Becoming vested is a crucial milestone for NYSLRS members. It means you have earned enough service to qualify for a retirement benefit once you meet the age or service requirements established by your retirement plan. Vesting is automatic — you don’t have to fill out any paperwork to become vested.
Years of Service Credit to Become Vested
NYSLRS members in Tiers 2 – 6 need five years of service credit to be vested.
If you work part-time, or if you have an unpaid leave of absence, it will take longer to become vested. For example, if you work half-time, you earn six months of credit toward vesting for each year on the job.
Sign in to your Retirement Online account to check your total estimated service credit and whether you are vested.
If you work for a school district, read our How School Employees Earn NYSLRS Service Credit blog post for information about how your service credit is determined.
Note: Previously, Tier 5 and 6 members needed ten years of service to be eligible for a service retirement benefit. However, as of April 9, 2022, these members only need five years of service credit to be vested. The new law did not change benefit rules such as how long members must contribute, pension benefit calculations, the full retirement age, reductions to retire early or the cost to purchase previous service.
Applying for Retirement
Vesting is automatic, but you will need to apply for retirement to receive your pension — NYSLRS will not pay out your pension benefit unless you apply for it.
Pension eligibility requirements and benefit calculations depend on your tier and retirement plan. To find your tier and retirement plan, sign in to your Retirement Online account and go to the ‘My Account Summary’ section. Once you know your tier and retirement plan, you can find your retirement plan publication for comprehensive information about your benefits and filing instructions.
And when you’re ready, you can apply for a service retirement benefit quickly and easily using Retirement Online.
If you leave public employment, read about the age requirements for filing for a vested retirement benefit as well as other important information that you should know about your NYSLRS membership and benefits.
My husband John and I are now living in Broward County, Florida. Having moved from NY to NJ several years ago and then moving Virginia to be closer to our family. Recent successful medical treatments have allowed me to reset my life and continue on into my future with a fresh new look at things.
It’s been since October 2020, over three years, to have pension finalized. I’ve emailed and called several times to no avail.
Your message is important to us, and we have sent you a private message in response.
So glad you have time for these posts. Maybe you could find the time to correct my pension benefit. I have only been waiting since Feb 2022.
NYSLRS is working hard to complete recalculations and to provide retroactive payments as quickly as possible. We apologize for the length of time this has taken for some retirees. NYSLRS often receives adjustments to earnings for retirees well after the date of retirement and so needs to recalculate pension amounts and provide retroactive payments. Most initial pension payments are made by the end of the month following retirement and are close to a retiree’s final calculation. Thank you for your patience.