Utah Educational Savings Plan - Opening and Contributing to Your Account

FAQs

Opening and Contributing to Your Account

When can I open a Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) account?
How do I open an account?
What is the difference between an individual, custodial, and institutional account?
Can I fund an account with UGMA/UTMA monies?
How do I make contributions to UESP?
Is there a minimum contribution requirement?
Is there a maximum contribution limit?
Is there a limit on how often I can contribute?

When can I open a Utah Educational Savings Plan (UESP) account?
You can open a UESP account anytime. UESP must receive your paperwork by the last business day of the year that we are open in order to receive credit for a contribution in that particular year.

How do I open an account?
You can open an account online or by completing an Account Agreement. Account Agreements can be faxed to 800.214.2956, mailed to UESP at PO Box 145100, Salt Lake City, UT, 84114-5100, or hand-delivered to Board of Regents Building, The Gateway, 60 South 400 West,
Salt Lake City, Utah, 84101-1284.

You can make your initial contribution online, by check (in US dollars only), automated contributions from a checking or savings account, or by transfer from another 529 plan, a UGMA/UTMA account, or with the proceeds of redeemed qualified US savings bonds.

What is the difference between an individual, custodial, and institutional account?

Individual account. An individual account is an account owned by a person for the benefit of a beneficiary.
Custodial account. A custodial account is established with money transferred from a UGMA/UTMA account. The beneficiary is the irrevocable owner of the account. A custodian will manage the account for the beneficiary until the beneficiary reaches the age of majority in the state in which the UGMA/UTMA account was established.
Institutional account. An institutional account is established by an entity—such as family trust or corporation—for the benefit of a beneficiary.

Can I fund an account with UGMA/UTMA monies?
You can fund a UESP account with monies from an UGMA/UTMA. However, you must liquidate assets in the UGMA/UTMA to do so, as you cannot open a 529 account with securities or other investment instruments. Also, when you open the UESP account, it will be treated as a custodial UESP account, which means that the beneficiary is the account owner, with a custodian acting on his or her behalf until he or she reaches the age of majority in the state in which the UGMA/UTMA was created. Additionally, the beneficiary cannot be changed on these accounts (until the beneficiary reaches the age of majority and acts to do so), and funds can only be withdrawn for the benefit of the beneficiary.

How do I make contributions to UESP?
Contributions can be made online, by check (in US dollars only), automated contributions from a checking or savings accounts, or through payroll deduction with participating employers. Checks should be made payable to UESP, and must include the beneficiary’s name and UESP account number on the front. Mail contributions to UESP, PO Box 145100, Salt Lake City, UT, 84114-5100.

Is there a minimum contribution requirement?
UESP has no minimum initial or ongoing contribution requirement.

Is there a maximum contribution limit?
UESP will accept contributions until all UESP account balances for the same beneficiary reach $346,500. However, balances may exceed this amount as a result of market performance. This amount may be adjusted by UESP in the future based on the maximum estimated cost of qualified higher education expenses for four years of undergraduate plus three years of graduate school at the highest cost public or private institution authorized under the Plan. Contributions in excess of this maximum will be returned to the contributor.

Is there a limit on how often I can contribute?
You may contribute to an account as often or as seldom as you like. You may invest as much as $65,000 ($130,000 per married couple if filing jointly) in a single year without incurring a federal gift tax, but you must treat the gift as if it were made ratable over five years.

Investors should read the Program Description and consider all investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses before investing. The Program Description is available for download on the Web or a hard copy can be mailed to you by requesting it online from this Web site.

FDIC Insurance. Except for the underlying investment specified below, investments in UESP are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). FDIC insurance is provided for the FDIC-insured savings account held in trust by UESP at Zions First National Bank (Bank). Funds in the savings account are insured by the FDIC on a pass-through basis to each account owner up to the maximum amount set by federal law—currently $250,000 through December 31, 2013, and $100,000 thereafter. The amount of FDIC insurance provided to an account owner is based on the total of (1) the value of an account owner’s investment in UESP’s FDIC-insured savings account plus (2) the value of other accounts held (if any) at the Bank, as determined by the Bank and by FDIC regulations.

No Other Insurance and No Guarantees. Investments in UESP are not insured nor guaranteed by the State of Utah, UESP, the Utah State Board of Regents, the Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority, other state agencies, federal government agencies (except to the extent noted above regarding FDIC insurance ), or any employees or directors of any such entities. Units in UESP have not been registered with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission or with any state securities commission.

Account Value. The value of your UESP account may vary depending on market conditions and the performance of the investment option you select. It could be more or less than the amount you contribute; in short, your investment could lose value. However, subject to the application of Bank and FDIC rules and regulations to each account owner, funds in UESP’s FDIC-insured savings account will retain their value, whether in Option 11 or when allocated to portions of Options 2, 7, 8, and 9.

Non-Utah taxpayers and residents: You should determine whether the state in which you or your beneficiary pay taxes or live offers a 529 plan that provides state tax or other benefits not otherwise available to you by investing in UESP. You should consider such state tax treatment and benefits, if any, before investing in UESP.

For more details about how our plan works, download a copy of our Program Description.

Click here to download a pdf.
Click here to request a mailed copy.