Teachers' Retirement System
The Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) has ensured that UFT members and their families have a financially secure future, and today the TRS membership includes more than 200,000 in-service members, retirees and beneficiaries.
About the Teachers’ Retirement System
For more than a century, the Teachers' Retirement System (TRS) has ensured that UFT members and their families have a financially secure future, and today the TRS membership includes more than 200,000 in-service members, retirees and beneficiaries.
TRS manages two retirement plans — the Qualified Pension Plan (QPP) and the Tax-Deferred Annuity (TDA) — and also offers death benefits, ordinary and accident disability retirement, and the right to take out loans. It offers educational programs such as pension clinics, newsletters and publications, as well as a walk-in center and a call center.
Appointed teachers, other pedagogues or paraprofessionals in city public schools automatically become members of TRS. Most others, including nurses, therapists, and substitute teachers as well as other part-timers, may join the Board of Education Retirement System, or BERS.
Enrolling in TRS
Your membership in TRS is not automatic. You must complete a TRS enrollment form and a Designation of Beneficiary form and return them to TRS. You must include proof of your date of birth when you file. Delaying enrollment may affect benefits for you or your beneficiaries. You can find enrollment and beneficiary forms, publications and financial reports, monthly account updates, a calendar of events and more on the TRS website . You can call TRS directly at 888-869-2877 or contact your UFT borough office for more information
Note: If you previously were a member of another New York State public pension system, you may be eligible to purchase or transfer credit for your prior service when you become a member of TRS. Call a pension consultant in your UFT borough office for help.
You can find enrollment and beneficiary forms, publications and financial reports, monthly account updates, a calendar of events and more on the TRS website .
Your Tax-Deferred Annuity (TDA)
Another move toward a secure retirement is participating in the voluntary tax-deferred annuity (TDA) program. This is a supplemental retirement plan that enables you to invest money for your future on a tax-deferred basis through automatic payroll deductions. To apply, please call TRS at 888-869-2877 or at your UFT borough office.
Participants have six investment choices: a guaranteed fixed investment and five variable funds. Federal, state and city income taxes are deferred on contributions and earnings until they are withdrawn. When you retire, you can withdraw all or part of these funds or turn them into an annuity.