The following employees are eligible to participate in ORPHE when hired into one of the eligible positions below:

• Presidents of participating public institutions of higher education.
• Chancellors and presidents of the Virginia Community College System.
• Full-time and part-time permanent, salaried teaching, research and administrative faculty members of participating public institutions (adjunct faculty members are not eligible for ORPHE).

For full details about your plan, please refer to the Optional Retirement Plan for Higher Education Handbook for Participants.
 

As a new college or university president, chancellor or faculty member engaged in teaching, administration or research, you have a choice in retirement plans. Depending on your membership date, you are eligible for a Virginia Retirement System (VRS) defined benefit plan or the Hybrid Retirement Plan. Or, you may elect a VRS Optional Retirement Plan for Higher Education (ORPHE) defined contribution plan. You have a 60-day window to elect your plan, beginning on your hire or rehire date. No matter which plan you choose, be sure to register for or log into your myVRS account to compare plans and use the plan comparison calculator. You will elect your plan using the online election process in myVRS.

Open enrollment provides participants with an annual opportunity to change providers effective the first payroll in the following calendar year.

ORPHE Plan 1: 

• There are no employee contributions.
• Your employer contributes 10.4% each pay period to your plan account.

ORPHE Plan 2: 

• You contribute 5% pre-tax to your plan account.
• Your employer contributes 8.5% to your plan account.

The plan offers a variety of investment options—from pre-mixed target date portfolios to a menu of options across asset classes—to construct your investment portfolio. If you do not make investment elections, your account will be automatically invested in an age-appropriate target date portfolio. More information about the options is available online at dcp.varetire.org/login or by calling toll-free 877-327-5261.

Additionally, the plan offers a Self-Directed Brokerage Account (SDBA) through Charles Schwab. Publicly traded mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and individual securities are offered through the SDBA. You must a have an initial balance of $3,500 in your account to open an SBDA and you must maintain a minimum balance of $2,500 in investments within the other two pathways. Transfers into the SDBA must be made in minimum increments of $1,000. If you have any questions about the brokerage account, please contact Charles Schwab at 888-393-7272, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., excluding market holidays.

Please consider the investment objectives, risks, fees and expenses carefully before investing.

Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. and Voya Financial are not affiliated and are not responsible for the products and services provided by the other. Schwab Personal Choice Retirement Account® (PCRA) is offered through Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. (Member SIPC), the registered broker/dealer, which also provides other brokerage and custody services to its customers.

Withdrawals from the ORPHE may only occur after you fulfill a bona fide break in service and are no longer employed in a position covered for retirement benefits though a plan administered or authorized by VRS.

As required by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), VRS defines a bona fide break in service as a break of at least one full calendar month from the end of the month from your last day of employment. This break must occur over a period you normally would work. If you are on a nine-, 10- or 11-month contract, summer breaks do not count toward this break. Other periods of leave with or without pay, including sabbaticals and educational leave, as well as intersession periods also do not count toward satisfying the break in service. Withdrawals may not occur without a break in service between full time and adjunct positions.

Your beneficiary is the person (or persons or entities such as a trust or estate) who will receive your account value in the event of your death. It’s important to have the right beneficiary listed and to occasionally review your choice, particularly after major life events such as marriage, the birth of a child or a divorce. Designate your beneficiary by logging in to your DCP Account at dcp.varetire.org/login and selecting Personal Information > Beneficiary Information.

Account statements generate quarterly and post to your online account and Voya Retire® mobile app. You will receive an email to let you know it’s available. If you elected to receive communication via U.S. mail or do not have an email on file, you will receive your quarterly statements via U.S. mail.

You can access your account statements at any time by logging in to your DCP Account at dcp.varetire.org/login and selecting Statements and Documents. You can also view them in the way that makes the most sense to you. Enter a specific date range and generate a statement view for that period, selecting the information you would like to see on the statement. 

Review this guide to understanding your Voya® account statement.

Also, any time you make a transaction, either through the website, the Voya Retire mobile app or the Voya customer service center, a confirmation statement is generated and posted to your online account/Voya Retire mobile app. If you elected to receive communication via U.S. mail or do not have an email on file, you will receive your confirmation via U.S. mail.

The following expenses are associated with participating in the plan:

• Annual plan administration fee: Voya will deduct an annual per participant fee of $35.50 ($2.96 deducted monthly for 11 months, then $2.94 deducted in the last month). This is the total fee for Voya’s record-keeping services and the cost of plan administration. If you participate in more than one Commonwealth of Virginia plan, you will pay only one annual record-keeping fee of $35.50.
• Investment management fees and other fund expenses: These fees cover a fund’s management and operations, including advisory, trading, custody and accounting activities. Investment management and other fund expenses are deducted from each fund’s investment return. 
• Expedited check delivery fee: A fee of $50 will be charged for any expedited check delivery.
• Financial planning services fee: A fee of $175 will be charged for each financial plan analysis. Get more information at dcp.varetire.org/education/financial-planning.
• Advisory services fee: Enrolling in the Professional Management program incurs an extra yearly fee up to 0.40%, depending on your account balance. Get more information at dcp.varetire.org/education/advisory-services.

You do not have to take your money out of the ORPHE when you retire or terminate employment. You can leave your money in the plan until you are age 73, when you are required to take minimum distributions. Keeping your money in your account may provide you with potentially more cost-effective retirement opportunities than rolling your money into a traditional IRA.

Why keep your assets in the plan? Take time to learn about your options in the Leaving Employment Guide.

Distribution Options

The ORPHE plan offers a variety of distribution options to suit your needs. Most distribution options can be changed at any time and include the following:

• Full lump-sum distribution.
• Partial lump-sum distribution.
• Periodic payments (monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annually).
• Partial lump-sum distribution and periodic payments.
• Rollover into an eligible retirement plan such as a 401(a), 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457(b), traditional IRA or Federal Employees Thrift Savings Plan that accepts such rollovers.
• Annuitization. (Contact MetLife at 866-438-6477, or an alternative provider, to arrange for the purchase of annuity. Please consult with a financial advisor and tax professional to see if an annuity is right for you.)

Note: If you have money in the Self-Directed Brokerage Account (SDBA) or Virginia Retirement Investment Portfolio (VRSIP), you must move the monies to a core investment fund prior to your withdrawal request. If you do not do this, your distribution will be processed from the amount that is available in the core investment funds in excess of the core minimum.

An IRS penalty for withdrawals from these plans prior to age 59½ may apply. Check with the plan into which you are rolling funds to ensure it accepts such rollovers.

The rules governing distribution provisions in this plan may be different from the distribution provision rules from which rollover money originated. The plan withholding rules for distributions may apply to rollover money from other Plans.