Split the decision in two. Your UCRP pension does not roll over — its choice is about preserving or forfeiting a lifetime benefit, and it deserves the most care. Your voluntary UC accounts — 403(b), 457(b) and any defined-contribution balance — each face the standard four options, with one trap: rolling a governmental 457(b) into an IRA surrenders its no-penalty-after-separation feature.
How UC retirement benefits are structured
Per UCnet, the UC Retirement Savings Program includes the 403(b) Plan, 457(b) Plan and Defined Contribution Plan; UC administers it and Fidelity Retirement Services is the recordkeeper. Confirm your own coverage with your statement or HR.
Our guide to the pension side lives at the UCRP page — this page handles what happens to each account when you leave UCLA Health for a private hospital, another public employer, or retirement itself.
The four options — for your voluntary accounts only
Everything in this table applies to the 403(b), 457(b) and DC balances. None of it applies to UCRP.
| Option | Good when | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Leave it | Low internal costs and a lineup you would choose anyway | Easy to lose track of; small accounts can be swept out automatically |
| Roll to new employer | One statement, one login, one set of rules going forward | You are trading a known plan for one you have not read yet |
| Roll to an IRA | Broadest investment choice and easier professional management | Creditor protection and backdoor-Roth mechanics differ from a plan |
| Cash out | Last-resort liquidity in a real emergency | The IRS takes its share now, adds a penalty under 59½, and the account stops working |
Before you roll a governmental 457(b) to an IRA. Money in a governmental 457(b) can be withdrawn after you separate from service at any age without the 10% early-distribution penalty. Move that balance into an IRA and the money becomes IRA money — penalty rules included until 59½. If you might retire or resign early, that feature can be worth far more than a marginally better fund menu. See our 457(b) guide.
Things to check before you move anything
Plan facts on this page come from UCnet; confirm your accounts with your current statement.
- Which accounts you actually hold. Your statement or HR confirms which accounts you hold in the UC Retirement Savings Program.
- Your UCRP vesting and options. Whether you are vested, and what leaving means for your benefit, are questions for UCRP directly — get the answer in writing.
- The 457(b) penalty feature. Before any IRA rollover, decide whether you may need this money before 59½ — the answer can flip the whole decision.
- Recordkeeper and paperwork routes. Per UCnet, UC administers the UC Retirement Savings Program and Fidelity Retirement Services is the recordkeeper.
- Roth balances and loans. Roth and pre-tax money must land in matching account types, and any outstanding loan needs a repayment plan before separation.
The pension is the bigger decision
Leaving UC does not force your pension out. Departing members can generally leave their accumulated rights in place for a future benefit, or elect a refund of member contributions — and a refund typically cancels the associated pension right, an exchange that is rarely reversible. Treat any refund election like the sale of a lifetime income stream, because that is what it is: model it against your full picture before signing, and read our UCRP guide first.
Always transfer directly. For every account you do move, use a direct plan-to-custodian transfer. A cheque payable to you triggers the 20% withholding rule of IRC § 3405(c) and puts you on a 60-day deadline that must be met with the withheld portion supplied from your own funds.
Common questions
Should I take a refund of my UCRP contributions when I leave?
Refunds look attractive because the number is visible and the pension is abstract — but the refund usually extinguishes a lifetime, inflation-resistant income right. For vested members that trade is hard to justify without careful modelling. Confirm your options with UCRP and run the numbers before touching the form.
Can I roll my UC 403(b) and 457(b) into one IRA?
Mechanically yes, once separated — but think twice on the 457(b), whose penalty-free early access dies in the merger. Consolidating the 403(b) while parking the 457(b) is a common and sensible middle path, depending on your age and plans.
I am moving from UCLA Health to a private hospital. What usually happens?
Typically the pension stays with UC in deferred status, and the voluntary accounts either stay, follow you into the new employer’s plan, or roll to an IRA. There is no single right pattern — it turns on fees, your age, and whether you value the 457(b) feature.
Pension rules on one side, rollover rules on the other
We will map every UC account you hold to its own best option — independently, since we administer none of them.