Beneficiary Update Checklist: What to Review and When

A beneficiary form tells a bank, insurer or retirement plan who receives an account when you die, and it usually overrides your will. To keep it current, list every account with a beneficiary, check who is named on each one, and update after any marriage, divorce, birth or death in the family. The checklist below walks through it in order.

Why a beneficiary form beats your will

Life insurance, retirement accounts, annuities and payable-on-death bank accounts are contracts. They pay the person named on the company's records and skip probate. Your will only controls what is left over.

The Supreme Court has backed this up for workplace plans governed by the federal law known as ERISA. In Kennedy v. Plan Administrator for DuPont (2009), the Court held that a plan administrator must follow the plan's own documents, even when a divorce decree said the ex-spouse gave up her rights. In Egelhoff v. Egelhoff (2001), it held that a state law that automatically cancels an ex-spouse's designation on divorce could not apply to an employer plan covered by ERISA.

The practical lesson: if you divorce, remarry or lose a beneficiary, update the form itself. Don't rely on a will, a divorce decree or a state law to do it for you.

Which accounts have beneficiaries?

Check each of these. Log in to the account or call the company and ask for a copy of the current designation.

Assets with no beneficiary, such as a house in your sole name with no deed designation, go through your will or state law. Our estate inventory checklist helps you find what falls into each group.

When should you review your beneficiaries?

Review after any of these events, and set a recurring reminder so the check happens even when nothing big has changed. Once a year, or at least every few years, is a reasonable habit.

• Marriage or divorce. This is the most important trigger. Update every account, not just the ones you remember.
• Birth or adoption. Add the new child where you want them included.
• Death of a beneficiary. The form does not update itself, and the account may fall back to your estate.
• A beneficiary's life changes. A beneficiary who becomes disabled, develops a money problem or has a falling out with you may need a different arrangement.
• A new job or rollover. Old employer plans and new IRAs each have their own form.
• A large gain or loss in your finances. Your plan for who gets what may change with it.

Step-by-step beneficiary update checklist

1. List every account. Include life insurance, retirement accounts, annuities, bank and brokerage accounts and any property with a deed designation.
2. Get the current designation for each. Download it from the portal or request a written copy. Don't rely on memory.
3. Check primary and contingent beneficiaries. Every account should have both where the company allows it.
4. Compare against your wishes. Does the list match your current family, and does it divide the assets the way you intend? Percentages on different accounts should add up to a fair result overall.
5. Use full legal names and identifying details. Include date of birth and address so the company can find the right person. Some forms ask for a Social Security number.
6. Handle special cases (see the next section): spouse consent, minors, beneficiaries who receive means-tested benefits, and trusts.
7. Submit the change the way the company requires. Online, by mail or with witnesses or a notary, as the form says.
8. Get written confirmation. If you don't receive it in a few weeks, follow up.
9. Keep a master list and tell someone where it is. Your executor or a trusted family member needs to know which companies to contact. Your will doesn't need to list these accounts, but a separate, safely stored list saves your family months of searching.

Mistakes that cause the most trouble

Leaving out the spouse without consent

Federal law requires most workplace retirement plans to pay the account to a surviving spouse unless the spouse agrees in writing to a different beneficiary. The spouse's consent has to be witnessed by a plan representative or a notary public. If you want someone else named on your 401(k), the plan will ask for that signed consent.

IRAs and other accounts follow different rules, and some states' marital property laws can also give a spouse rights. If this affects you, ask the plan or an attorney.

Naming a minor child directly

A bank or insurer usually won't hand a large sum to a child. The money may have to be managed by a court-appointed guardian or conservator until the child reaches adulthood, which costs time and money. Many states have a Uniform Transfers to Minors Act that lets you name a custodian, and a trust is another option. The age at which a child takes control varies by state.

Naming your estate

If the estate is the beneficiary, the account goes through probate, where creditors can make claims. Naming individual people or a trust usually avoids that. Our guide to bypassing probate explains the options.

Leaving money outright to someone on means-tested benefits

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) generally cuts off eligibility when countable resources go above $2,000 for one person or $3,000 for a couple, according to federal regulation. A lump-sum inheritance can push someone over that limit. A trust written for this purpose is the usual tool, and an estate planning attorney should draw it up. Medicaid rules vary by state.

Forgetting the contingent beneficiary

If your primary beneficiary dies first and nobody else is named, the account often goes to your estate under the company's default rules. Naming a backup costs nothing.

Overlooking the tax rules for inherited retirement accounts

Who you name changes the tax picture for your heirs. For most people who die after 2019, the IRS says a designated beneficiary who is not an "eligible" beneficiary must empty an inherited IRA or plan account by the end of the 10th year after the owner's death. The exceptions, called eligible designated beneficiaries, are:

• a surviving spouse
• a minor child of the account owner (the 10-year period then starts when the child reaches the age of majority)
• a person who is disabled or chronically ill
• a person not more than 10 years younger than the owner

Whether heirs must also take withdrawals in years one through nine depends on when the owner died relative to their required beginning date for distributions. The IRS explains this in Publication 590-B. For a fuller walkthrough, see our guide to 401(k) and IRA accounts after death.

Assuming the federal estate tax is the main concern

The IRS lists the federal estate tax exclusion at $15,000,000 per person for deaths in 2026 (it was $13,990,000 in 2025). Most estates fall below that level, so for many families the bigger issue is income tax on inherited retirement accounts. Some states have their own estate or inheritance taxes at lower levels, so check your state. See our guide to estate tax by state.

What happens if a form is out of date when you die

The company pays whoever its records show. Your family can't fix it afterward by pointing to your will or your wishes, and disputes can mean legal fees and long delays. If you are the person named, you'll usually need the certified death certificate and the company's claim form. Our guides to investment account death notification and notifying banks after a death cover what to expect.

What to do next

1. Choose one day this week to gather your account list.
2. Pull up the current beneficiary on each account and mark any that are wrong or missing a backup.
3. Submit corrections and save the confirmations.
4. Tell your executor where the master list is. If you aren't sure who should take that job, read what an executor does.