- You are vested after three years of contributory service, as long as you have not taken a refund. Service you buy after July 1, 2004 does not count toward vesting.Foundation Handbook (July 2024), p. 8; SDRS Actuarial Valuation (June 30, 2024), p. 50
- If you leave before three years, you can take your contributions plus interest and 50% of the employer's, or leave the money with SDRS up to 10 years. After three years you can leave it and draw a lifetime benefit later, or take your contributions plus interest and 85% of the employer's and give up the benefit.Foundation Handbook (July 2024), pp. 16-17
- Generational members who take a refund also give up their Variable Retirement Account. A married member's spouse must sign the refund form.Generational Handbook (July 2024), p. 17; SDCL 3-12C-602
Refunds are only for members who have left SDRS-covered employment; there are no loans or hardship withdrawals. Before three years of contributory service: your contributions plus interest and 50% of employer contributions plus interest. After three years you may instead take your contributions plus interest and 85% of employer contributions plus interest, but you give up the lifetime benefit (and, for Generational members, the VRA). A non-vested member may leave the money with SDRS up to 10 years (interest keeps accruing) and must withdraw it in the 11th year or risk forfeiting it. A married member's spouse must sign the refund form. Foundation Handbook (July 2024), pp. 16-17, Refunds; Generational Handbook (July 2024), p. 17; SDCL 3-12C-407, 3-12C-408, 3-12C-602, 3-12C-604
A refund can be rolled over to an IRA or another eligible plan; see SDRS taxes. Bought service doesn't count toward vesting; see buying service credit.
The refund, in dollars
Illustration: $20,000 of your own contributions with interest and $20,000 of the employer's.
| When you leave | Employer share | Refund |
|---|---|---|
| Before 3 years | 50% | $30,000 |
| 3 years or moregives up the lifetime benefit | 85% | $37,000 |
Leaving the money in
Vested members who leave the money with SDRS can start a benefit at the usual ages: reduced from 55 and unreduced at 65 (Foundation), or reduced from 57 and unreduced at 67 (Generational). Foundation Handbook (July 2024), p. 10, Eligibility for Retirement; SDCL 3-12C-1105; SDCL 3-12C-1111 (ten years preceding normal retirement age); Generational Handbook (July 2024), p. 10, Eligibility for Retirement; SDCL 3-12C-1203; SDCL 3-12C-1207
A vested member who leaves the money in may have FAC adjusted by the COLA while not employed by an SDRS employer; that increase is dropped if you return. Foundation Handbook (July 2024), p. 16; SDRS Actuarial Valuation (June 30, 2024), p. 56 (a vested terminated member's benefit is increased by the COLA from termination to benefit start)
Accumulated contributions are a minimum benefit: if you (and a surviving spouse) die before they are paid out, the rest goes to your beneficiary or estate. Foundation Handbook (July 2024), pp. 8, 16; Generational Handbook (July 2024), p. 15
Service purchased after July 1, 2004 is not contributory service for vesting. SDRS Actuarial Valuation (June 30, 2024), p. 50, Credited Service; SDCL 3-12C-101(29)
Compare a deferred benefit with the calculator: enter your years and the date you'd start it. The earliest start ages are in early retirement.
Questions
Can I get my SDRS contributions back if I leave teaching?
Yes, once you've left SDRS-covered work. Before 3 years of contributory service you get your contributions plus interest and 50% of the employer's. From 3 years you can take your contributions plus interest and 85% of the employer's, but you give up your lifetime benefit.
What if I leave the money with SDRS?
If you're vested, you keep a benefit you can start at the usual ages. If you're not vested, you can leave it up to 10 years and must withdraw it in the 11th year or risk losing it.
Source: SDRS Class A Handbooks (Foundation and Generational members), July 2024, Foundation pp. 8, 16-17; Generational pp. 8, 15, 17. Also: SDRS Actuarial Valuation (June 30, 2024) pp. 50, 56; SDCL §§ 3-12C-101, 3-12C-112, 3-12C-407, 3-12C-408, 3-12C-602, 3-12C-604. Last reviewed .