I listened to an April 2022 podcast by Suze Orman. She strongly mentions designating a beneficiary for each I-bond purchase…to avoid probate in the case of my demise. In opening my account with a purchase, I did not see anywhere of how to include a beneficiary. Their video instruction guide did not include this detail.
Does anyone know how to do this…or should I call the phone number for assistance, which the Treasury website indicates is a long wait.
My son helped me with setting up the account & making an I-Bond purchase…it was nerve-wracking & not an easy feat for me, even with his assistance. So, if anyone has designated a beneficiary, would you please share the ‘how-to instructions’ with me, as basic & simplistic as possible.
Thank you in advance,
Apacherose
The stuff below is a cut-and-paste from their website:
To add a secondary owner or beneficiary to your securities registered in single ownership form:
Log into your primary TreasuryDirect ® account.
Click the ManageDirect tab at the top of the page.
Under the heading Manage My Securities click “Edit” a registration.
On the Edit Security Registration page, choose the security type you want to edit and click “Select”.
On the Summary page, choose the security or securities you wish to edit and click “Select” (you may edit up to 50 securities to the same registration).
On the Detail page, select the registration containing the secondary owner or beneficiary you desire from the drop-down box. (If you’ve never created the registration, you can do so by clicking “Add New Registration”. Once you’ve created the new registration, the system will bring you back to the Detail page where you’ll find the new registration listed in the drop-down box.) Note: Entity accounts may only have one registration. All securities in an entity account carry a registration identical to the entity account name.
Once you’ve selected the desired registration, click “Submit” to complete the change in registration for the security.
Your welcome. I like toll house chocolate chip cookies.
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It wasn’t simple, but I managed to add a “payable on death” (POD) beneficiary (my wife) to my I-bonds following these directions (located in the “How Do I?” FAQ).
To add a secondary owner or beneficiary to your securities registered in single ownership form:
Log into your primary TreasuryDirect ® account.
Click the ManageDirect tab at the top of the page.
Under the heading Manage My Securities click “Edit” a registration.
On the Edit Security Registration page, choose the security type you want to edit and click “Select”.
On the Summary page, choose the security or securities you wish to edit and click “Select” (you may edit up to 50 securities to the same registration).
On the Detail page, select the registration containing the secondary owner or beneficiary you desire from the drop-down box. (If you’ve never created the registration, you can do so by clicking “Add New Registration”. Once you’ve created the new registration, the system will bring you back to the Detail page where you’ll find the new registration listed in the drop-down box.) Note: Entity accounts may only have one registration. All securities in an entity account carry a registration identical to the entity account name.
Once you’ve selected the desired registration, click “Submit” to complete the change in registration for the security.
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Addenda:
When you “Add New Registration,” click the “beneficiary” button. The current owner is the 1st registrant (type in the info) and the beneficiary’s info goes in the 2nd registrant. (You can also make this your preferred registration option, for future purchases.) Click Submit.
You’re not done yet.
Under Registration, select the updated registration. It will say something like “John Doe POD Jane Doe”. Click submit.
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