highest three consecutive school years of salary earned whenever they occurred in your salary history. Typically, it is the average of your last three years.
• The following examples show how working one more year and attaining 20 years of service (when all years are at 2%) and 30 years of service (when there is no age reduction) will significantly increase your pension factor:
• Attaining 20 Years
• At age 55: 19 years x 1²⁄₃% = 31.6% then 31.6% x 73% (percent at age 55) = 23.1%
• At age 56: 20 years x 2% = 40% then 40% x 76% (percent at age 56) = 30.4%
• Attaining 30 Years
• At age 55: 29 years x 2% = 58% then 58% x 73% (percent at age 55) = 42.3%
• At any age: 30 years x 2% (no age reduction) = 60.0%

• Uses the 3 year Final Average Salary (FAS). FAS is the average of your highest three consecutive school years of salary earned whenever they occurred in your salary history. Typically, it is the average of your last three years.
• The following examples show how working one more year and attaining 25 years of service (when all years are at 2%) and 30 years of service (when there is no age reduction) will significantly increase your pension factor:
• Attaining 25 Years
• At age 57: 24 years x 1²⁄₃% = 40% then 40% x 71.67% (percent at age 57) = 28.67%
• At age 58: 25 years x 2% = 50% then 50% x 76.67% (percent at age 58) = 38.34%
• Attaining 30 Years
• At age 57: 29 years x 2% = 58% then 58% x 71.67% (percent at age 57) = 41.57%
• At age 58: 30 years x 2% (no age reduction) = 60.00%

• Uses the 5 year Final Average Salary (FAS). FAS is the average of your highest five consecutive school years of salary earned whenever they occurred in your salary history. Typically, it is the average of your last five years.

In Service Death Benefit

• In addition to receiving your member contributions balance, your designated beneficiary may receive a death benefit if you die before retiring.
• The benefit is one year’s salary after a year of service, increasing to a maximum of three years’ salary after three years or more of service. However, the benefit is reduced after age 60.
• You are covered by an in-service death benefit if you have been credited with at least one year (Tiers 3-6) of service since last becoming a member, and at the time of death:
• You were in service being paid for employment reportable to this System; or,
• If you are a Tier 2-6 member, you had been in service within the previous year and had at least one year of continuous employment since last entering your employer’s service and had not otherwise been gainfully employed (other than in service reportable to NYSTRS since leaving teaching; or,
• You had left the payroll because of a disability and died while on an approved medical leave (Tiers 3-6).

Want to learn more about your NYSTRS benefits and general financial planning concepts?

Sign up for our Financial Lesson Planning email course

ENROLL NOW IN THE COURSE

We go over several tips and guidelines for you to review on your own time and at your own pace (with a little help from me!).

SOURCE: New York State Teachers’ Retirement System Active Members’ Handbook.

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