To update your name on your account, please send a certified copy of your marriage license, divorce decree or other duly executed court order verifying your name change to the Retirement Systems at the following address:

South Carolina Retirement Systems
Attention: Benefit Payments Department
Post Office Box 11960
Columbia, South Carolina 29211-1960

You may change your address by logging into Member Access and selecting the Change Address link. You may also send a written notification to our office which includes your signature, printed name, Social Security number and new address. Notice of an address change may be mailed to: 

South Carolina Retirement Systems
Attention: Benefit Payments Department
Post Office Box 11960
Columbia, South Carolina 29211-1960

Having your annuity directly deposited into your bank account is the most efficient and secure method for you to receive benefits. To set up direct deposit or change an existing direct deposit, log into Member Access and click Payment. Next choose Set Up Direct Deposit to set up a new direct deposit or choose the View/Change Direct Deposit link to modify an existing direct deposit. You may also complete a Direct Deposit Authorization (Form 7204) and send it to the Retirement Systems at South Carolina Retirement Systems, Attention: Benefit Payments Department, Post Office Box 11960, Columbia, South Carolina 29211-1960. You may designate up to two bank accounts for direct deposit of your monthly retirement benefit.  However, our automated systems do not currently allow the flexibility to designate a portion of your benefit to be deposited into a bank account and the remainder of your annuity to be issued on a prepaid debit card. Monthly check stubs are only printed when your net benefit changes, typically January and July.

As an annuity recipient, changes to both your federal and South Carolina state income tax withholding designations can be made by logging into Member Access and selecting theView/Change Withholding link. If you make no withholding election, federal regulations require that the Retirement Systems to withhold federal income tax based on a status of married with 3 exemptions.  Your tax withholding designations will be updated immediately; however, changes that are made after our monthly payroll has been processed will be reflected in the following month’s benefit payment.  Although the dollar amounts may change annually as a result of changes to the required withholding tables, the changes you make for marital status and exemptions will remain in effect until you make further changes or revoke them.

Most benefit payments are reported on IRS form 1099-R and benefits paid under a Qualified Excess Benefit Arrangement are reported on form W-2.  Tax forms will be mailed via the US Postal Service no later than the last business day of each January for benefits paid during the previous year. Once 1099-R forms have been issued, you may access current or prior year forms by logging into Member Accessand selecting the 1099-R Tax Documents link or by contacting the Customer Services department.

In accordance with guidelines set forth by the Internal Revenue Service, disability benefits paid by the Retirement Systems are reported annually on form 1099-R as normal distributions for income tax purposes. Code “7” in box 7 of your form 1099-R means that you are not subject to the 10 percent tax penalty for early withdrawal because you receive your retirement benefits via a monthly annuity.  Code “3” is not applicable to box 7 because the disability program administered by the Retirement Systems is an occupational or job-related disability program rather than a total and permanent disability program as described in section 72(m)(7) of the Internal Revenue Code.

These benefits should be included as ordinary income for tax purposes. Although the Form 1099-R which you received from the Retirement Systems correctly contains a code “7” in box 7, if you also receive monthly benefits from the Social Security Administration and are considered totally and permanently disabled for Social Security purposes, you may qualify for the federal Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled. Please refer to IRS Schedule R when completing your tax return. You must keep for your records a copy of your physician’s statement, which certifies that you were permanently and totally disabled on the date that you retired. Tax laws are complex and change frequently; therefore, you should consult a tax advisor if you have questions regarding your individual federal or state tax return.

On form 1099-R, box 5 is not used to indicate health insurance premiums, but rather the amount of retirement benefits you received during the tax year that were after-tax dollars. The amount shown in box 5 represents the annual portion of the retirement benefit disbursed to you that is tax-free because of employee contributions you made prior to 1982 and/or any service purchases you made on an after-tax basis. Those after-tax contributions are spread out during your lifetime thus resulting in your exclusion amount.

Based on current law, you may be eligible for a cost of living adjustment (COLA) if your retirement was in effect the previous July 1. If you retired early as a member of SCRS, you are not eligible for a COLA until the second July 1 after you reach age 60 or the second July 1 after the date you would have attained 28 years of service credit had you not retired.

You may print your TERI statement by logging into Member Access and selecting the TERI Statement link. You can also receive a copy via mail by contacting the Customer Services department.

Upon termination of employment, you must  a complete TERI Payout Election (Form 7500)and return it to our office along with  a copy of your driver’s license or Department of Motor Vehicles issued identification card. Your employer is also required to verify your termination date and any payment for unused annual leave. Once all required information is received from both you and your employer, the TERI account balance will be distributed and you will begin receiving your monthly benefit.

It generally takes from six to nine months following the date of your retirement for your account to be finalized; however, it is the Retirement Systems' goal to ensure that you begin receiving an estimated retirement benefit immediately. Your benefit payments will be calculated as an estimated amount. After your employer submits all required information, and your retirement benefit will be finalized. The final amount may be less than, or more than, your estimated benefit. You will be notified in writing upon finalization of your benefit. Any difference (positive or negative) between your estimated benefit and final benefit will be retroactively applied to your date of retirement.

The retirement benefit that you receive from the South Carolina Retirement Systems is not affected by any benefits you may receive from the Social Security Administration or through a workers' compensation program.  If you are a disability retiree receiving Long Term Disability benefits from Standard Insurance Company, please contact them regarding the affect of Social Security on their payments. 

After monthly benefits have begun, you may not change your payment option unless you experience a qualifying event such as a marriage, a divorce, or the death of a spouse. A request to change the form of your monthly benefit based upon a change in marital status must be made within one year of the qualifying event. Also, if you have selected Option B or Option C, your benefit will revert to the maximum benefit (Option A) if all of your designated beneficiaries predecease you. Your form of monthly payment may not be changed more than twice regardless of the number of qualifying events that occur.

If you are receiving a service retirement benefit, you may return to work for an employer covered by the Retirement Systems with no earnings limitation; however, you will be subject to the same contribution rate as active employees. These contributions will be posted to your retirement account, but as a retiree, you will not earn additional service credit or receive interest on your account.

If you are under age 65 for SCRS or 55 for PORS and are receiving a disability retirement benefit, there is a limit on the amount of income you may earn without impacting your retirement benefits. In February of each year you will receive a letter for the Retirement Systems indicating the amount you may earn from gainful employment for that calendar year. Please notify our office immediately if you return to employment and believe that your earnings from that employment will exceed your earnings limitation for the year.

If you have state-sponsored health insurance, you should contact the SC Budget and Control Board's Employee Insurance Program at 888-260-9430 for assistance with your request. If you have other coverage, you may want to contact your former employer for assistance.