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Enroll in Your Duke Retirement Plan

Duke offers two types of retirement plans. Eligibility for participation is determined by whether you are paid biweekly or monthly. Both plans provide a comparable retirement income.

How to Enroll in the Employees' Retirement Plan (ERP)

Eligible biweekly paid employees do not need to enroll in the Employees' Retirement Plan (ERP). Participation begins automatically after certain conditions are met. Click here for more information.

Biweekly paid employees may supplement the retirement savings by making voluntary contributions in the Faculty and Staff Retirement Plan.

How to Enroll in Your Duke 403(b) Retirement Plan

Your 403(b) plan enables you to make voluntary contributions to your retirement on a pre-tax basis, Roth after-tax basis, or a combination of both. Enrolling is an easy two-step process.

Before you decide to enroll in the plan, you only need to make a few key decisions.

Choosing How Much to Contribute

You make your voluntary contributions as a payroll deduction. You can change the amount once per pay period.

  • You may start contributing as low as 1% of salary per pay period up to 80% of salary per pay period.
  • The maximum contribution allowed by the IRS is $18,500 in 2018. If you are 50 or older at any time during 2018, you may contribute an additional $6,000 for a total of $24,500. If you have more than 15 years of service at Duke, you may be eligible to contribute up to an additional $3,000. The limit reflects your total 403(b) contributions, whether pre-tax, Roth after-tax or a combination. Please contact the benefits office at (919) 684-5600 to find out if you qualify for this additional catch up provision.
  • If you would like to contribute your maximum IRS limit on a pre-tax basis, you may enroll in the automated maximum program. This program will calculate your maximum contribution for the year and at the beginning of each year will adjust your deduction amount to reach that maximum limit.

Choosing Your Retirement Investment Carrier

Duke offers a choice of several different investment carriers for the 403(b) retirement plan. Each company offers a full range of investment options, providing you with the opportunity to build a diversified investment portfolio without having to spread your investments over multiple investment carriers. All investment carriers participate in Duke's tiered approach to investing.

Choosing Which Funds to Invest In

It is up to you to determine the right mix of investments that meets your needs. Duke offers a tiered approach to investing, based on how hands-on you want to be with your investments. This makes it easier to navigate through the investment options of Duke's 403(b) plans. Duke actively monitors funds in Tier 1 and Tier 2. Funds in Tier 3 are available for employees to invest in, but not monitored by Duke. Please review the Investment Performance and Fee Disclosure Summary information before making your investment selections.

TWO STEP PROCESS FOR ENROLLMENT

Once you know how much and where you plan to contribute, it is a simple two-step process to enroll.

  1. Set up your payroll deduction as either pre-tax, Roth after-tax, or a combination of both and designate your investment carrier(s)
    • You can do this online through the Duke Retirement Manager OR
    • You can do this with a paper form (download the retirement contribution form PDF or pick up a form at Human Resources) . Send the form to the Human Resources office by mail or fax:
      Duke Benefits, 705 Broad Street, Box 90502, Durham, NC 27708
      Fax: (919) 681-8774
      Phone: (919) 684-5600
  2. Register with the investment carrier(s) you have chosen to select your investment options and designate your beneficiary(ies).

Benefits