The flexible retirement savings plan
Take charge of your retirement savings with the New York State Voluntary Defined Contribution (VDC) Program.
The Benefits of the Voluntary Defined Contribution (VDC) Program
The New York State VDC Program is a flexible plan that vests after 366 days of service. It is an alternative to Defined Benefit (DB) pension plans.
Flexibility
The VDC program allows you to customize your retirement plan. You choose investments and providers from the menu of options in the plan, decide what to do with your retirement savings, and name your beneficiaries.
Portability
Once vested, your balances move with you if you separate from service with a public employer in New York City. You can also withdraw and rollover money when you leave New York City service.
Rapid vesting
Every year, your employer will contribute an amount equal to 8% of your qualified compensation toward your VDC account. After just 366 days of service, all contributions are fully vested. Compare that to five years for defined benefit plans. Your own contributions are always fully vested.
Compare plans
Your retirement options are summarized in our brief, interactive video. We recommend that you view it prior to making a retirement plan election.
Find out how a defined benefit plan and VDC program differ.
Eligibility
The City of New York and certain Public Employers are required to offer the VDC Program to eligible full-time/part-time employees hired on or after July 1, 2013. Employees of the following Public Employers are eligible to join: NYCHA, SCA and NYC H+H. You may be eligible for the VDC Program if you have an estimated annualized full-time salary of $75,000 or more per year, or if your part-time estimated annual salary rate of pay is $75,000 or greater.
You are not eligible if a union represents you. You may not be eligible if you previously participated in a New York City public DB plan.
Employees have 30 days from their date of hire to enroll in the VDC Program. Effective February 1, 2024, newly eligible employees must be given 30 days notification in writing.
Manage Your Money…Your Way!
Financial professionals are available to assist you in making informed investment decisions. The plan offers four tailored approaches to meet your financial goals:
- STARS (SUNY Targeted Allocation Retirement Series) — A customized portfolio, selected for the year you plan to retire.
- Investors who don’t want to make investment decisions on their own, or new investors who are still not sure which approach is best.
- Target Date Fund (TDF) — A standard portfolio, selected for the year you plan to retire.
- Investors who don't want to make investment decisions on their own, or new investors who are still not sure which approach is best.
- Do It Yourself (DIY) — You make the choices yourself or work with an advisor to help tailor your choices, at no additional cost.
- Investors who want to assume responsibility for selecting investments on their own, who have the time and discipline to closely monitor their portfolio.
- Managed Accounts — Investment choices are fully managed on your behalf; additional cost varies by investment provider.
- Investors who want to customize their portfolio by hiring a financial expert to work with them rather than doing it alone.
For detailed information on each approach, please refer to
Professional financial representatives are available to assist participants with all three approaches.
All investment providers offer professional financial guidance to assist participants, or you can select your own advisor.
You can access a financial consultant virtually, by phone, or in person (when available) for complimentary advice and education on your investment strategy.
1 For Fidelity Investments only: If you invest in the SUNY Optional Retirement Program/New York State Voluntary Defined Contribution Program through Fidelity you will be investing in a variable group annuity contract issued by Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company ("MassMutual"), 1295 State Street, Springfield, MA 01111-0001 and administered by Fidelity Investments. If benefit payments are annuitized under the group annuity contract issued by MassMutual, those benefit guarantees are subject to the claims paying ability of MassMutual.
How to Enroll in the New York State VDC Program as a New York City Employee
To learn more about the enrollment process,
If you recently moved from one NYS or NYC agency to another, you must follow steps 1-5 to register your account(s) and enroll under your new NYS or NYC agency.
Before enrolling, you must complete the Eligibility Verification & Acknowledgment Form for Employees of the City of New York & Public Employers and send it to your agency HR for certification. Your agency HR will forward your VDC Authorization and Verification form to OLR for processing. You will receive a notice from OLR to enroll in the VDC program on the TIAA website. Please contact your agency HR Personnel for the form or download the form
- Your Social Security Number
- The name of your previous retirement plan and registration/member number(s)
- If you were enrolled in the VDC Program with a previous employer, please have your NYS VDC Program contract number(s) available.
- The name, address, telephone number and e-mail address of your designated beneficiary(ies)
For detailed enrollment instructions, follow this link to the
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Contact Information
Questions about online enrollment
Phone:
Hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
You will be connected to an experienced consultant from Retirement@Work who can answer your online enrollment questions.
Questions about investing?
You can speak with a financial consultant by calling any of the authorized investment providers:
- Corebridge Financial:
1-518-783-6464 - Fidelity:
1-800-343-0860 - TIAA:
1-866-662-7945 - Voya: 1-800-438-1272 Opt. 3
Note: The Program sponsor of the New York State VDC Program is The State University of New York (SUNY). The retirement vehicle is the SUNY Optional Retirement Plan.