Optional Life
Employees covered under the Virginia Retirement System (VRS) Group Life Insurance Program can purchase additional coverage through the Optional Group Life Insurance Program. Members who select optional group life insurance coverage may also cover a spouse and dependent children. Optional group life insurance provides benefits for natural and accidental death or dismemberment. Premiums are paid through payroll deduction.
Menu Path
From the Human Resources menu, select State. From the State - VA menu, select Optional Life.
Selection Rule
Employees with an Optional Life deduction with a non-zero monthly deduction or benefit amount are selected and reported.
Prerequisites
Enter valid information in the Employer Code field on the Virginia State Retirement page. If the Employer Code field is blank, the Employer Number entered on the VA Optional Life - Load page is reported.
Set up Optional Life deduction codes.
Complete the Setup procedure.
Setup
Set up the following before creating the Optional Life report.
Deductions
Associate the Optional Life deduction codes with the Deduction Type O - Optional Life Code.
On the VA Optional Life page, select Deductions.
Filter records using the filter criteria. To enter filter criteria:
Select an option in the first field.
Select or enter a value.
Select Add if the button is enabled.
Refer to Searching for Records for more information.
Select Add Record.
In the Deduction Code field, search for and select an Optional Life deduction code.
In the Deduction Type field, select O - Optional Life Code.
Select Save, then Yes.
Repeat this process for the remaining Optional Life deduction codes.
For more information, refer to Deduction Types Overview.
Load Data
You must load data before running the Clear Monthly Totals option from the Periodic Routines menu within the Human Resources menu. The load process requires the employee's monthly deduction information to be accurate.
On the VA Optional Life page, select Load.
Select the Year and Month.
Enter the Employer Number.
Select Load, then Yes.
If data for the selected criteria is loaded, select Yes to delete and reload the data.
Save the Load Summary report and select OK.
Navigate to the folder containing the summary report file.
Inspect the file. Update data if needed.
Repeat these steps until all required data is loaded.
Maintain Data
You can correct loaded data before submitting the report. However, any corrections must also be updated in the source data.
On the VA Optional Life page, filter records using the filter criteria. To enter filter criteria, select an option from the list and then enter or select a value.
To add a record, click Add Record. Refer to the Field Descriptions and enter valid information in the required fields. Select Save, then Yes.
To edit a record, select the ellipsis in the Actions column and then select Edit. Update the information and select Save.
To delete a record, select the ellipsis in the Actions column, select Delete, and then select Yes.
Field Descriptions
The following table describes the fields on the VA Optional Life page.
Field | Description |
|---|---|
Year | The fiscal year of the Optional Life data. |
Month | The month of the Optional Life data. |
Employer Number | The employer number. This value is retrieved from the Employer Code field on the Virginia State Retirement page. |
Employee Number | The employee number. Select Lookup to search for and select an employee number. |
Social Security | The employee's social security number. The value is retrieved from the Employee Information page. |
Last Name | The employee's last name. The value is retrieved from the Employee Information page. |
First Initial | The first initial of the employee’s first name. The value is retrieved from the Employee Information page. |
Optional Life | The Optional Life amount being reported. The Optional Life amount includes employee and employer amounts. |
Create File
On the VA Optional Life page, select Report.
Select the Year and Month.
Create a hard copy of the report to verify data before you create the electronic file:
Select Hard Copy.
Select PDF or Excel.
If you have the security permission to view the entire Social Security Number (without masking) and want to include the entire Social Security Number, select Print Full Social Security Number.
The required access privileges are granted by assigning the appropriate security resource.Select Create, then Yes.
Save the file and select OK.
Navigate to the folder containing the report file.
Inspect the file. Update data if needed.
Repeat these steps until all the required data is included.
Create the electronic file:
Select Electronic File.
Select Create, and then Yes.
Save the file and select OK.
The default file name is optlife<MMYYYY>.tpe
where
MMYYYY represents the Month and Year selected in Step 2.
Follow the state's submission procedures.
Purge Data
If you need to correct setups or employee data, purge the existing records and reload the data.
On the VA Optional Life page, select Purge.
Select the Year and Month.
Select Submit.
Select Yes, and then OK.