What to do when a Pentegra account holder dies
Contact Pentegra — 6-step process, 6 required documents, and the employer/plan administrator notifies the plan, then distribution paperwork goes to each beneficiary; timing depends on the plan and the recordkeeper. two hard dates matter: separate accounts for multiple beneficiaries must be established by december 31 of the year after the year of death, and a five-year deferment must be completed by december 31 of the year containing the fifth anniversary of the death.
Participant Services
Pentegra Services, Inc., 2261 Market Street, Suite 86302, San Francisco, CA 94114 (corporate headquarters: 2 Enterprise Drive, Suite 408, Shelton, CT 06484)
Participant Services
Pentegra Services, Inc., 2261 Market Street, Suite 86302, San Francisco, CA 94114 (corporate headquarters: 2 Enterprise Drive, Suite 408, Shelton, CT 06484)
Participant Services (death distributions run through the employer plan administrator)
Pentegra Trust Company, c/o ASPire, ATTN: Distributions, 4010 Boy Scout Blvd, Suite 450, Tampa, FL 33607 (403(b) death distributions). Beneficiary changes and 403(b) Services: Pentegra Trust Company, c/o Pentegra Retirement Services, ATTN: 403(b) Services, 701 Westchester Avenue, Suite 320E, White Plains, NY 10604.
What happens to Pentegra retirement accounts after the account holder dies depends on how each account was titled. Beneficiary-designated and trust-owned accounts transfer directly. Accounts in the deceased's name alone go through the estate, and the executor or administrator works with Pentegra's Participant Services (death distributions run through the employer plan administrator) (866-634-5873) to claim the funds.
The claim process can be initiated by phone at 866-634-5873 or by sending documentation to 403b-Ops@pentegra.com. Have the account holder's full name, account numbers, and a certified death certificate available when making initial contact.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with Pentegra:
Filing a claim
- Contact the deceased participant's employer HR or benefits department and ask them to notify the plan's administrator
- You can also reach Pentegra participant services directly: 866-633-4015 (401(k), ESOP, non-qualified), 203-567-2237 (pension / defined benefit), 866-634-5873 (non-ERISA 403(b) or IRA at Pentegra Trust Company)
- If the 401(k) plan moved to Empower when Pentegra Online (401ksave.net) shut down on September 27, 2024, the account is serviced at https://participant.empower-retirement.com/ and the death claim is filed with that recordkeeper
- Step 1-2: deceased participant details (name, SSN, date and place of death, employer/plan name) and the beneficiary's details — the form does not accept a P.O. box for the beneficiary address
- Step 3: choose the payout — life expectancy method, five-year deferment, annual installments (2-10 years for a surviving spouse, 2-5 years for a non-spouse), or a lump sum paid directly or rolled over
- A surviving spouse may roll death benefits into their own IRA; a non-spouse beneficiary may only roll into an inherited (non-spouse) IRA
- Step 7: the form must be SIGNATURE GUARANTEED — a bank or broker medallion-type guarantee, not a notary. A signature guarantee is also required if the check is mailed to a third-party address.
- A certified death certificate
- IRS Form W-9 if the beneficiary is taking an immediate distribution of their entire interest
- Letters Testamentary OR a certified copy of the small estate affidavit if the participant named NO beneficiary and either the surviving spouse takes as beneficiary or the participant was unmarried and the estate is the beneficiary
- If the beneficiary wants to keep the account and draw it down over five years or over life expectancy, they must contact Pentegra Trust Company for the appropriate account application
- Pentegra Trust Company 403(b): Pentegra Trust Company, c/o ASPire, ATTN: Distributions, 4010 Boy Scout Blvd, Suite 450, Tampa, FL 33607 — client services 866-634-5873
- Employer 401(k), ESOP, defined benefit, or cash balance plan: follow the return instructions on the packet the plan administrator or recordkeeper sends, and call 866-633-4015 (DC) or 203-567-2237 (DB) with questions
Required Documents
- Completed distribution election form — 403(b) Death Distribution Request Form for Pentegra Trust Company accounts; one per beneficiary
- Certified death certificate
- Signature guarantee on the death distribution form (Step 7); also required if the check goes to a third-party address
- IRS Form W-9 for a beneficiary taking an immediate distribution of their entire interest
- Letters Testamentary or a certified copy of the small estate affidavit when no beneficiary was designated and the estate or surviving spouse takes
- Trust documents and trustee identification if a trust is the beneficiary
What to know at this institution
The estate value here is that this is an employer plan, so the executor cannot act alone: the employer/plan administrator is the entry point, and Pentegra or the plan's recordkeeper works from the beneficiary designation on file. Three institution-specific details. (1) The Pentegra Trust Company 403(b) Death Distribution Request Form requires a SIGNATURE GUARANTEE (Step 7) — a bank or broker guarantee, which is a heavier lift than a notary and often the step that delays a claim. (2) If no beneficiary was designated, the form requires Letters Testamentary or a certified small estate affidavit, which is exactly the probate paperwork a beneficiary designation would have avoided; Pentegra's own participant guidance warns that an undesignated 401(k) is generally paid to the estate and lands in probate. (3) A 401(k) whose recordkeeping moved to Empower after Pentegra Online (401ksave.net) closed on September 27, 2024 is claimed through Empower at participant.empower-retirement.com, not through Pentegra. Note also that the death-distribution instructions Pentegra Trust Company publishes were written before the SECURE Act (they reference the pre-2020 age-70 1/2 required beginning date and life-expectancy stretch), so beneficiaries should confirm the current required-distribution timeline with the plan and a tax advisor before electing a payout.
Prepare your letter of instruction to Pentegra
Pentegra provides its own letter-of-instruction form. Answer a few questions and we complete that official form for you to print and sign.
Build your letter of instructionHow long the process takes at Pentegra: The employer/plan administrator notifies the plan, then distribution paperwork goes to each beneficiary; timing depends on the plan and the recordkeeper. Two hard dates matter: separate accounts for multiple beneficiaries must be established by December 31 of the year after the year of death, and a five-year deferment must be completed by December 31 of the year containing the fifth anniversary of the death. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
Documentation required by Pentegra includes Completed distribution election form — 403(b) Death Distribution Request Form for Pentegra Trust Company accounts; one per beneficiary, Certified death certificate, and Signature guarantee on the death distribution form (Step 7); also required if the check goes to a third-party address, along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
No. Every plan Pentegra administers — 401(k), profit sharing, defined benefit, cash balance, ESOP, 403(b), MEP, PEP, non-qualified deferred compensation — is an employer-sponsored plan. There is no ownership line to retitle, and a trust cannot become the account owner. The only estate-planning lever is the beneficiary designation. A trust may be NAMED as beneficiary (the 403(b) Beneficiary Change Form has an entity-name field), and Pentegra Trust Company's death-distribution instructions distinguish a "natural person or qualifying trust" — a trust that does not qualify under the IRS rules is not treated as a designated beneficiary and the payout schedule is worse. Confirm with the plan and a tax advisor before naming a trust rather than a person.
The designation is invalidated. The Pentegra Trust Company 403(b) Beneficiary Change Form says so on its face: a participant who checks "I am not married" and names other beneficiaries is told that if they are married at the time of death, that designation is invalid and the death benefit is paid to the surviving spouse unless the spouse gives written consent before payment. The same form requires written spousal consent whenever a married participant names anyone other than the spouse, and the spouse's signature must be witnessed by an authorized plan representative or a Notary Public. Marriage, divorce, or remarriage means filing a fresh form — each new designation revokes all prior ones.
Each beneficiary files a separate 403(b) Death Distribution Request Form (Pentegra Trust Company). It has to be SIGNATURE GUARANTEED in Step 7 — that is a bank or broker signature guarantee, not a notary stamp, and it is a common source of delay. Enclose a certified death certificate; add IRS Form W-9 if you are taking your entire interest immediately; add a signature guarantee as well if the check is going to a third-party address. If the participant designated NO beneficiary, the form requires Letters Testamentary or a certified copy of the small estate affidavit before it will pay the surviving spouse or the estate. Mail the package to Pentegra Trust Company, c/o ASPire, ATTN: Distributions, 4010 Boy Scout Blvd, Suite 450, Tampa, FL 33607; client services is 866-634-5873.
Start with the employer. Pentegra is the third-party administrator and 3(16) fiduciary administrator; the employer is the plan sponsor and the sponsor is normally the entry point for a death notification. Then confirm who keeps the records today, because that changed: Pentegra Online (401ksave.net) was retired on September 27, 2024, and plans that moved to Empower are now serviced at participant.empower-retirement.com, so the death claim for those accounts is filed with Empower rather than Pentegra. If the plan is still with Pentegra, call 866-633-4015 for a 401(k), ESOP, or non-qualified plan, or 203-567-2237 for a pension or defined benefit plan.
Pentegra's Participant Services (death distributions run through the employer plan administrator) can be reached by phone at 866-633-4015, email at 403b-Ops@pentegra.com, and fax at 914-821-9582 for questions throughout the claims process.
When the deceased had multiple Pentegra retirement accounts, some may need separate claims while others can be handled together. The Participant Services (death distributions run through the employer plan administrator) can clarify what's needed for each account type.
Sources
Data sourced from Pentegra primary sources (15 pages reviewed). How we research.
Participant Services
Pentegra Services, Inc., 2261 Market Street, Suite 86302, San Francisco, CA 94114 (corporate headquarters: 2 Enterprise Drive, Suite 408, Shelton, CT 06484)
Participant Services
Pentegra Services, Inc., 2261 Market Street, Suite 86302, San Francisco, CA 94114 (corporate headquarters: 2 Enterprise Drive, Suite 408, Shelton, CT 06484)
Participant Services (death distributions run through the employer plan administrator)
Pentegra Trust Company, c/o ASPire, ATTN: Distributions, 4010 Boy Scout Blvd, Suite 450, Tampa, FL 33607 (403(b) death distributions). Beneficiary changes and 403(b) Services: Pentegra Trust Company, c/o Pentegra Retirement Services, ATTN: 403(b) Services, 701 Westchester Avenue, Suite 320E, White Plains, NY 10604.
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