Preparing your American Century investment accounts for estate transfer involves two primary strategies: designating beneficiaries on individual accounts and, where supported, retitling accounts into a revocable living trust. Both approaches bypass probate, but they work differently depending on the account type.

With 12 product types, American Century offers a range of transfer options. Some investment accounts support Transfer on Death (TOD) designations, others can be retitled into a trust, and some require probate if no beneficiary is designated. The sections below break down each step.

Individual Investment AccountJoint Investment AccountPersonal Trust AccountCoverdell Education Savings Account (CESA)Brokerage Account

1Log in to americancentury.com

2Navigate to americancentury.com/bene to access the online beneficiary designation tool for retirement accounts

3Select the retirement account type(s) to which the designation will apply (all retirement accounts, or specific types)

4Enter primary beneficiary information: name, SSN or Tax ID, date of birth, relationship, and allocation percentage

5Enter contingent (secondary) beneficiary information if desired

6If a trust is a beneficiary, submit a copy of the trust title page, signature page, and successor trustee pages separately

7Review and submit; the designation revokes all prior designations for the selected account types

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Required Documents

Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)

Special Requirements

Married account owners in community property states must obtain notarized spousal consent to name a non-spouse as beneficiary on IRA accounts
403(b) participants whose plan is subject to ERISA QPSA requirements must obtain notarized spousal consent regardless of state of residence
A trust named as beneficiary requires submission of trust title page, signature page, and successor trustee pages
Per stirpes beneficiary designations are not available online; call 1-800-345-2021 to request the per stirpes form
The estate of the investor may not be named as the sole primary TOD beneficiary on non-retirement accounts