How to Retire

Requirements

Your department may have varying requirements on the amount of notice to be given and may give bonuses for early notice. Establish a date that works for you and for your department head and give the appropriate amount of notice.

You should plan to file your retirement application 30 to 60 days prior to retirement. You can amend this application until we finalize your retirement benefits. You can come to the retirement office to complete these forms, and we will help you through them. You are encouraged to bring your spouse with you. Or you can begin the process by downloading and completing the forms.

Once you have thought through your options, the process is fairly simple and will take less than an hour.

General Process

Begin by completing the Application for Voluntary Superannuation Retirement (visit the forms page for forms).
Your application is to the Northampton Retirement Board. If you are a police officer or firefighter, you are a member of Group 4; All others belong to Group 1.
Your retirement date will be the day after your last day of regular employment.
Complete the Choice of Retirement Option Form.
- Choose one of the three options, A, B, or C. You may draw a line through the other two sections.
- Under Option A, there are no benefits payable to a survivor.
- Under Option B, you may name multiple beneficiaries to receive a one-time lump sum distribution of your remaining annuity balance by providing the percentage you wish to be distributed to each individual.
- Under Option C, you may name only one beneficiary. The beneficiary choice is limited to a spouse, unmarried former spouse, parent, child, or sibling.

Required Information

We must have social security numbers for all beneficiaries. You may need to supply birth certificates and marriage certificates. In most cases, we have already asked you to supply these at the time you joined the system. If the beneficiary’s address is different from yours, please provide it.

Sign the section you have chosen in the presence of a witness. The witness should be a disinterested party (e.g. not a potential beneficiary). If you are married, your spouse must sign that they have read the form and understand the option that you have chosen.

Federal Withholding

You will also be asked to complete a federal W4P withholding form. You may wish to consult a tax advisor.

There is no state tax on your retirement allowance in Massachusetts. Contact the Human Resources Department for your health and life insurance options.