Pensions and Benefits USA has launched a streamlined procedure for contributing to the Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan. The online portal, 403(b) Contributions, allows ministers and church-employed laypersons to work more closely with church treasurers to maintain and properly fund retirement accounts. More than 200 churches are currently using the new system and additional ones are coming online weekly.

403(b) Contributions automatically notifies treasurers when church employees adjust their Nazarene retirement contribution amounts at Fidelity Investments. Treasurers are then able to set up the transfer and frequency of automatic deposits from the church’s bank account to an employee’s Fidelity account. Besides keeping the treasurer better informed of the employee’s intentions, the program provides better security than paper checks, establishes an automatic payment process, and speeds up the transfer of funds.

“Fidelity has informed us they soon will no longer accept paper checks for contributions to accounts, so it is important that our churches adopt this system,” said Don Walter, director of Pensions and Benefits USA. “We are hopeful that after the initial switch from the old paper-based method, the security and ease of use provided by 403(b) Contributions will encourage ministers and church-employed laypersons to be more active in discussing, monitoring, and contributing to their retirement plans.”

Ministers and church employees who have activated their Nazarene 403(b) Retirement Savings Plan accounts at Fidelity should talk to their church treasurers about making the switch to the new system. Those individuals who have not activated accounts should do this first by visiting netbenefits.com/atwork. Instructions to assist with this are available here.

Initial registration for 403(b) Contributions and subsequent account maintenance by church treasurers is done via the entry link 403(b) Deposits at the top of the pbusa.org homepage. Several resources are available to assist with initial log in and use of the system. These include the guide 403b Online Contributions Setup. Additionally, there is a webinar hosted by system creator Stewardship Technology and an instructional video.

Anyone with questions regarding 403(b) Contributions may contact help@pbusa.org or 888-888-4656.

--Pensions and Benefits USA