Non-US beneficiary

Is it permitted to name a non-US citizen as a beneficiary for a US 401k plan?  The intended beneficiary is not a US citizen, does not live in the US and does not have a US social secuity number.

Thank you

For an ERISA-governed plan, “the documents and instruments governing the plan” (ERISA § 404(a)(1)(D)) provide who may be a participant’s beneficiary and which beneficiary designations are or are not recognized.

In my experience, a typical plan does not preclude naming an alien, even a nonresident alien.

Different Federal income tax withholding regulations, rates, procedures, and forms apply for a plan’s distribution to a non-US person. Among other points, the payer would require a distributee to certify an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN).  Those 9-digit numbers are issued by the Internal Revenue Service.

https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-w-8

https://www.irs.gov/individuals/individual-taxpayer-identification-number

Sure. The complexity is going to be in the Federal income tax area, Santo Gold.

Thanks very much for the replies.