New Members

What is NMERB?

The New Mexico Educational Retirement Board (NMERB) provides retirement income and benefits to New Mexico educational employees.

In 1925, the New Mexico Legislature passed a bill that created the state’s first pension plan for public servants. Today’s New Mexico Educational Retirement Board (NMERB), a descendant of that landmark legislation, manages a multi-billion dollar portfolio, serving approximately 60,000 active members, 51,000 inactive members and
50,000 retirees.

The NMERB provides secure retirement benefits to active and retired employees of New Mexico public schools, institutions of higher learning and certain employees at state agencies who work in educational programs.

MILESTONE: UPON APPROVAL, ERB WILL SEND YOU A CONFIRMATION LETTER. MILESTONE: APPROXIMATELY 45 DAYS LATER, YOU WILL RECEIVE YOUR FINAL RETIREMENT PACKET. (THE ENTIRE PROCESS CAN TAKE 90 DAYS ON AVERAGE FROM THE ACCEPTANCE OF APPLICATION TO FINAL RETIREMENT DOCUMENTS RETURNED TO ERB.) MILESTONE: WHEN SHOULD YOU EXPECT YOUR FIRST CHECK? PENSION BENEFITS ARE PAID TO RETIREES ON THE LAST BUSINESS DAY OF THE MONTH OF YOUR EFFECTIVE RETIREMENT DATE. MILESTONE: CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR RETIREMENT! ENJOY YOUR MONTHLY BENEFIT THAT WILL BE DIRECT DEPOSITED MILESTONE: COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT (COLA - THE FIRST COLA TO A RETIREE’S BENEFIT IS MADE ON JULY 1ST OF THE YEAR IN WHICH THE RETIRED MEMBER REACHES AGE 65 FOR TIERS 1 & 2, AND AGE 67 FOR TIERS 3 & 4, OR ON JULY 1ST OF THE YEAR FOLLOWING THE MEMBER’S RETIREMENT DATE, WHICHEVER IS LATER.) TIP: INTERESTED IN RETURNING TO WORK? COMPLETE A RTW APPLICATION AND OBTAIN ERB APPROVAL BEFORE BEGINNING WORK FOR AN ERB EMPLOYER Trip Tips TIP: CHECK YOUR ACCOUNT AT LEAST ONCE A QUARTER AND KEEP YOUR INFORMATION UP TO DATE TIP: REVIEW THE MEMBER HANDBOOK. TIP: INTERESTED IN SERVICE CREDIT PURCHASE? ASK US ABOUT IT. (YOU MUST BE VESTED TO PURCHASE CREDIT AND PURCHASES MUST BE COMPLETED BEFORE RETIREMENT.) TIP: CONSIDERING RETIREMENT? CONSIDER THESE: ELIGIBLE? POSSIBLE BENEFIT REDUCTION DUE TO AGE? TAXES? HEALTH CARE? SOCIAL SECURITY? ACTIVE & RETIRED MEMBER TIP: JOB, NAME, ADDRESS, PHONE NUMBER, OR BENEFICIARY CHANGE? LET US KNOW. COMPLETE AND SUBMIT A CHANGE OF NMERB RECORDS FORM. THE FORM IS AVAILABLE ON THE FORMS PAGE OF THE WEBSITE.

The ERB Member Journey is available to download in the following formats:

ERB Member Career Journey Map PDF
ERB Member Career Journey – List Format PDF

Questions and Answers:

As an educational employee, do I have to contribute to NMERB?

Yes, membership in the NMERB plan is a condition of employment.

Who qualifies as a member of NMERB?

You are an active NMERB member when you work more than 25 percent of a Full Time Equivalent (.25 FTE) for any New Mexico public school (including charters), universities, junior, colleges, technical vocational schools, and some state agencies that provide an educational program.

What does it mean to be a member?

You contribute a percentage of your salary to NMERB, and your employer makes contributions to NMERB too. NMERB invests this money for your retirement. Upon retirement, you will receive a retirement benefit for life based upon your years of service, your average annual salary and a pension factor set by law.NMERB also provides disability benefits to eligible members.

You automatically become a member of the NMERB plan when you begin employment with any entity covered by NMERB. Employees covered under the NMERB plan are referred to as “members”.

How much do I contribute to NMERB?

As a member earning $24,000 or less you contribute 7.9% of your salary to NMERB. As a member earning over $24,000, you contribute 10.70% of your salary to NMERB.

Please refer to the Contribution Rate Schedule on the Reference Tables page.

Keep Your Information Current:

Mailing Address

Please inform NMERB in writing of any address change to receive important communications, such as your annual 1099-R Income Tax form.
To update your address, you must complete and mail to NMERB a Change in NMERB Records Form found on the Forms page of this website.

Name Changes

NMERB requires notification in writing when you change your name.

Complete the Change in NMERB Records Form found on the Forms page of this website.
The written notice must contain both the last four digits of your Social Security number and your signature.
You must also include a copy of a court order or marriage license that authorizes your name change.
If you are working for an NMERB employer (otherwise known as a “Local Administrative Unit” or “LAU”) when your name changes, you must officially change your name in your employer’s records to ensure that your employer’s records and NMERB’s records match.

Beneficiary Designation

You should review your beneficiary designation when significant life events occur such as:
- marriage,
- divorce,
- birth,
- adoption, or
- death of a spouse or designated beneficiary
A divorce, annulment, or any dissolution or declaration of invalidity of your marriage WILL NOT automatically revoke your former spouse as beneficiary unless you revoke the designation by submitting a new form.
Accessing your contributions