In the event of your death, PERS should be notified right away and will require a photocopy of the death
certificate.
If you die before retirement, PERS will pay a death benefit to your spouse or to any other person who is
constitutionally required to be treated in the same manner as a spouse for the purpose of retirement benefits. The
death benefit will be for the life of your spouse.
If the monthly death benefit is less than $200, the benefit will be paid in a single lump-sum that represents the
actuarial equivalent of the death benefit.
The following benefits are applicable when a member dies on or after January 1, 2022:
- If your date of death is before your earliest retirement eligibility date, the death benefit will be the
actuarial equivalent of 50% of the pension that you would have received in retirement, calculated as if you became
inactive on the date of death and retired at the earliest retirement date allowed.
- If your date of death is on or after your earliest retirement eligibility date, the death benefit will be the
actuarial equivalent of 100% of the pension that you would have received in retirement, calculated as if you had
retired as of the first of the month following the date of death.
Your surviving spouse’s death benefit effective date is the first of the month after your date of death — unless your
spouse delays receiving benefits for a year or more after your date of death. Payments delayed by more than a year are
actuarially adjusted based on the delayed benefit effective date; your spouse will not receive retroactive payments
back to your date of death.
Delayed payments must start no later than December 31 of the year in which you would have reached age 70½ (if born
before July 1, 1949), age 72 (if born after June 30, 1949), or age 73 (if born after December 31, 1950).
If your surviving spouse dies prior to benefits starting, a lump-sum payment equal to the sum of payments your spouse
would have received had they not delayed distribution will be paid to your spouse’s designated beneficiary. If your
spouse’s designated beneficiary is not on file, the benefit will be paid to your spouse’s estate.