Taxes and Deductions

TRS retirement benefits are taxable. As a recipient of TRS benefits, it is your responsibility to determine your tax liability and, if necessary, to complete and submit federal and Montana tax withholding forms to increase or decrease the amounts withheld from your TRS benefits.

Please note:

• TRS staff are not tax professionals and cannot advise you as to the amounts you should withhold.
• We recommend you consult with a trusted accountant or tax advisor to ensure you are having adequate taxes withheld.

Did you know?

You can review your current tax withholding in My TRS. You can also run "what if" scenarios to estimate how a change in your federal and Montana tax withholding would affect your net monthly benefit amount.

• If you are not yet a My TRS user, the Using 'My TRS' page will help you get started.

To implement changes to your current tax withholding, you will need to complete, sign, and return IRS Form W-4P and/or TRS Form 115 Montana State Withholding Certificate to TRS. 

• You can find these forms on the Member Forms page of this website, in the Retirees and Benefit Recipients section. Or, call TRS and ask to have the forms mailed to you.

Retired TRS members who remain covered on their former employer's group health insurance plan after they retire may elect to have those insurance premiums deducted from their monthly TRS benefit. 

Please note that TRS has no connection to your employer's insurance provider. A retired member must contact their former employer (not TRS) to elect this option and must complete a TRS form to authorize the deduction. Any questions about premium amounts should be directed to the employer.

• You can find TRS Form 117 Authorization for Deduction of Health Insurance Premiums on the Member Forms page. 

Once you and your former employer have authorized the deduction, the employer must report the premium amount to TRS, who will continue to deduct the same amount from your benefit each month until the employer provides timely notification that the premium amount has changed or coverage has been terminated.

Because insurance premiums must be paid in advance, TRS sends the amount deducted from your monthly benefit to your former employer for payment of next month's premium. 

TRS cannot deduct premiums for individual policies or other types of insurance.