Slideshow Featured Content

  • State house building in Boston

    Pension forfeiture

    Board's legislation proposing pension forfeiture for conviction of child pornography receives initial support on Beacon Hill

    Learn More »

  • A calculator that says REFUND

    Active and inactive members: Leaving (or left) service and thinking about withdrawing your funds?

    Understand what it means to take a refund, and find out how to apply

    Learn More »

  • A pile of money in various denominations

    Are you due unclaimed funds?

    If you are a survivor, beneficiary, executor or executrix of a deceased MTRS member or benefit recipient, the MTRS may have unclaimed funds on account for you

    Learn More »

  • Bus with stop sign

    Retirees: Returning to work for a Massachusetts employer?

    Know the rules before you do

    Learn More »

Welcome

The Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System is the largest of the Commonwealth’s 104 contributory retirement systems. We provide retirement, disability and survivor benefits to more than 90,000 active educators and over 63,000 retirees and survivors. We’re glad to have you as a visitor and encourage you to browse often!

Top searches

• Estimate my retirement benefits

• Download forms

• "Retirement percentage" charts

• Purchase ("buy back") service

• Enroll in the MTRS

Retirees: Your year-end statement, 1099-R and Benefit Verification form are coming soon

If you are receiving a monthly benefit from the MTRS, be sure to watch your mailbox for two important mailings:

  • At the end of December: your year-end statement, which provides a summary of your benefit payments during 2016. Questions? Please see How to read your check or direct deposit statement.
  • By the end of January: your 1099-R tax form and your Benefit Verification form, which will arrive in the same envelope. As a reminder, the Massachusetts retirement law requires that the MTRS perform, at least once every two years, a verification of all retirees and beneficiaries who receive a monthly benefit. For more information, see About your 1099-R tax form and Benefit Verification process.


Call for nominations: PRIM Board election coming up

Nominations for the Teachers' representative on the Pension Reserves Investment Management (PRIM) Board will be open from November 14, 2016 to January 24, 2017. The PRIM Board is responsible for investing and managing all money placed in the Pension Reserves Investment Trust (PRIT) Fund which is used to fund public pension liabilities. Any active or retired member of the Teachers' Retirement System is eligible to run for election for this unpaid position, which has a term of three years. To obtain nomination papers or for more information, contact the MTRS at 617-679-6877.


Dear Members, please bear with us during this extremely busy time!

If you're waiting to hear from us on a request for service, we ask that you please be patient. We received more than 20,000 service purchase applications after Pension Reform III, and the record-setting volume has caused lengthy processing delays. Although we had anticipated a temporary increase in the number of applications—and increased staffing levels accordingly—the volume simply and significantly exceeded our projections.

We are very sorry for any delay you may experience, and ask that you please bear with us during what is an extremely busy time for our staff. Thank you in advance for your understanding and continued patience.

NOTE: If you are retiring within the next four to six months and you have one or more service purchase applications currently pending with us, please let us know so that we may give your service purchase requests priority.