Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 18, September 16, 2024
(a) Contributions to accounts may be made only in cash, as defined in N.J.A.C. 9A:10-7.3.
(b) Any person may make contributions to an account after the account is opened.
(c) The minimum contribution to an account at any one time shall be no less than $ 25.00 with the exception of automatic payroll deductions.
(d) The minimum contribution to maintain an account shall be either $ 25.00 a month or $ 300.00 a year. Once at least $ 1,200 is contributed to an account and provided there is no nonqualified withdrawal from that account, no additional contributions are required to maintain the account.
(e) The maximum contribution for any designated beneficiary shall not exceed the amount necessary to pay the qualified higher education expenses of the designated beneficiary. To achieve this end, the Authority directly or through a contractor shall:
1. Issue procedures for aggregating the total balance of multiple accounts established for a designated beneficiary;
2. Establish a maximum contribution amount that can be deposited in accounts for a designated beneficiary;
i. The contributions to all "qualified tuition programs" (as defined in section 529 of the Federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. §
529) of which the NJBEST Program designated beneficiary is the designated beneficiary shall not exceed the lesser of an amount to be determined by the Authority, subject to annual review, based on the sum of five times the annual aggregate cost of undergraduate tuition, room, board, and required fees, as published for financial aid purposes, at an eligible undergraduate higher education institution in the United States that the Authority determines to be among the highest-cost and two times the annual aggregate cost of graduate or professional school tuition, room, board, and required fees, as published for financial aid purposes, at an eligible graduate or professional higher education institution in the United States that the Authority determines to be among the highest-cost, with the sum then being rounded down to the nearest $ 5,000 increment, or such lesser amount as the Authority may determine to be the maximum contribution limit permitted by section 529 of the Federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. §
529. Notice of any change in the amount will be published as a public notice in the New Jersey Register; and
3. Require that any excess contributions with respect to a designated beneficiary be promptly withdrawn in a nonqualified withdrawal or rolled over to another account in accordance with N.J.A.C. 9A:10-7.8 through 7.11.
(f) No contributor, person making contributions to, or designated beneficiary pursuant to the NJBEST program may directly or indirectly direct the investment of any contributions to the program (or the earnings thereon).
