Retirees and beneficiaries: mailing of the 2023 Certificates of Entitlement
23 June 2023
Each year the Fund verifies the continuing eligibility of retirees and beneficiaries to the benefits they are receiving. Each person in receipt of a benefit from the Fund must annually submit to the Fund their proof of life in the form of the Certificate of Entitlement (CE) to ensure the continued payment of their benefit. Retirees and beneficiaries can fulfill the annual CE requirement either by enrolling in the Digital CE app to issue their CE in biometric format, OR by submitting to the Fund a duly signed barcoded CE form either by mail or electronically via their Member Self-Service (MSS) account. All retirees and beneficiaries should issue their DCE or submit their barcoded CE form to the Fund at the very latest by 31 December 2023 to avoid the risk of benefit suspension. For more details, please read on.
2023 Certificate of Entitlement forms (CE):
On 30 June 2023 the Fund will start mailing the 2023 CE forms to all retirees and beneficiaries worldwide whose benefits were implemented before 29 June 2023 and who by that date had not already opted to complete their 2023 Digital CE using the DCE app.
As of 01 July 2023, the barcoded 2023 CE forms are also available for download and printing under the Document tab in the Member Self-Service (MSS) accounts of all retirees and beneficiaries who are not paid under the Two-Track system. Those who opt to complete the CE requirement using the CE form (rather than the DCE app) and who can access the MSS CE form can either use their MSS CE form OR the CE form mailed to them by the Fund.
For those using the mailed CE form, they should return it to the Fund either electronically via their Member Self-Service (MSS) account using the ‘Document Upload’ functionality, or, in original format, duly dated and hand-signed in ink, ideally within 45 days from date of receipt of the form to avoid receiving a reminder at the end of October 2023, and at the very latest by 31 December 2023 to avoid the risk of benefit suspension.
How to submit your 2023 CE to the Fund:
Retirees and beneficiaries can use one of the following four ways to submit their 2023 CE to the Fund and, thus, provide their annual proof of life:
Using the DCE app to provide their ‘proof of life’ in biometric format inside the app. Note that all retirees and beneficiaries can enroll in the DCE app, including those who are paid under the Two-Track. For more information about the DCE app and DCE submission please visit Digital Certificate of Entitlement (DCE). Those paid under the Two-Track must issue their DCE while physically in their declared country of residence, otherwise the Fund will understand that they moved and request new proof of residence documents and forms.
Using the CE form (mailed or printed from MSS) and submitting it to the Fund electronically inside their MSS account by uploading a scanned copy of their dated and hand-signed barcoded CE form to the Fund inside the Document Upload tab inside their MSS account. All retirees and beneficiaries can use this feature to submit their duly completed CE form (and other documents) to the Fund electronically, including those paid under the Two-Track. For details about how to register for MSS and how to upload a document please visit About Member Self-Service (MSS).
Using the CE form (mailed or printed from MSS) and mailing the physical CE form to the Fund. In this case, the Fund must receive the original dated and signed CE form with the retiree’s or beneficiary’s original ink signature on it. For the Fund’s mailing addresses please refer to our Contact Us page.
Using the CE form (mailed or printed from MSS) and dropping it off in person in New York or Geneva. Retirees and beneficiaries can drop their duly dated and signed CE form with their original ink signature on the form at the Fund’s New York and Geneva offices where dedicated UNJSPF mailboxes have been set up to receive your CE form and pension documents in general. For practical details about the modalities for in-person mail drop off, please refer to the New York and Geneva office tabs on our Contact Us page.
We thank our retirees and beneficiaries for their kind cooperation in this important exercise! For more details in the form of frequently asked questions (FAQs), please read on.
FAQs
What action is required from you regarding the annual CE Exercise? Each beneficiary whose benefit was in payment prior to 29 June 2023 must provide their annual proof of life by completing the annual CE exercise either using the DCE app or by submitting to the Fund the barcoded paper-based CE with the date and their original signature.
Beneficiaries who wish to complete the CE exercise using the DCE app must issue their Digital CE by no later than 31 December 2023 to avoid the risk of benefit suspension.
Beneficiaries who wish to complete the CE exercise by submitting to the Fund the barcoded paper CE must date and hand-sign the CE form with a pen. Their signature on the CE must match their signature on file with the Fund. The dated and hand-signed paper-based CE form should be returned to the Fund (either by mail or submitted electronically through MSS) no later than 31 December 2023 to avoid the risk of benefit suspension.
Who will NOT receive a 2023 paper CE? Beneficiaries whose benefit was NOT implemented before 29 June 2023 will not receive a 2023 CE. In these cases, no action is required from you for the 2023 CE exercise, but you will be given an opportunity to issue your DCE should you want to. You will be required to comply only as of the next upcoming CE exercise which will begin at the end of June 2023. Beneficiaries who successfully submitted their biometric proof of life in the form of the 2023 Digital CE (DCE) inside the DCE app anytime between 01 January and 29 June 2023 will also not receive a 2023 CE paper form, as they have already complied with the annual proof of life requirement. No further action is required from them.
I have already completed the exercise using the DCE app, do I have to also submit the paper-based CE? If you have already issued your 2023 Digital CE using the Digital CE app or are going to issue your 2023 DCE inside the app by 31 December 2023, there is no need to also submit the paper-based CE to the Fund. If you issue your 2023 CE using the DCE app, no other action is required from you. Just note that if you issue your 2023 DCE after 29 June 2023, you will receive the paper-based 2023 CE form and thus have the option to EITHER submit the paper CE form to the Fund OR use the DCE app to issue your biometric CE.
How can I check that my “barcoded” 2023 CE form has been received by the Fund? Please use the CE Tracking Tool inside your Member Self-Service (MSS) account: Once you have returned the dated and signed barcoded 2023 CE form to the Fund (either the one mailed to you OR the MSS CE), you can track its receipt by the Fund online, in the Proof Documents tab inside your MSS account. Please allow for at least four to six weeks before checking CE receipt in MSS, given the huge volume of returned CEs and the work involved for the Fund. If your 2023 CE is not yet listed, check again a couple of weeks later, as the Fund continuously updates its records. For more detailed information about this tracking process, please see below. Please be aware, only the original barcoded CEs of the first or second official mailings or printed from MSS can be tracked (NOT copies). If you completed the CE exercise using the Digital CE app, please see the following question and answer for guidance on how to check whether you successfully issued your DCE inside the app.
How can I confirm that I have successfully issued the CE using the Digital CE (DCE) app? Please open the DCE app, log in and look at that first screen. If you successfully issued the 2023 CE using the app, you should see a big green checkmark like the one on the image below. If, however, you see a button saying “Issue Digital CE”, that means you have not, yet, issued your 2023 DCE; in that case, please click on the “Issue Digital CE” button and follow the instructions to issue your 2023 DCE using the app. Note that you will not be able to track receipt of your Digital CE inside the MSS Proof Documents tab as these two systems are not connected at this time.
I have received the paper-based CE, but I want to complete the exercise using the DCE app. Is it possible? Yes, if you issue your Digital CE using the DCE app before 31 December 2023, you do not need to submit the paper-based CE form to the Fund. However, if you are not sure if you will be able to issue your DCE by 31 December 2023, we recommend you submit in any case the paper-based CE to the Fund either electronically or physically.
I haven’t received the paper-based CE and I do not want to use the DCE app. What should I do? If you are not paid under the Two-Track, you can download your 2023 CE form inside your MSS account under the Document tab. You should print the CE form, hand-sign it and either mail it to the Fund or submit a scanned copy to the Fund electronically using the Member Self-Service (MSS) Document Upload feature.
If you are paid on the Two-Track, please keep in mind that mailing services are still disrupted in some countries and it might take a bit longer for the CE form to reach you.
In any case, the Fund will send a second mailing of the 2023 CE forms in October to all those who by then have not yet submitted their DCE or CE form. If you have not received your paper CE form by mid-November 2023 and cannot use the DCE app to issue your 2023 CE, please refer to the Fund’s CE webpage and follow the instructions on what to do in case of non-receipt of the CE form.
For more practical information about the Fund’s annual Certificate of Entitlement Exercise, please check the dedicated CE page and DCE pages on our website.
