Yes! You can use AI to fill out TIAA Trust, N.A. IRA Beneficiary Designation

Users often make simple math errors when assigning percentages to multiple beneficiaries, resulting in a total that is not exactly 100%. This applies separately to both the Primary and Contingent beneficiary sections. An incorrect total will invalidate the designation, causing the form to be rejected and requiring resubmission, which delays the update to your account. To avoid this, carefully double-check that the percentages for each beneficiary group add up to 100% before signing.

Account owners who are married and live in a community property state (like CA, TX, WA) often overlook the Spousal Consent section. This signature is mandatory if you name someone other than your spouse as the sole primary beneficiary or if your spouse is designated to receive less than half of the IRA. Failure to obtain a witnessed spousal signature in these cases can render the entire beneficiary designation invalid and may lead to legal challenges from the spouse upon the account owner's death.

It is common for filers to leave critical beneficiary details blank, such as the Social Security Number (SSN) or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), full address, or date of birth. This information is essential for TIAA to locate and positively identify the beneficiary without ambiguity. Missing data can cause significant delays and complications for your heirs when they attempt to claim the assets, potentially requiring them to provide extensive documentation to prove their identity.

The 'Lineal Descendant Per Stirpes' (LDPS) option is a legal term that many people don't fully understand, leading them to select 'Yes' or 'No' incorrectly. This choice determines what happens to a beneficiary's share if they pass away before you: it either goes to their children (LDPS 'Yes') or is redistributed among your other surviving primary beneficiaries (LDPS 'No'). An incorrect selection can lead to your assets being distributed in a way you did not intend, potentially disinheriting grandchildren or altering the shares for your other heirs.

A simple but critical error is forgetting to sign and date the form in Step 4. An unsigned form is not legally binding and will be rejected. Furthermore, if spousal consent is required, the spouse's signature, the witness's signature, and the corresponding dates must all be completed. Always perform a final review of all pages to ensure every required signature and date field is filled out correctly before submission.

When naming a trust as a beneficiary, people often just write the name of the trust (e.g., 'The Smith Trust'). The form specifically requires both the legal name of the trust and the full name of the current trustee, as well as the date the trust was established. Without the trustee's name, TIAA has no point of contact to administer the funds, and missing information will cause the designation to be rejected.

Filers may list beneficiaries by their common nicknames (e.g., 'Mike' instead of 'Michael' or 'Sue' instead of 'Susan'). However, the form requires the full legal name as it appears on government-issued identification. Using an informal name can create significant hurdles for your beneficiary during the identity verification process, delaying their access to the funds. To prevent this, always use the beneficiary's full first, middle, and last name.

Some individuals misunderstand the distinct roles of primary and contingent beneficiaries, sometimes listing the same people in both sections or putting their main heir in the contingent section. Contingent beneficiaries only inherit if all primary beneficiaries (and their descendants, if LDPS is chosen) have passed away before the account owner. This confusion can disrupt the intended succession plan and lead to unintended consequences for your estate.

A beneficiary designation is a 'living' document that should be reviewed after major life events like marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or the death of a named beneficiary. People often forget to update their forms, leading to assets being paid to an ex-spouse or the share of a deceased beneficiary being distributed in an unintended way. Since this form revokes all prior designations, it's crucial to ensure the information is current and reflects your present wishes.

If you have more beneficiaries than the form allows, you must attach additional pages. A common mistake is failing to indicate the number of attached pages on page 1 and forgetting to sign and date each separate attachment as instructed. This can lead to the information on the extra pages being disregarded, invalidating the designations for those beneficiaries. To avoid this, ensure the page count is correct and that every single page submitted is signed and dated.