Employees of an employer who is affiliated with the PERAPlus 457 Plan are eligible to participate in the PERAPlus 457 Plan immediately upon hire. Participants who were formerly eligible to participate in the PERAPlus 457 Plan are eligible immediately upon re-hire at an employer affiliated with the Plan. There are no minimum service requirements to fulfill.

Joining the PERAPlus 457 Plan is a four-step process. Begin by going to www.copera.org and entering your User ID and password. Then, click “Enroll in the PERAPlus 457 Plan.” You will then be walked through the steps of Plan enrollment.

Step 1: Review Plan Information. You can access information about the Plan, including an enrollment kit and fund and performance information on the Plan website.

Step 2: Authorize Contributions to the Plan: You must choose which employer will make your contributions to the PERAPlus 457 Plan from the PERA website. You will then be linked to the Voya website in order to choose your contribution amount. Your contribution authorization must be received by 2:00 p.m. (Mountain time) on the 25th of the month (or the first business day after), to be effective for the following month or following payroll period, whichever is later.

Step 3: Make Investment Elections: Complete the requested personal information and specify how you want your contributions to be invested. Your elections must total 100 percent in whole dollars only.

Step 4: Designate a Beneficiary: It is important that you designate a beneficiary to receive your account balance in the event of your death. You may designate a beneficiary from the Voya website by clicking ”Personal Information,” choosing “Beneficiary Information,” and then "Add/edit Beneficiary” or you can complete a Beneficiary Designation Form.

If you do not make an investment election your first contribution will automatically be invested in the PERAdvantage Target Retirement Date Fund according to the table below:

Fund	Date of Birth Begin	Date of Birth End
PERAdvantage Income Fund		12/31/1957 or before
PERAdvantage 2025 Fund	1/1/1958	12/31/1962
PERAdvantage 2030 Fund	1/1/1963	12/31/1967
PERAdvantage 2035 Fund	1/1/1968	12/31/1972
PERAdvantage 2040 Fund	1/1/1973	12/31/1977
PERAdvantage 2045 Fund	1/1/1978	12/31/1982
PERAdvantage 2050 Fund	1/1/1983	12/31/1987
PERAdvantage 2055 Fund	1/1/1988	12/31/1992
PERAdvantage 2060 Fund	1/1/1993 or after

If there is no date of birth on file, the contribution will automatically be invested in the PERAdvantage Income Fund until PERA receives notification of your birthday. Future contributions will then be invested according to the table above.

If you do not have a PERA PIN, PERA will mail you a PIN shortly after your first contribution is received. Use your PERA PIN to create a User security profile including your User ID and password. You will use your User ID and password to access your PERAPlus 457 Plan account and to change your future investment elections at any time. Retain your PERA PIN to access account information over the phone.