RIT Retirement Savings Plan

Note: There are separate eligibility rules for eligible employees to make salary reduction contributions to the Plan and the part of the Plan that provides for RIT matching contributions. 

Employee Salary Reduction Contributions

All employees* can participate in the salary reduction portion of the Plan beginning on the first day of the month on or after their date of hire. 

*Employees that are not eligible to participate in the Plan regardless of their date of hire are: student employees whose employment is incidental to their educational programs at RIT and independent contractors (this includes leased employees or contract workers hired through, or who are employees of, an outside agency).

Employees who are immediately eligible to participate in the Plan on their date of hire or re-hire, but you do not make a salary reduction election of any kind (neither an election to contribute to the Plan nor an affirmative election to forego making contributions), RIT will automatically withhold 2% of your compensation and contribute that amount on a pre-tax basis to an account for you under the Plan. Auto Enrollment does not apply to adjunct faculty and staff. 

Automatic enrollment will begin as of the first payroll period 60 days after your date of hire/eligibility.

Annual Increase for all Automatically Enrolled Employees

If you have been automatically enrolled in the Plan, your contribution percentage will increase by 1% annually on the first payroll period starting on or after September 1st of the first calendar year following the Plan Year when your auto enrollment began.

For example, assume RIT started withholding 2% of your compensation due to automatic enrollment beginning on March 1, 2023. If you did not elect to contribute a different amount or elect to stop contributions, your 2% contribution would

• increase to 3% on the first payroll period starting on or after September 1, 2024, then
• increase to 4% on the first payroll period starting on or after September 1, 2025, then
• increase to 5% on the first payroll period starting on or after September 1, 2026, then
• increase to 6% on the first payroll period starting on or after September 1, 2023, etc.

You will receive a notice regarding the Plan’s automatic enrollment provisions on or around your date of hire (or before automatic enrollment begins if you are a current employee) and each year thereafter that you are subject to automatic enrollment. You can change the automatic contribution percentage or stop making contributions at any time by notifying Fidelity as outlined in the Changing Your Contribution Amount section below. 

To receive the University’s matching contributions, you must satisfy the eligibility requirements and you must contribute at least 2% of compensation through salary reductions. The amount of the matching contributions is based on your date of hire as follows:

• For Employees Hired (or have an adjusted hire date) Before January 1, 2006
  • If you contribute 2% of your compensation to the Plan, you will receive a University matching contribution to the Plan equal to 10% of compensation for a total matching and salary reduction contribution of 12%.
    • The University does not match salary reduction contributions in excess of 2% of compensation.

• For Employees Hired On or After January 1, 2006 (or whose adjusted date of hire is on or after that date)
  • You are eligible for matching contributions the first of the month following your one-year anniversary with RIT or the first of the month following your date of hire with certification of prior Higher Education service through Retirement Plan Prior Service Form.  
    • If you are contributing at least 2%, there will be a University matching contribution according to the following schedule:

The University does not match salary reduction contributions in excess of 5% of compensation.

• For Employees Hired On or After January 1, 2025 (or whose adjusted date of hire is on or after that date)
  • You are eligible for matching contributions the first of the month following your one-year anniversary with RIT or the first of the month following your date of hire with certification of prior Higher Education service through Retirement Plan Prior Service Form.  
    • If you are contributing at least 2%, there will be a University matching contribution according to the following schedule:

The University does not match salary reduction contributions in excess of 4% of compensation.

When are RIT's Matching Contributions made?

The matching contributions from the University are made on a payroll-by-payroll basis based on your contributions and match-eligible compensation for that payroll period.

The contribution options for the RIT Retirement Savings Plan are: 

• Traditional 403(b)—Contributions are made on a pretax basis: before federal and state tax, but subject to FICA tax. These contributions reduce your taxable income now; taxes are paid when the money is distributed from the plan
• Roth 403(b)—Contributions are made on an after-tax basis; qualified withdrawals are tax-free, including earnings 

RIT's Retirement Savings Plan offers a number of investment options to provide you with an opportunity to diversify your investments as well as to select the appropriate investment option(s) for your goals.

View your investment options with Fidelity Investments.

View your investment options with TIAA.

Annual IRS Limits

*If you are age 50 or older in 2025, you may contribute up to an additional $7,500. 

Note: Any employee contributions made to another employer’s plan in the current calendar year count toward the annual maximum. 

You will always be 100 percent vested in all the amounts in your account. This means that no action by RIT or by you, such as termination of employment before a stated number of years, will cause any portion of your account to be forfeited. The value of your account will fluctuate depending upon any changes in the value of the funds in which your account may be invested.

The purpose of a fee disclosure ("Plan and Investment Notice") is to help you make informed decisions when managing your retirement account. It contains important information regarding your plan's services, investments, and expenses.

Annual Fidelity & TIAA Retirement Fee Disclosures

1. Establish your account by go to the Fidelity website and click "Start Now." You will need to provide personal information to complete your enrollment. Please note: If you have already have an established account with  Fidelity, you will need to use that account information to log in. 

2. Once logged in, select "RIT RET SAVINGS PLAN" and click "Begin". Enter your desired contribution rate and click "Continue". **Remember, contributions to the Plan come out of your paycheck before you pay federal and state taxes.

• If you would like your pretax contributions to increase automatically, consider the Annual Increase Program. Select "Contribution Amount" once you have logged on and then click "Annual Increase Program". Your contributions will increase by the percentage amount you input annually each September 1, RIT’s salary increase date. You can change your increase amount or withdraw from the program at any time.

3. Choose what percentage of your contributions you would like directed to Fidelity and/or TIAA. Click "Continue" when you are ready. These elections can be changed at any time.

4. Choose your investment(s).

• You will have to choose "Target Date Fund" or "I'll Manage on My Own" (you can choose Target Date Funds if you choose to manage on your own.)
• To choose an investment lineup that you have chosen, click "I'll Manage on My Own" and enter the percentages in the text boxes. Your allocation needs to equal 100%.

5. If you have elected to defer contributions to TIAA, a separate window will appear and you will need to click "TIAA" in order to choose you investment option(s). Once on the TIAA page, new users will need to register but returning users can log on with the User ID they previously created.

6. Designate a beneficiary at Fidelity and/or TIAA. 

Employees can contribute between 2% and 80% of your eligible pay, up to the annual IRS dollar limits. 

Changing contribution amount

1. Log into your Fidelity account and click on the "Contributions" tab.

2. You will have three choices to choose from:

• Contribution Amount - to view and change your contribution percentage and/or the split between pre-tax and after-tax Roth contributions
• Annual Increase Program - to enroll or change participation in the program to automatically increase your contribution effective each September 1
• Retirement Providers - to view and change the allocation for your future contributions between the two record keepers, Fidelity and TIAA

3. Choose your desired transaction and follow the prompts. Once you have completed your change, click "Submit".

If you prefer, you can make these changes by phone; call Fidelity at 1-800-343-0860/V and 1-800-259-9734/TTY.

Investment Changes

You have two choices for making investment changes for your retirement accounts:

• Change your investment election for future contributions
• Change your investment mix for your current balance (Fidelity calls this Exchanges)

With Fidelity:

• Log into your Fidelity account and click on the "Investments" tab and then select "Change Investments".
• To change where your future contributions are invested, click on "Future Investments" or to change your current investment mix, click on the appropriate box.
• Choose your desired transaction and follow the prompts. Once you have completed your changes, click "Submit".

You can make these changes by phone; call Fidelity at 1-800-343-0860/V and 1-800-259-9734/TTY.

With TIAA:

• Log into your TIAA account and click "Actions" and then "Change your investments" under the Retirement plans tile.
• Follow the prompts to make your changes.

You can also make these changes by phone; call TIAA at 1-800-842-2776/V and 1-800-842-2755/TTY.

At Fidelity

• Log into your Fidelity account 
• Click on Menu, then select Profile
• Go to Beneficiaries and add or edit your beneficiaries
• Save your changes.

If you have any questions about logging in, naming a beneficiary, or your account, contact Fidelity directly at (800) 343-0860/V and (800) 259-9734/TTY.

At TIAA

• Log in to your TIAA account 
• Click on Profile, the Beneficiaries
• Add or edit your beneficiary information.

You’ll receive a confirmation of your beneficiary election and you can change it at any time.  You can also change your beneficiaries with the help of a TIAA Financial Consultant.  Call (800) 842-2252, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. (ET) and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. (ET).

If you have retirement savings in another employer's plan or in an IRA, you can generally roll it into the RIT Retirement Savings Plan. To begin a rollover of a prior retirement plan, contact the appropriate Plan Administrator (Fidelity or TIAA) to initiate the process. Contact Fidelity Investments for details on rolling over your account balance in an IRA or an employer sponsored retirement plan to the RIT Retirement Savings Plan. You should also discuss with your tax advisor the impact of rolling contributions from a prior retirement plan or from an IRA to your current employer's retirement plan.

More details can be found the RIT Retirement Savings Plan Summary Plan Description. 

Distributions While Still Employed by RIT:

• In-service withdrawal: Age 59 1/2
• Minimum Distribution: Age 72 (optional)
• Disability: Receiving long-term disability benefits and/or receiving Social Security disability benefits. 
• Loans (available through Fidelity only) see Loans section below for more details
• Hardship Withdrawals as defined by the IRS.

Questions about your eligibility for any sort of in-service withdrawal should be directed to your Plan Administrator(s), Fidelity/TIAA.

You are generally allowed to withdraw money from your plan when you leave your employer or retire. Withdrawals may be subject to income taxes and, if they occur prior to you becoming age 59½, a 10% early withdrawal tax penalty.

For more information, call the Fidelity Retirement Services Center at 800-343-0860. For information about withdrawals from your account(s) with TIAA, call TIAA for information and instructions. Representatives are available to assist you at 800 842-2252, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. - 10 p.m. or Saturday, 9 a.m. - 6 p.m. (ET).

Although your plan account is intended for the future, you may borrow from your account for any reason. Generally, the RIT Retirement Savings Plan allows you to borrow up to 50% of your vested account balance.

Loans are only permitted from your salary reduction contributions (including related earnings) to the Plan. RIT contributions to your plan are not eligible for loans; in addition, employee contributions you may have made to the pre-2012 RIT Basic Retirement Plan are not eligible for loans.

Loans are only permitted through a Fidelity account, and will be repaid through payroll deductions.  You can transfer money from a TIAA account to a Fidelity account if you want to apply for a loan (subject to any transfer restrictions that may apply to the TIAA Account). 

The minimum loan amount is $1,000, and a loan must not exceed $50,000.

For more information on loans, please call Fidelity Investments at 800-343-0860.

CAPTRUST provides employees with professional, confidential and independent investment advice and financial coaching at no cost to you. They have been helping people successfully plan for retirement and optimize their employer-sponsored retirement plan benefits for more than thirty years and can assist employees with decisions related to the RIT Retirement Savings Plan:

• Deciding how much to contribute to the retirement plan
• Provide advice on your investment fund choices to help you maximize your long-term investment objectives while taking into account your risk tolerance
• Determining the difference between pretax and Roth contributions and which contribution type is best for you
• Understanding the differences between Fidelity and TIAA and which recordkeeper is best for you
• Understanding the differences between TIAA’s legacy investments (pre-2012) and current investments and if migration is right for you
• Understanding loans and distributions

They can also help employees navigate other financial priorities such as:

• Creating a budget
• Creating a financial plan
• Debt and credit issues
• College savings

Schedule your appointment today: visit the CAPTRUST website or call 800-967-9948.

Representatives from Fidelity Investments available to meet with you individually. They would be happy to help you assess your current retirement savings picture and figure out what you can do to start saving even more. To make an appointment, contact:

Fidelity

Virtual and On-campus appointments 
(800) 642-7131/V
(800) 259-9743/TTY
 

Over-the-phone consultation
(800) 248-4213/V

Representatives from TIAA are available to meet with you individually. They would be happy to help you assess your current retirement savings picture and figure out what you can do to start saving even more. To make an appointment, contact:

TIAA

(585) 246-4600/V
(585) 246-4610/TTY

RIT has established an internal Retirement Plan Investment Committee to provide oversight to the investments under the retirement plan offered to employees. This committee meets with our expert national consultant, CAPTRUST, regularly throughout the year to monitor the Plan's investment options, review the Plan's recordkeeping services and fees, investigate new potential investment options and propose changes when appropriate. Through the work of the committee, employees participating in the Plan have local representatives to provide feedback in the process.

The following individuals presently serve on this committee