installment payments to alternate payee's plan

[Lori H]

a husband divorced and received a order. the wife elected to receive the payments in monthly installments effect. jan06. amount is appx $950 per month. husbands plan is governmental and ex wife is 401(k). she wants to rollover payments into her plan, but what if she died a year from now? would they continue to her beneficiary or would she have been better served taking a lump sum rollover into her plan? thanks.

[mbozek]

What does the QDRO say about continuation of payments after the AP's death? She could only get a LS if plan provides for LS payment and many govt plans do not permit LS.

[QDROphile]

The terms of the husband's plan and its QDRO procedures are important. Since it is a governmental plan, you can't easily predict what you will find.

Also, what do you mean by "installments"? Is it a fixed period or some sort of life annuity? I don't think alternate payees can have certain types of life annuity payments unless the participant is the contingent annuitant.

Do the installments prevent the the distributions from being eligible for rollover anyway? They would if the term is 10 years or more or based on life or life expectancy.

For private employer defined contribution plans, I would expect to find limits on the period of installment payments to a beneficiary (incluing no payment of installments) of an alternate payee with the balance paid in a lump sum. Some people believe that alternate payees cannot have beneficiaries; they probably provide for the balance to be paid to the AP's estate. The lunatic fringe would not allow any payments after the AP's death. I don't know what happens to the balance.