To set up or change direct deposit for your Retirement Systems of Alabama pension, complete the Alabama RSA Direct Deposit Authorization form, have your bank certify the second page, and get it to the RSA before the 13th of the month. Page one holds your personal and banking details. Page two is signed or stamped by a bank representative confirming the account. The RSA requires an original signature, so the form has to be mailed or hand-delivered, not emailed.
Where to Get the Form
If you are applying for service retirement, the form comes inside your retirement application packet from the Employees’ Retirement System or the Teachers’ Retirement System. Otherwise, download it from the RSA website or request a copy from the RSA office in Montgomery. It is titled Direct Deposit Authorization rather than carrying a form number, so search by that title.
Filling Out Page One
Write your full name exactly as it appears on your RSA retirement account. A mismatch between the name on file with the RSA and the name on your bank account is one of the most common reasons the form gets rejected, so check both before you write anything. Enter your full Social Security number; the RSA uses it to match the authorization to your pension record.
Enter your bank’s nine-digit routing number, which you can find in the bottom-left corner of a personal check, on your bank’s website, or by calling the bank. Then enter your account number, which sits just to the right of the routing number on a check. Mark whether the account is checking or savings.
For a checking account, attach a voided pre-printed check. Starter checks, the temporary ones a bank gives you when you first open an account, are not accepted. For a savings account, attach either a deposit slip or an official letter from the bank confirming the account type, the name on the account, the account number, the routing number, and a representative’s signature.
Getting Page Two Certified by Your Bank
Take the form to your bank and have a representative complete the financial institution certification section on page two. The representative signs or stamps it to confirm the account is open and active and that the routing and account numbers are correct. The RSA will not process the form without this certification, so do not mail it in until page two is done.
Submitting the Completed Form
Because the RSA requires an original signature, plan on mailing or hand-delivering the form. Mail it to:
Retirement Systems of Alabama
P.O. Box 302150
Montgomery, Alabama 36130-2150
To deliver it in person, the RSA office is at 201 South Union Street, Montgomery, Alabama 36104.1The Retirement Systems of Alabama. Contact Us Walking it in gives you immediate confirmation staff received it, which matters when you are close to the monthly deadline. Photocopy the signed, certified form before you send it; if a question comes up later about routing or account numbers, you will want the reference.
Deadline and When Your First Deposit Arrives
The RSA must receive your completed form before the 13th of the month for the change to apply to that month’s benefit payment.2Retirement Systems of Alabama. RSA Direct Deposit Authorization Form Alabama If it arrives on the 13th or later, the update rolls to the following month and that month’s benefit goes out as a paper check to the address on your RSA file. Paper checks carry the risk of mail delays or theft, so aim for the first week of the month rather than the 12th.
Once the RSA processes the form, your benefit is deposited on the last business day of each month.3The Retirement Systems of Alabama. ERS Retirees If that day falls on a weekend or state holiday, the deposit moves to the previous business day.4Retirement Systems of Alabama. Payroll and Contract Schedules A month ending on Saturday would see funds hit your account on Friday.
After submitting, you can log in to the RSA’s Member Online Services portal to confirm the form was received and watch the status move from pending to active.5The Retirement Systems of Alabama. RSA Member Services If you do not have an online account, you can create one on the same portal or call the RSA.
Changing Your Bank Account Later
Switching banks after your initial setup does not require a special form. Submit a new Direct Deposit Authorization with the updated bank’s information and certification, following the same process.6The Retirement Systems of Alabama. Retirees The same 13th-of-the-month deadline applies. Until the RSA processes the new form, your benefit keeps going to the old account, so keep that account open until you have confirmed the switch went through.
Changing your direct deposit does not affect your tax withholding. The RSA handles withholding through a separate Withholding Certificate for Monthly Pension or Annuity Payments form, and you only need to touch that if you want to adjust how much federal tax comes out of your monthly benefit.