Choose people you want to provide for (and review regularly). A spouse, child, niece, or caretaker—designate the ones you love most or who would benefit from your help. Then revisit your decision when a big life change happens, such as divorce, remarriage, birth, or death.
The primary disadvantage of naming a trust as beneficiary is that the retirement plan's assets will be subjected to required minimum distribution (RMD) payouts, which are calculated based on the life expectancy of the oldest beneficiary.
Surviving Spouse and Child Beneficiaries SPOUSE. Naming your spouse as a life insurance beneficiary is an obvious choice. ADULT CHILDREN. MINOR CHILDREN. CHARITY. CREATING A TRUST FOR A LOVED ONE.
Eligible designated beneficiary Spouse or minor child of the deceased account holder. Disabled or chronically ill individual. Individual who is not more than 10 years younger than the IRA owner or plan participant.
A lot of people name a close relative—like a spouse, brother or sister, or child—as a beneficiary. You can also choose a more distant relative or a friend. If you want to designate a friend as your beneficiary, be sure to check with your insurance company or directly with your state.
How to name a beneficiary on your 401(k) account Fill out the beneficiary designation form supplied by your 401(k) provider. Set your beneficiary designations directly through an online portal on your provider's website. Call your provider and choose your beneficiaries over the phone.
ERISA stands for Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which is a federal law that sets minimum standards for retirement plans in the private sector. Non-ERISA plans, on the other hand, are not governed by ERISA and are not subject to its regulations.
Under ERISA, each fund is subject to additional requirements and obligations once more than 25 percent of the fund's assets under management (AUM) are subject to ERISA (the 25 percent threshold).