First, attend a UFT pension clinic. It's a mini-course on your retirement benefits. For upcoming clinics, see: https://www.uft.org/your-benefits/pension/pension-clinics.
Then, make an appointment for a preliminary pension consult. At this private consultation, you will receive an estimate of your retirement allowance and answers to your questions about retirement benefits. We advise that everyone have a minimum of one preliminary borough consultation before your final consultation. You may have more than one preliminary consultation during your career. Call a borough office to make an appointment:
- Bronx: 718-379-6200
- Brooklyn: 718-852-4900
- Manhattan: 212-598-6800
- Queens: 718-275-4400
- Staten Island: 718-605-1400
As you near closer to retirement, book an appointment for final pension consultation. You are entitled to only one final consultation during your career, so most members complete them in the final months of work.
To make an appointment, call 212-331-6311 between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Meetings are scheduled in the borough office most convenient to you. It is advisable that if you are married, your spouse accompany you. A single person may be accompanied by a trusted confidant. During the final pension consultation you will be able to:
- Estimate your retirement allowance;
- Discuss using the Teachers' Retirement System or the Board of Education Retirement System as a means for protecting heirs and beneficiaries;
- Discuss removing contributions, where permissible, from the system at retirement;
- Aid you in completing the retirement application;
- Learn about health and welfare fund benefits;
- Answer all of your other retirement questions.
For more information about filing for retirement, see the UFT's step-by-step guide: https://www.uft.org/news/you-should-know/filing-retirement-step-step and a guide to pension benefits: https://www.uft.org/news/you-should-know/pension-benefits-nutshell.