How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Guideline
Covers 7 retirement accounts — beneficiaries can be managed online
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
Gusto Retirement Care -- Participant Support (death claims)
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
Who inherits your Guideline retirement retirement accounts is determined by the beneficiary designation on file—not by your will. This makes keeping designations current one of the most important estate planning steps, especially because the choice of beneficiary also affects how inherited distributions are taxed.
The transfer rules at Guideline vary across 7 retirement accounts. Below is a breakdown of beneficiary options, trust funding, and which products support each method.
- 401(k): Account Settings, then Beneficiary Designation
- IRA: Settings, then Personal Settings, then the Beneficiaries tab, then Edit in the IRA section
- Name, relationship, and percentage allocation (must total 100%)
- For a trust: trust name and trust date -- Guideline tells participants to have an estate attorney confirm the trust qualifies
- Charities, minors, and your estate can also be named
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- 401(k): up to 10 primary and 10 secondary beneficiaries
- IRA: no stated limit on the number of beneficiaries as long as allocations total 100%
- Marriage overrides your designation by law: your spouse automatically becomes sole primary beneficiary of the 401(k)
- Notarized written spousal consent is required to name a non-spouse primary beneficiary -- and again for any later change to a different beneficiary
- Divorce does NOT automatically revoke a former spouse's rights to the account; the participant must update the designation
- Trusts, charities, minors, and your estate can all be named as beneficiaries
- If a primary beneficiary cannot inherit, their share is split evenly among the surviving primary beneficiaries
- If you name your ESTATE as beneficiary, Guideline says the executor may need to produce a notarized Small Estate Affidavit to claim the funds
- Beneficiary designations control over a will -- the will does not reach a 401(k) or IRA with a valid designation on file
Sources
Data sourced from Guideline primary sources (18 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Guideline instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Guideline primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
Gusto Retirement Care -- Participant Support (death claims)
Gusto, Inc., Attn: Retirement Care, 1201 16th Street, Suite 350, Denver, CO 80202
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