§ 43 — Transfer of members between systems

New York § 43

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law RSS: Retirement & Social Security
• Title 5: Right to Membership, Service Credit and Transfers Between Retirement Systems
• Art. 2: New York State Employees' Retirement System

Text

§ 43. Transfer of members between systems. a. Notwithstanding any\nother provision of law providing for transfers, any member of any\nretirement system maintained by the state or a municipality thereof,\noperating on a sound financial basis and subject to the supervision of\nthe department of financial services of this state may transfer his\nmembership pursuant to this section to the New York state and local\nemployees' retirement system, the New York city board of education\nemployees' retirement system, the New York state teachers' retirement\nsystem, the New York city teachers' retirement system or to the New York\ncity employees' retirement system. Any member of the New York state and\nlocal employees' retirement system may transfer his membership to any\nretirement system, other than the hospital retirement system, which is\noperating on a sound basis and is subject to the supervision of the\ndepartment of financial services of this state. Any such transfer may be\neffectuated only if the member has accepted a position in another branch\nof the state or municipal service which would make it:\n 1. Impossible for him to continue in the retirement system of which he\nhas been a member, and\n 2. Possible for him to participate in another such system.\n Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this subdivision, any\nemployee who would be eligible to avail himself or herself of the\nprovisions of this section but for being on leave of absence status from\na prior employment while in his or her present employment, shall be\npermitted to transfer his or her retirement system membership pursuant\nto the provisions of this section.\n Any member of the New York state and local employees' retirement\nsystem, however, who was an employee of any city agency at the time\nservice with such agency was legislated to be city service may transfer\nhis membership to the retirement system of such city.\n b. In order to effect such a transfer, a member must give notice to\nthe administrative head of the retirement system of which he or she is a\nmember, prior to his or her withdrawal therefrom, of his or her\nintention to enter such other retirement system. A person so\ntransferring from one retirement system to another shall be deemed to\nhave been a member of the system to which he or she has transferred\nduring the entire period of membership service credited to him or her in\nthe system from which he or she has transferred. Such transferee,\nhowever, shall not receive more than three per cent interest on his or\nher contributions and accumulated contributions unless he or she has\ncontinuously been a member in either the system from which or to which\nhe or she is transferring since a date prior to July first, nineteen\nhundred forty-three. This shall not be construed to prevent a change in\nthe interest rate to such member if the interest rate payable to other\nmembers of the system to which he or she has transferred is changed. Any\nmember who heretofore transferred from one retirement system to another\nshall, commencing with the effective date of chapter nine hundred three\nof the laws of nineteen hundred fifty-seven, be entitled to the same\nrights, privileges and benefits, and shall be subject to the same\nobligations, as a transferee who thereafter transfers. He or she shall\nreceive no credit for prior service, except as hereinafter provided. He\nor she shall be permitted to deposit in the second retirement system the\ntotal amount of his contributions withdrawn from the first retirement\nsystem.\n c. Upon the request for a transfer of credit, the reserve on such\nmember's benefits, computed as though he had not discontinued\nmembership, shall be determined by the actuary of the first system in\nthe following manner:\n 1. The total present value of all benefits allowable under the\nretirement system as the result of contributions made or to be made by\nhis employer shall be computed.\n 2. From such total present value there shall be deducted the present\nvalue of the future contributions which would be payable by his employer\non such member's account had he become a member of the retirement\nsystem, subsequent to its establishment, at the age at which he\noriginally entered the service of his employer. The result so obtained\nshall be considered as the reserve on his account in the first\nretirement system.\n d. Such reserve shall be transferred from the appropriate fund or\nfunds of the first system to the appropriate fund or funds of the second\nsystem. Such member, thereupon, shall be given such status and credited\nwith such service in the second retirement system as he was allowed in\nthe first retirement system. Such contributor, notwithstanding any other\nprovision of law, shall on retirement be entitled to a pension based on\nsalary earned during member service in both retirement systems together,\npursuant to the statutory requirements of the second retirement system.\n e. The provisions of former subdivision e of this section, as\noriginally enacted by chapter four hundred eighty-three of the laws of\nnineteen hundred forty-five and as codified in such former subdivision e\nby chapter eight hundred forty-one of the laws of nineteen hundred\nforty-seven, shall apply only to memberships transferred prior to July\nfirst, nineteen hundred forty-nine. Section one hundred seventeen of\nthis article shall apply to the provisions of this subdivision insofar\nas such provisions relate to such memberships.\n f. 1. A "New York city member", as defined in subdivision twenty of\nsection two hundred forty-three of the military law, who shall transfer\nto another retirement system pursuant to this section shall be given\ncredit, upon such transfer, for the period of military duty to which\nsuch member would have been entitled pursuant to such subdivision twenty\nif he had remained, until the time of death or retirement, in the\nretirement system from which he shall so transfer. The amount of\nreserves to be transferred under this section for such credit shall be\ncomputed in accordance with this section, shall include pension reserves\nfor such military duty, and shall be credited by the retirement system\nto which the member shall transfer in accordance with the provisions of\nsuch system governing credit for service in world war II, and the city\nof New York, or the authority, by which such member is employed\nimmediately prior to the transfer, shall pay to the retirement system\nthe amount of the reserve to be transferred on account of such military\nservice.\n 2. Any retirement system from which a member shall transfer pursuant\nto this subdivision shall have the right to require reasonable proof of\nmilitary service, pay status, and any other information relevant to\neligibility for such transfer of credit for military duty.\n 3. The provisions of this subdivision f shall apply only to a "New\nYork city member" who has rendered service as an officer or employee of\nthe city of New York (or any agency thereof) or public corporation, the\nofficers or employees of which are eligible for membership in a pension\nor retirement system maintained by such city, including performance of\nsuch military duty, for at least fifty per centum of the time between\nhis commencement of such service and the date upon which he has attained\nor shall attain age fifty-five.\n h. Notwithstanding any other provisions of the law, a former member of\nthe New York state teachers' retirement system who holds membership in\nthe New York city teachers' retirement system on the effective date of\nthis act and who would have been entitled to transfer service credit to\nsuch latter retirement system pursuant to this section had his\nmembership in the former retirement system not terminated, due to no\nnegligence on the part of the member, may have his transfer rights under\nthis section restored by depositing, within one year of the effective\ndate of this act, in the former retirement system an amount equal to the\ncontributions withdrawn from such system with regular interest thereon.\n j. This subdivision shall apply only to individuals who, subsequent to\nvesting in a retirement system, transfer to a second retirement system\nwhose governing laws require a greater number of years of credit for\nvesting than those of the first system, and who, upon such transfer, do\nnot have the number of years of service credit that is ordinarily\nrequired to vest in such second retirement system.\n 1. Upon transfer, the number of years of service credit required for\nthe transferred individual to attain vested rights in the second\nretirement system shall be the same as the number of years of service\ncredit required, under applicable law, for vesting in the first\nretirement system.\n 2. In the event that an individual covered by this subdivision makes\napplication to retire from such second system prior to attaining the\namount of service credit that would otherwise be necessary to vest in\nsuch second retirement system, and such individual is otherwise eligible\nto retire from such second system, the application shall be granted, and\nbenefits shall be calculated on the basis of the actual amount of\nservice credit the individual has accrued at the time of retirement.\nTransferred service credit shall not be creditable under any plan in the\nsecond retirement system that it would not otherwise be creditable\nunder.\n k. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, any member of\nthe New York state and local employees' retirement system or the New\nYork city teachers' retirement system who retired from service from\neither the New York city employees' retirement system or the New York\ncity board of education retirement system as a member of the career\npension plan maintained by such system and who, but for the fact that he\nor she retired, would be eligible for transfer and who has not, in fact,\nreceived a pension payment from such system shall be permitted to\ntransfer his or her retirement system membership pursuant to the\nprovisions of this section. In such event, the application for\nretirement shall be deemed to have been rescinded and the retirement\nsystem from which the service shall be transferred shall transfer the\nappropriate reserves as provided by this section, provided, however,\nthat with respect to transfers pursuant to this subdivision which occur\non or after the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two\nthousand twenty-three that amended this subdivision, except for the\npurposes of providing the benefits, if any, of subdivision four of\nsection five hundred twenty-two of the education law, no determination\nof a reserve pursuant to subdivision c of this section or transfer\nthereof pursuant to the first sentence of subdivision d of this section\nshall be required in the case of any transfer pursuant to this\nsubdivision with less than ten years of credited service with the\ntransferring retirement system at the time the transfer is initiated.\nWith respect to transfers pursuant to this section which occur on or\nafter the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two thousand\ntwenty-three that amended this subdivision, the transfer of a pension\nreserve shall be required when the member is transferring ten or more\nyears of credited service from a public retirement system of the state\nto any other public retirement system of the state, excluding any\ntransfers within and between the New York city employees' retirement\nsystem, the New York city teachers' retirement system and the New York\ncity board of education retirement system. Notwithstanding the provision\nof this subdivision or any other provision of law, an individual who\ntransfers pursuant to this subdivision shall not be required to render\nany minimum period of service following transfer in order to be eligible\nto receive the full benefit provided hereunder. Notwithstanding the\nforegoing, a retiree covered by either the career pension plan or the\nfifty-five-year-increased-service-fraction plan who has received a\npension payment or payments from such system shall be eligible for the\nprovisions of this subdivision upon payment, to the retirement system\nfrom which the pension payment or payments were made, of an amount equal\nto such pension payment or payments. After such payments and the pension\nreserve, in the case of a member who transfers in ten or more years of\ncredited service, except when transferring within and between the New\nYork city employees' retirement system, the New York city teachers'\nretirement system and the New York city board of education retirement\nsystem, are received, such person shall be permitted to transfer his or\nher retirement system membership pursuant to the provisions of this\nsection.\n l. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, with\nrespect to transfers pursuant to this section which occur on or after\nthe effective date of the chapter of the laws of two thousand\ntwenty-three that amended this subdivision, except for the purposes of\nproviding the benefits, if any, of subdivision four of section five\nhundred twenty-two of the education law, no determination of a reserve\npursuant to subdivision c of this section or transfer thereof pursuant\nto the first sentence of subdivision d of this section shall be required\nin the case of any transfer pursuant to this section with less than ten\nyears of credited service with the transferring retirement system at the\ntime the transfer is initiated. With respect to transfers pursuant to\nthis section which occur on or after the effective date of the chapter\nof the laws of two thousand twenty-three that amended this subdivision,\nthe transfer of a pension reserve shall be required when the member is\ntransferring ten or more years of credited service from a public\nretirement system of the state to any other public retirement system of\nthe state, excluding any transfers within and between the New York city\nemployees' retirement system, the New York city teachers' retirement\nsystem and the New York city board of education retirement system. For\nthe purpose of giving the transferring member such status and crediting\nsuch service in the second retirement system as such member was allowed\nin the first retirement system in those cases to which this subdivision\nshall apply, the transfer shall be deemed complete upon receipt by the\nsecond retirement system of:\n 1. a statement from the first retirement system of the transferring\nmember's date of membership in the first retirement system, tier status,\nservice credited to such membership being transferred, and such other\ninformation as the second retirement system may require to effectuate\nthe transfer;\n 2. such member's accumulated contributions from the first retirement\nsystem, if same had not been previously withdrawn, or notice from the\nfirst retirement system that such member had no accumulated\ncontributions, or notice from the first retirement system that such\nmember's accumulated contributions had been withdrawn and the amount\nthereof and, as applicable, receipt from such member of such member's\naccumulated contributions and interest; and\n 3. the pension reserve in the case of a member who transfers in ten or\nmore years of credited service, except when transferring within and\nbetween the New York city employees' retirement system, the New York\ncity teachers' retirement system and the New York city board of\neducation retirement system.\n