Wisconsin Administrative Code
Department of Employee Trust Funds
Chapter ETF 20 - Wisconsin Retirement System
Section ETF 20.35 - Qualified domestic relations orders; division of WRS accounts and annuities

(a) This section applies to any order to divide any benefit of the Wisconsin retirement system which is received by the department.

Note: The department has approved the following forms for orders to divide benefits of the Wisconsin retirement system: ET-4926, Order to Divide Wisconsin Retirement System Benefits, for use if the termination of a marriage or domestic partnership occurred inside of Wisconsin; and ET-4935, Foreign Jurisdiction Order to Divide Wisconsin Retirement System Benefits, for use if the termination of a marriage or domestic partnership occurred outside of Wisconsin but within a state or territory of the United States. Either form is available from the department of employee trust funds at no charge or can be accessed on the department's website by searching for the form number.

(b) The purpose of this section is to specify how the department shall apply a QDRO to the participant's account or annuity or respond to an order which is not a QDRO.

(c) For purposes of ss. 40.02 (48m) and 40.08 (1m), Stats., and this section, a marriage is terminated upon entry of a judgment, decree or order of divorce, annulment or legal separation. A domestic partnership, as defined in s. 40.02 (21d), Stats., is terminated as provided in s. ETF 20.10 (3). A domestic partnership, as defined in s. 770.01 (2), Stats., is terminated as provided in s. 770.12, Stats.

(d) The department must receive the DRO from either the participant or the alternate payee within 20 years after the marriage was terminated by a final judgment or decree, or the otherwise valid DRO shall have no effect on the participant's account or annuity.

Note: See s. ETF 10.82 concerning receipt by the department.

(a) Percentages. The percentage of the participant's account or annuity that is awarded to the alternate payee by a QDRO is limited to a percentage between zero percent (0%) and fifty percent (50%) expressed to no more than 2 decimal places. A QDRO with a percentage awarded to the alternate payee expressed to more than 2 decimal places may not be rejected for that reason alone, but the department shall round the percentage to 2 decimal places.

(b) Debts of the participant. Any debt, memorandum account or account receivable balance reflecting amounts owed by the participant to the department, the fund or any benefit plan, accrued as of the decree date and still outstanding at the time the account or annuity is divided, shall be divided between the participant and alternate payee in the same proportion as the participant's account or annuity.

(a) Creditable service. Creditable service which the participant has been granted as of the decree date is a part of the Wisconsin retirement system account of a participant and shall be divided in the same ratio as other account balances. The creditable service and amounts awarded to the alternate payee shall be in a separate account in the fund for the benefit of the alternate payee. After the division under this section, the alternate payee may apply for a separation benefit under s. 40.25 (2), Stats., provided the application is received by the department prior to the date on which the participant would have met the minimum age requirement for a retirement annuity under s. 40.23, Stats., or after the date on which the participant has met the minimum age requirement but is not vested, and payment of a separation benefit would comply with all provisions of the internal revenue code. After the date the participant reaches or would have reached the minimum retirement age, and is vested, the alternate payee may only apply for retirement benefits under s. 40.23, 40.24, or 40.25 (1), Stats.

(b) DRO received after participant had become an annuitant. The participant shall retain the remainder in his or her separate account under s. 40.04 (4) (a), Stats., unless the participant is an annuitant at the time of the division. If the participant is an annuitant when the division occurs, the participant's creditable service and account as of the decree date shall be reduced by the percentage awarded to the alternate payee. The balances shall then be brought forward to the effective date of the current annuity, including any contributions and service for periods after the decree date, and the annuity option chosen by the participant shall be recalculated. The amount by which the monthly annuity payments previously made to the participant exceed the participant's recalculated monthly entitlement for the same period shall be a balance due from the participant. This balance due shall be due from the participant and may be collected as provided in s. 40.08 (4), Stats., including by a reduction of the present value of the participant's annuity as reduced by the division, resulting in a recalculation and reduction of the participant's monthly annuity.

(c) Purchased service credits. Previously purchased service shall be divided in the same proportion as the other portions of the participant's account and creditable service. If an application to purchase creditable service is received prior to the decree date, as defined by s. 40.02 (18f), Stats., then service for which payment is made shall be included in the division. The department shall pay any refund due only to the participant and shall bill only the participant for any supplemental payment due for such purchased service. No refund shall be due to the participant from the department for the portion of any excess payment withdrawn from the public employee trust fund by the alternate payee. Credit for service purchased by an application received after the decree date shall not be divided by the qualified domestic relations order regardless of the source of the funds for the purchase or when the services were actually rendered.

(d) Creditable military service. If the participant has active military service, the alternate payee shall be granted the percentage specified in the QDRO of the military service for which the participant would be eligible as of the decree date, based on the participant's total creditable service as of the decree date, regardless of when the participant requests the crediting or provides satisfactory documentation. If a participant does not provide to the department proof of active military service and the certification of active military service on the form prescribed by the department, the department shall nevertheless divide the participant's account without the military service provided the court order is otherwise a QDRO.

(e) Actuarial adjustment for early retirement.

(a) Annuity division. Except as provided in par. (b), if the participant was an annuitant on the decree date, the department shall divide the present value of the annuity as provided in s. 40.08 (1m) (b) 2., (c), (d) and (f) 2., Stats., and sub. (3) (e), and as follows, and pay separate annuities to the participant and alternate payee, respectively. An annuity shall be divided so that the actuarial present value of the undivided annuity is equal to the aggregate actuarial present values of the 2 separate annuities resulting from the division as of the effective date of the division.

(b) Zero percent QDRO. If the participant's annuity is a joint and survivor annuity with the alternate payee as the named survivor, and the percentage awarded to the alternate payee in the QDRO is zero percent (0%), then the alternate payee may not receive any Wisconsin retirement system annuity based on the QDRO and the participant's annuity shall be recalculated as a straight life annuity payable to the participant, with no change in the remaining guarantee period, if any.

(c) Division of accelerated annuity option. If the participant selected an accelerated payment option as provided in s. 40.24 (1) (e), Stats., or s. ETF 20.04 (3), and the participant's temporary annuity is still in force as of the effective date of the annuity division, then the department shall calculate the present value of both the temporary and life annuities using the actuarial tables in effect on the effective date of the annuity division. The department shall then divide the total present value based on the percentages specified in the QDRO and calculate separate annuities for the participant and alternate payee as specified in s. 40.08 (1m) (f) 2, Stats. If the participant or alternate payee provides a projection of his or her social security benefits at age 62 from the social security administration, the department shall use that projected social security amount to calculate the amount of the temporary annuity for that person. If no projection is supplied, then notwithstanding s. ETF 20.03 (2), the department shall assume that person's projected social security benefits at age 62 equals that person's prorated portion of the participant's temporary annuity amount as of the effective date of the annuity division, calculated based on the respective percentages of the annuity being awarded to the participant and alternate payee. If the reduced annuity payable for life to the alternate payee or participant is below the threshold specified by s. ETF 20.05 (1), then that person shall receive an annuity in the same optional form originally selected by the participant, except that the temporary annuity option provided in s. 40.24 (1) (e), Stats., or s. ETF 20.04 (3) is not available.

(d) Disability annuities. Upon division of a disability annuity calculated under the provisions of s. 40.63 (1) or (4), Stats., the alternate payee's annuity shall consist of a portion based on the participant's actual service and a portion based on the assumed service used to calculate the participant's disability annuity. The portion of the alternate payee's annuity based on the participant's assumed service and age shall cease upon the death of the alternate payee. Benefits payable upon the death of the alternate payee shall be based on the guaranteed portion of the alternate payee's annuity only. Once the participant's disability annuity has been divided, the termination or suspension of the participant's disability annuity or the death of the participant has no effect on the alternate payee's annuity. If the participant's disability annuity is subsequently terminated and the participant's account restored under the provisions of s. 40.63 (9) and (10), Stats., the contributions and service credited to the restored account shall be reduced by the same percentage awarded to the alternate payee by the QDRO.

(e) Rehired annuitant with suspended account. The suspended payments in the participant's memorandum account are converted into a monthly annuity as of the decree date. This monthly amount consists of the increase that is attributable to the suspended payments from the participant's original annuity. This increase is added to the monthly annuity as of the decree date, and the annuity division is based on this amount.

(a) Rejection and notice. The department may not honor any order to divide Wisconsin retirement system benefits which it determines is not a QDRO as defined in s. 40.02 (48m), Stats. The department shall send written notice of its rejection of an order to the person submitting the order and to the participant and alternate payee if those persons' current names and addresses are stated in the order or are readily determinable from department records.

(b) Participant's account already closed. A QDRO or order to vacate received after the participant's account was closed by payment of a lump sum benefit on or after the decree date has no effect, regardless of whether the participant returned to participating employment after the decree date. If the participant's account to which the QDRO applies is subsequently restored under the provisions of s. 40.25 (5), Stats., because the benefit was paid in error, or under an agreement approved by the department where the full amount of the benefit paid plus monthly interest at the assumed rate has been paid to the department, the restored account shall be divided according to the QDRO.

(c) Alternate payee's account already closed. An order to vacate or an amended DRO received after the alternate payee's account was closed by payment of a lump sum benefit has no effect.

(d) Participant or alternate payee deceased. A QDRO received after the participant's or alternate payee's date of death has no effect on the participant's account or annuity.

(a) If the department rejects an order for the division of a participant's account and subsequently receives an otherwise acceptable application from the participant for a benefit which would close the participant's account due to payment of a lump sum benefit, the department shall delay payment of the lump sum benefit until 30 days after the date the order for division was rejected. This paragraph applies only if the basis for the rejection was one or more of the following:

(b) If the department has not received a second QDRO within 30 days after the rejection, then the department shall complete processing the application for benefits and sub. (5) (b) shall apply.

(a) Service purchased after decree date. Credit for service purchased by the participant after the decree date in a QDRO may not be affected by that QDRO.

(b) Active military service. If the department divided a participant's account per a QDRO without first receiving proof and certification of active military service, as provided in sub. (3) (d), and the participant subsequently provides documentation of active military service and the certification on the form prescribed by the department, the department shall divide the military service creditable based on services rendered prior to the decree date between the participant and alternate payee's accounts pursuant to the QDRO. Any resulting adjustments to the alternate payee's and participant's benefits shall be made retroactive to the respective benefit effective dates. The participant may not receive creditable military service for any active military service that would have been granted to the alternate payee had the participant submitted timely to the department the certification of active military service as provided in s. 40.02 (48m) (f), Stats.

(c) Other corrections and adjustments directly affecting benefits. The effect of any other corrections and adjustments to service, contributions, or interest earnings affecting the benefits the participant accrued as of the decree date, including corrections of administrative errors and corrections or adjustments of any factor affecting the calculation of an annuity to be divided, shall be divided between the participant and the alternate pursuant to the QDRO. The participant and alternate payee accounts or annuities shall be adjusted accordingly. However, the department shall not adjust benefit amounts if the amount of the adjustment would be less than the thresholds specified in s. 40.08 (7) (a), Stats.

(d) Interest. When a participant's annuity is divided as provided in sub. (4) and retroactive payments are due to an alternate payee, or when an alternate payee's annuity must be increased retroactively for any reason, no interest as specified in s. 40.08 (7) (c), Stats., is payable to the alternate payee for any monthly payments payable prior to the month in which the department received the QDRO.

(a) The aggregate benefits paid to the participant and alternate payee shall not exceed the benefit limits under Section 415 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code. The department shall make any necessary adjustments to the participant's and alternate payee's benefits on an equitable pro rata basis to assure compliance with Section 415 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code. Benefits derived from employee contributions that are actually paid by the employee shall not be subject to the benefit limitations under this subsection.

(b) If the participant's retirement annuity has been divided per a QDRO under s. 40.08 (1m) (b) 2, Stats., any subsequent adjustments necessary for compliance with Section 415 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code that result from either post-retirement annuity adjustments under s. 40.27 (2) or 40.28 (2), Stats., or from increases in the compensation limits specified in Section 415 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code, shall be prorated based on the percentage of the participant's account that was awarded to the alternate payee in the QDRO.

(c) If the participant's account is divided as provided in sub. (3), any benefit adjustments required under Section 415 (b) of the Internal Revenue Code shall be applied as follows:

(d) For the purposes of determining the aggregate benefits payable to the participant and alternate payee under par. (b), the department shall: