State Public Pensions in Mississippi

Reporting a death

Survivors contact PERS and the retiree's insurance provider immediately. PERS requires a copy of the death certificate.¹

Payments after the date of death

Any payment issued to the deceased after the date of death must be returned to PERS, and is reissued to the eligible beneficiary where appropriate.¹

Death before retirement

If a member dies before becoming vested, the designated beneficiaries receive a lump-sum refund of the member's account balance, claimed on Form 5D, Beneficiary Refund Application.²

When the death is not duty related, a spouse's benefit requires that the member was vested and that the spouse was married to the member for at least one year immediately before the death.³

The spouse receives the higher of a lifetime Option 2 (100% joint and survivor) benefit or 20% of the member's average compensation, never less than $50 per month.^{3, 4}

Dependent children receive the greater of 10% of average compensation or $50 per month each, up to 30% for three or more children.²

Line-of-duty death

Coverage for a duty-related death begins the first day of employment, with no vesting and no one-year marriage requirement.^{3, 2}

For a duty-related death, the spouse receives 50% of average compensation for life; one dependent child receives 25%, and two or more children share 50%.^{3, 2}

Who receives the benefit

Only if the member left no dependent children may the surviving spouse waive monthly benefits, on Form 5B, Spousal Waiver of Monthly Benefits, to take a lump-sum refund or let it pass to the member's designated beneficiary.³

Employees who became PERS members on or after March 1, 2026 are in the Hybrid Retirement Plan (Tier 5), which adds a defined contribution account with its own beneficiary designation alongside the defined benefit survivor coverage.⁵

Death after retirement

The Maximum Retirement Allowance Option and Option 1 pay no monthly benefit to a beneficiary. Under these single-life options, if the benefits paid before the retiree's death are less than the member's contributions and interest, the remainder is refunded to the designated beneficiaries.⁶

PERS has seven base options. Options 2, 3, 4, and 4A are joint-and-survivor options continuing 100%, 50% to each of two beneficiaries, 75%, and 50% respectively, and Option 4B continues payments to the beneficiaries for the remainder of a 10-, 15-, or 20-year guaranteed period.⁶

Filing window

Form 9A SRVR goes to the deceased member's employer, which submits it to PERS. Form 14, Survivor Retirement Application, is then due within 90 days of the date PERS receives Form 9A SRVR.³

Survivor benefits are effective the first day of the month after the death, with late filings paid retroactively for up to one year.^{3, 4}

Governing law: Miss. Code §§ 25-11-114 (pre-retirement death benefits, as amended by Laws 2025, ch. 435), 25-11-115, 25-11-117

Form 14, Survivor Retirement Application

within 90 days of the date PERS receives Form 9A SRVR³

Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS)

State government, public schools, universities, community colleges, municipalities, counties, the Legislature, and highway patrol⁸

Phone: 1-601-359-3589

Toll-free: 1-800-444-7377

1. 1.PERS Retiree Handbook
2. 2.PERS Member Handbook
3. 3.PERS Survivor Retirement Guide
4. 4.Mississippi HB 1, Laws 2025, ch. 435 (current text of Miss. Code § 25-11-114)
5. 5.Tier 5 (PERS)
6. 6.PERS Service Retirement Guide
7. 7.Forms (PERS)
8. 8.Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi (PERS)