- If an active member dies, a spouse named primary beneficiary gets $180 a month ($240 if the spouse's income is $6,600 a year or less), or with 10+ years of service may choose a lifetime annuity starting when the member would have been eligible.KRS 161.520(1)
- Children under 18 (19 if in high school full-time) get $200 a month for one child, up to $440 for four or more.KRS 161.520(2)(a)
- If the member was already eligible to retire, the spouse may instead take an annuity as if the member had retired the day before death.KRS 161.525(1)
- Life insurance: TRS 1-3 $2,000 while active and $5,000 retired; TRS 4 $5,000 active and $10,000 retired.KRS 161.655(1); TRS 4 SPD p. 12
- Retirees with a dependent adult disabled child can get an extra $200 a month.KRS 161.620(7)
- You make separate beneficiary designations for life insurance and for your member account. In TRS 4 you can name different beneficiaries for the foundational and supplemental benefits.TRS 4 SPD p. 12, Beneficiary designations
- If you are married and name someone other than your spouse as primary beneficiary, your spouse must sign an acknowledgment. Divorce ends a spouse's beneficiary designation.TRS 4 SPD p. 12, Beneficiary designations
- When an active member dies, beneficiaries receive the life insurance benefit and the retirement contributions in the account, unless the account is eligible to be retired.TRS 4 SPD p. 12, Beneficiary designations
Before you retire
- Spouse named primary beneficiary of an active member (or disability retiree): $180 a month, or $240 a month if the spouse's total income is $6,600 a year or less; or, with at least 10 years of service, a lifetime annuity actuarially equivalent to what the member would have received, starting when the member would have met eligibility age. KRS 161.520(1)
- Unmarried children under 18 (19 if full-time high school student): $200 a month for one child, $340 two, $400 three, $440 four or more, in addition to spouse benefits. KRS 161.520(2)(a)
- Dependent disabled adult child: $200 a month. KRS 161.520(3)(a)
- Active member who was eligible to retire: the spouse (or legal dependent) named primary beneficiary may instead elect an annuity actuarially equivalent to what the member would have received had retirement been effective the day before death (Option I or a term-certain option). KRS 161.525(1) (2023 Law Book, p. 47)
- Otherwise the beneficiary or estate receives the accumulated account balance (not employer contributions or health contributions). KRS 161.470(7)
After you retire
After retirement, survivor payments follow the option chosen (Options II-V); under Option I any remaining account balance is refunded. TRS 4 SPD pp. 14-15; KRS 161.650 See payment options.
Life insurance
TRS 1-3: $2,000 active, $5,000 retired. TRS 4: $5,000 active (from the first day of full-time employment), $10,000 retired. KRS 161.655(1); TRS 4 SPD p. 12, Life insurance
An adult disabled child
An extra $200 a month is payable at retirement for a dependent adult disabled child, for the child's life or until the condition ends or the child marries. KRS 161.620(7); TRS 1-3 Service Retirement bulletin p. 2; TRS 4 SPD p. 17
Questions
What does my spouse get if I die while still teaching?
Spouse named primary beneficiary of an active member (or disability retiree): $180 a month, or $240 a month if the spouse's total income is $6,600 a year or less; or, with at least 10 years of service, a lifetime annuity actuarially equivalent to what the member would have received, starting when the member would have met eligibility age.
What happens after I retire?
After retirement, survivor payments follow the option chosen (Options II-V); under Option I any remaining account balance is refunded.
Does TRS of Kentucky provide life insurance?
TRS 1-3: $2,000 active, $5,000 retired. TRS 4: $5,000 active (from the first day of full-time employment), $10,000 retired.
Source: TRS Summary Plan Descriptions and Service Retirement bulletins, TRS 4 SPD January 2022; TRS 1-3 SPD 2011; Service Retirement bulletins March 2023, TRS 4 SPD pp. 12, 14-15, 17; TRS 1-3 Service Retirement bulletin p. 2. Also: KRS 161.470, 161.520, 161.525, 161.620, 161.650, 161.655. Last reviewed .