How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Navy Federal
Covers 12 deposit, 3 retirement, 1 investment, and 4 lending accounts — beneficiaries can be managed online
Member and Account Services
Navy Federal Credit Union, PO Box 3000, Merrifield, VA 22119-3000
Navy Federal Investment Services (NFIS) - Trust, Will and Estate Management
Survivor Support
Navy Federal Credit Union, Attn: Survivor Support, PO Box 3002, Merrifield, VA 22116-9887
Estate planning at Navy Federal means getting each account set up so it transfers automatically when you die—either through a POD beneficiary or trust ownership. Because Navy Federal is a membership-based institution, trust retitling must maintain the membership eligibility requirement. Without one of these in place, accounts may require probate before your family can access the funds.
Across 20 product types, Navy Federal accounts vary in how they transfer at death. The sections below walk through Payable on Death (POD) designations, trust funding options, and which products support each method.
- All existing accounts plus any future accounts opened after the date of the form and owned in the same manner, or
- Only specific existing accounts, listed by complete account number
- Do not list IRA accounts on this form — IRAs use Form NFCU 584 instead
Required Documents
- Trust name, date established, and tax ID (EIN or SSN)
Special Requirements
- POD is available on savings, checking, MMSA, Jumbo MMSA, and certificate accounts. IRAs cannot be POD accounts — they are already trust accounts in their own right (NFCU 1215e).
- Form NFCU 250 requires each beneficiary to meet the NCUA definition in 12 CFR 745.4(c): a natural person, or a charitable organization or other non-profit entity recognized under the Internal Revenue Code. A legal trust or charity is named with an ITIN or EIN.
- A person beneficiary cannot be added without full name, physical street address (no PO Box), date of birth, and Social Security number. Navy Federal will not process a form missing any of these.
- The form must be signed by every primary and joint account owner.
- If no survivorship option is selected, the account defaults to Joint Account - With Survivorship.
- POD accounts are NCUA-insured separately: each owner is insured up to $250,000 per beneficiary (NFCU 606, Important Disclosures).
- IRA beneficiaries use Form NFCU 584 (Designation of Beneficiaries for IRA Plan); ESA beneficiaries use Form NFCU 592.
- Digital Investor brokerage beneficiaries use the NFIS Transfer on Death (TOD) Form, not Form NFCU 250.
Sources
Data sourced from Navy Federal primary sources (19 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Navy Federal instructions
Download instructions for the whole estateA printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details — verified against Navy Federal primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Member and Account Services
Navy Federal Credit Union, PO Box 3000, Merrifield, VA 22119-3000
Navy Federal Investment Services (NFIS) - Trust, Will and Estate Management
Survivor Support
Navy Federal Credit Union, Attn: Survivor Support, PO Box 3002, Merrifield, VA 22116-9887
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