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403(b) plan

An excellent way to save for retirement

Welcome to the website that Corebridge Retirement Services has created especially for you, as an employee of the University of St. Thomas. As the nation’s leading provider of 403(b) plans to higher education employees, Corebridge is able to provide the combination of investments and personal service University of St. Thomas employees need to help them plan for their future. 

The plan highlights are only a brief overview of the plan's features and are not a legally binding document. The information in this section does not modify the terms of the plan and in the event of a conflict, the terms of the plan control.

Take advantage today

You are immediately eligible to participate in the plan and may begin contributing to the plan upon enrollment. 

Certain classes of employees are not eligible to participate in this plan: 

  • Employees who are enrolled and regularly attending classes at the University of St. Thomas and paid through a work-study program.

Starting early has its advantages

Employee contributions
Generally, you may contribute as much as 100% of your annual includible compensation up to the maximum IRS contribution limit. You may increase or decrease the amount you contribute to the plan as often as the plan allows. 

2024 contribution limit

Your contribution limit for 2024 is $23,000.

You have a choice regarding your elective contributions to your workplace 403(b) plan. You can direct all of your contributions to a traditional pretax account, to a Roth account or to a combination of the two. Contributions to a Roth account are after-tax. Regardless of your election, you are subject to the annual contribution limits detailed previously. 

For employees who do not make an election, there is an automatic pretax deferral. 

Catch-up contributions
You may be able to contribute additional catch-up amounts if you meet the following conditions.  

If eligible for both catch-up contributions, you must exhaust the 15-year catch-up first.

2024 catch - up contributions

> An additional $3,000 if you have 15 more years of service and have undercontributed in prior years, and 

> An additional $7,500 if you are age 50 or older.

Stop or change contributions

You may change your contribution amount or discontinue contributing to your plan at any time and resume contributing again later, subject to your plan provisions and any administrative requirements. In the meantime, your account will continue to grow on a tax-deferred basis.

Employer contributions
The University of St. Thomas will match your contributions to the 403(b) at 100% up to an amount equal to 6% of your salary. The match is based on salary deferrals regardless of whether they are pretax or after-tax. 

Vesting
Vesting is a participant’s right of ownership to the money in his or her plan account. You are always 100% vested in your own contributions as well as 100% vested in your employer contributions.

Accessing your money before retirement

Withdrawal restrictions
Your plan was established to encourage long-term savings, so withdrawals prior to age 59½ may be subject to federal restrictions and a 10% federal early withdrawal penalty on taxable amounts.

Generally, depending on your plan provisions, you may withdraw your vested account balance if you meet one of the following requirements:

  • Attaining age 59½
  • Termination of employment
  • Your death or total disability
  • Hardship
    • No earnings on deferral contributions may be withdrawn on account of a financial hardship withdrawal.
    • You must take available loans before you can take a hardship.

The following are events upon which you may withdraw vested amounts without incurring a 10% federal early withdrawal penalty:

  • Attaining age 59½
  • Severance from employment on or after age 55
  • Your death or total disability
  • Taking substantially equal payments for a period of five years or attainment of age 59½, whichever is later
  • Qualified birth or adoption withdrawal within one year from the date of birth or adoption 

In addition, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires you to take Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) withdrawals from your retirement account(s) annually beginning the year you reach the RMD eligible age. RMD eligible age is:

  • Age 73 if you were born January 1, 1951, or later (The RMD eligible age will increase to age 75 after December 31, 2032)
  • Age 72 if you were born after June 30, 1949, and before January 1, 1951 (For individuals turning age 72 in 2023, no RMD payment is required in 2023)
  • Age 70 ½ if you were born before July 1, 1949.

Distribution options
Your plan offers many distribution options, allowing you to tailor your benefits to meet your individual needs. Depending on your plan provisions, your withdrawal options include:

  • Transferring or rolling over your vested account balance to another tax-advantaged plan that
    accepts rollovers
  • Receiving systematic or partial withdrawals
  • Taking a lump-sum distribution
  • Choosing one of the many annuity options available
  • Deferring distributions until a later date, allowing your account to continue to grow tax-deferred (Required Minimum Distributions apply)

Generally, income taxes must be paid on all amounts you withdraw from your plan. A 10% federal early withdrawal penalty may apply to taxable distributions taken prior to attainment of age 59½.

Qualified distributions from Roth accounts are generally excludible from gross income.

No benefit shall be distributed prior to attainment of age 62 without the participant's consent. Consult your financial professional for more specific information.

Important considerations before deciding to move funds either into or out of a Corebridge Retirement Services account
There are many things to consider. For starters, you will want to carefully review and compare your existing account and the new account, including: fees and charges; guarantees and benefits; and, any limitations under either of the accounts. Also, you will want to know whether a surrender of your current account could result in charges. Your financial professional can help you review these and other important considerations. Consult a tax professional before making a decision to move funds either into or out of a Corebridge account.

Tax-free loans
Tax-free loans make it possible for you to access your account, subject to certain limitations, without permanently reducing your account balance. Defaulted loan amounts (not repaid on time) will be taxed as ordinary income and may be subject to a 10% federal early withdrawal penalty if you are under age 59½.

An array of investment choices

Available funds & performance
You decide how to invest all contributions among the mutual funds and the Fixed-Interest Option* offered under the University of St. Thomas 403(b) Retirement Plan.

The following mutual funds and the Fixed-Interest Option are available in your retirement plan. They provide you with the flexibility you need to help create a suitably diversified portfolio that matches your personal retirement time horizon, investment risk tolerance and investment preferences.

View the entire list of funds and their performance available to 403(b) plan participants.

To view or print a prospectus, access “Prospectuses and Other Important Materials.” The prospectus contains the investment objectives, risks, charges, expenses and other information about the respective investment companies that you should consider carefully before investing. Please read the prospectus carefully before investing or sending money. You can also request a copy by calling 1.800.428.2542.

* Policy Form series GFUA-398, a group fixed unallocated annuity issued by The Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company, Houston, Texas.

Fixed-Interest Option transfer restrictions
Generally, participants may transfer assets from the Fixed-Interest Option into equity options at any time and, after 90 days, from equity options into another fixed-income option such as a money market fund, a stable-value fund or certain short-term bond funds, if such “competing options” are allowed in the plan.

Administrative fee
The annual administrative fee will be .45% per participant per year on plan assets invested in Vanguard funds; .20% per participant per year on plan assets invested in TIAA-CREF Lifecycle Index Retirement funds; and .25% per participant per year on plan assets invested in the Fixed-Interest Option.

Of the total annual administrative fee, an amount equal to .25% per participant per year on all plan assets as determined quarterly will be deposited in a plan expense account for plan administration expenses.

The plan may incur charges or fees outside of the investment alternative product(s) that may be deducted from participant accounts as directed or authorized by the Plan Administrator. These fees may include third-party administration, consultant, legal, audit and other fees directly related to the operation of the plan.

RO 2767020 (03/2023)