Estimate a Future Benefit

The Benefit Estimate screen allows you to estimate the benefit you will be eligible to receive upon retirement .

If any of the following situations apply to you, you should request a formal estimate from SCERA:

• You are within two years of your projected retirement date.
• You plan to leave employment before you are eligible to retire.
• You have transferred to a reciprocal system.
• There is any division of your benefits as the result of a divorce.

Benefit estimates can be calculated based on projected dates of separation. Benefit estimates are generated into .pdf files and can be viewed or printed. The Benefit estimates you generate using this tool are also accessible by SCERA personnel so that you can later discuss the estimates with them.

To access the Benefit Estimator, click on the Estimate a Benefit option from the left menu (under Member Information). The Benefit Estimate screen opens.

Enter the following information:

(The first two fields must be filled in to generate an estimate. The fields related to the beneficiary are optional. However, if you want the estimate to include payment options that provide a benefit to your beneficiary upon your death after retirement, all of the beneficiary fields must be filled.)

• Projected Date of Separation - This is the date when you expect to leave your job. If you are already separated from your job, this will default to your separation date on file. Otherwise, this field will default to the day before the Projected Retirement Date. If you are not already separated, the default date can be changed by entering the date manually using a month/day/year format, or you can click on the calendar icon to the right of the field and use the calendar feature to select a date.
• Projected Retirement Date - Enter the date when you want to have your benefit payments begin. This will default to the your earliest possible retirement date (if you are already eligible to retire, this will be the current date). You can type the date in manually using a month/day/year format or you can click on the calendar icon to the right of the field and use the calendar feature to select a date.
• Beneficiary Name - Enter the name of one person designated as your beneficiary. Note that entering this name is only for estimate purposes and does not actually make that person a beneficiary to you benefits. You must contact SCERA to add a beneficiary.
• Beneficiary Relationship - Enter your beneficiary's association with you (spouse, daughter, son, etc.)
• Beneficiary Date of Birth - Enter the birth date of your nominated beneficiary. You can type the date in manually using a month/day/year format or you can click on the calendar icon to the right of the field and use the calendar feature to select a date.
• Beneficiary Gender -Select the beneficiary's gender.

After you have completed entering the requested information, click the Generate link. A disclaimer appears at which point you can click either Continue or Cancel.

If Cancel is selected, no estimate is performed. If Continue is selected, a message appears at the top of the screen while the estimate is being calculated. If you are not eligible for a retirement benefit based on the dates used, an error message is displayed. Otherwise, the Estimate History screen appears.

The Benefit Estimate History screen displays all benefit estimates you have generated. The most recent (the one you have just created) is at the top. Click the View link to see the benefit estimate. Note that Adobe Reader is required to view or print the estimate since it is generated as a PDF document. The Estimate History screen provides a link to obtain a free download of Adobe Reader if needed. In addition, this screen provides a link to the Adobe Reader Verification page, which verifies that you have a supported version of Adobe Reader installed, and provides links to Adobe user documentation.

The benefit estimate is divided into several sections:

• Member Information - This section includes basic information on file about your pension account (name, birth date, status) and some of the data you entered on the Benefit Estimate screen (retirement date, age at retirement).
• Beneficiary Information - This section only appears if you entered a beneficiary on the Benefit Estimate screen.
• Current Years of Service and Current Contributions - This section lists your current service credit amount and contribution balance.
• Benefit Formula and Estimate Calculation - This section displays the calculations used in your benefit estimate along with the benefit amounts by option (the options are explained in the Options section at the bottom of your benefit estimate). These estimates are based on projected service credit and Final Average Salary based on the date of retirement used for the estimate. Your actual benefit may be more or less than this amount based on your actual service and salary at the time of your retirement. The estimated benefit amounts include your benefit (Member Benefit) and any survivor's benefit (Continuance).

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