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Click here for the complete SEED OK Frequently Asked Questions (in PDF). Click here for step-by-step instructions to Get Started in the Oklahoma College Savings Plan with SEED OK (in PDF). |
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Your child has a bright future. A college education is an important step on the road to success. It offers the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills to last a lifetime, discover new ideas, and make lasting friendships. College graduates may have better health, live longer, have more job choices, and earn more money than people with no degree. With a young child, the need to save for college may seem far off. But by starting to invest today, paying for college may be easier to achieve. An Oklahoma College Savings Plan (OCSP) account offers you a smart way to do this. SEED for Oklahoma Kids has already started saving for your child's education with $1,000 deposited into an Oklahoma College Savings Plan account (SEED OK account). Your child will be able to use this money to attend college or university, community college, or vocational school. As part of this special opportunity available to only a few Oklahoma families, you may open your own Oklahoma College Savings Plan (Your Account) in your child's name. After you open Your Account, your child will have two Oklahoma College Savings Plan accounts:
What is the SEED OK Account? The SEED OK Account is a special account in the Oklahoma College Savings Plan “seeded” with $1,000 for your child’s future. The State of Oklahoma owns the account, but only your child benefits from the money. Money in the SEED OK Account is invested in the Balanced Option for your child’s education after high school. Can I put money into the SEED OK Account? Only the State can put money into the SEED OK Account. But you can open your own Oklahoma College Savings Plan (called Your Account) and save for your child. If you opened your own account, you may have been eligible to receive a Savings Match during 2008-2011.
About the Savings Match (available during 2008-2011) Please read the Savings Match Terms for complete details. The Savings Match was a SEED OK incentive for you to save for your child’s future. To have received this match, you must have opened your own Oklahoma College Savings Plan (Your Account). When you deposited money in Your Account, you may have been eligible for a $1 to $1 or $0.50 to $1 match. The match was placed in your child’s SEED OK Account. If you open Your Account, your child will have two Oklahoma College Savings Plan accounts:
Who qualified for the Savings Match? Savings Match eligibility was based on your federal adjusted gross income. How much Savings Match you received depended on the deposits you made into Your Account.
If your adjusted gross income was less than $29,000, the largest match you were eligible to receive was $250 per year. For example, if you saved $250 or more in Your Account during 2008-2011, then you child's SEED OK Account was eligible to receive $250 per year. If your adjusted gross income was $29,000 to $43,499, the largest match you were eligible to receive was $125 per year. For example, if you saved $250 or more in Your Account during 2008-2011, then your child's SEED OK Account was eligible to receive $125 per year.
What is my federal adjusted gross income? Your federal adjusted gross income is an amount that you report to the Oklahoma Tax Commission when you file a State income tax return. The State used your income from earlier tax returns because more current records were not available when the Savings Match was calculated. For example:
If I was not required to file an Oklahoma Tax Return could I have still qualified for the Match? Yes. If you did not file an Oklahoma Tax Return because your income was below the amount required for filing in a given year, you could have qualified for the Savings Match, even if you received Food Stamps, Medicaid, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits from the State in that same tax year. The Oklahoma Department of Human Services determined if you received these benefits. What steps were required to have received the Savings Match (available during 2008-2011)? 1. Opened an Oklahoma College Savings Plan account for your child;
Why did I need to fill out and sign the Match Eligibility Form? The State used this form to check if you qualified for the Savings Match. To protect your privacy, the Oklahoma Tax Commission and Department of Human Services may only release information to the State with your written permission. This form gives that permission. When do I need to return the Match Eligibility Form? The savings match ended in 2011. It is no longer necessary to return the Match Eligibility Form. The savings match incentive was available from 2008 - 2011. During that time, when you deposit money in Your Account, your savings was matched in the next quarter. For example, if you saved money in Your Account in in August 2011, the Savings Match was deposited in your child's SEED OK Account between October and December 2011. I did not receive the Savings Match. Should I open an account anyway? Yes! There are many reasons why you should open an account. What if someone else opened an account for my child? Could they get the Match? The savings match incentive was available from 2008-2011. During that time, only you—the individual who completed the SEED OK Study phone interview—could have qualified to receive the Savings Match.
Opening Your Oklahoma College Savings Plan Account (for SEED OK) Read the Disclosure Booklet for complete details. How much money do I need to open My Account? Accounts opened after April 15, 2009 require you to make a $100 minimum initial contribution How can I open my account? You can open Your Account either by: • Mail. Fill out an account application and mail it to the Oklahoma College Savings Plan.
How can I save in my account? You can save money by:
I have more than one child. Which child should be the beneficiary? The child identified by name and Social Security Number on the SEED OK Account would have needed to have been the beneficiary of Your Account to have possibly qualified for the Savings Match (available from 2008-2011). To save for your other children’s future, you can open Oklahoma College Savings Plan accounts for each of them. These accounts will not be part of the SEED OK study. You can also change the beneficiary of Your Account to another family member after the SEED OK study ends in 2014. How do I track My Account? You will receive a statement every three months that shows Your Account activity. You will also have online access to Your Account information 24 hours a day at www.ok4saving.org. What if I already have an Oklahoma College Savings Plan for my child? If you—the person who completed the SEED OK Study phone interview—already owns an Oklahoma College Savings Plan account for your child, you do not need to open another account. This account will become Your Account and possibly qualify for the Savings Match (available from 2008-2011). About the Oklahoma College Savings Plan Please read the Disclosure Booklet or visit www.ok4saving.org for complete details. What is the Oklahoma College Savings Plan? The Oklahoma College Savings Plan is a state-sponsored education savings program created to help families save for college. It includes investment options to help you with your investment goals, plus features that may help make investing more affordable. Will my child have to use the money at an Oklahoma college? No. The money in Your Account and the SEED OK Account may be used at both in-state or out-of-state eligible educational institution. This includes public and private colleges and universities, graduate and post-graduate schools, community colleges, and certain proprietary and vocational schools. How will money in an account affect my child’s financial aid eligibility? The federal government establishes eligibility for federal financial aid. These rules may change before your child enters college. Also, state financial aid policies and the policies of individual colleges may vary. • SEED OK Account: Based on current federal rules, savings in this account should not impact the student’s eligibility for federal financial aid. • Your Account: Current federal rules expect a limited portion of parents’ savings to be spent each year for their child’s college education, up to a maximum of 12 percent. Due to protections in the financial aid formula, this percentage is usually lower for most families. Depending on parents’ income at the time your child goes to college, the money saved in Your Account may not be considered at all.
How will money in an account affect any federal or state benefits? • SEED OK Account: Under current program guidelines, the money in this account will not affect your eligibility for federal or state benefits administered by the Oklahoma Department of Human Services since neither you nor your child can directly access this money. • Your Account: Effective November 1, 2008, money in Your Account will not affect your eligibility for Food Stamps, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), and TANF. This money is also not considered in determining your eligibility for the Child Care and certain SoonerCare (Medicaid) Programs. Under current program guidelines, since you will have control over Your Account, it will be considered as an available resource in determining your eligibility for some SoonerCare (Medicaid) Programs, State Supplemental Payments (SSP), and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). For questions about how money might affect a specific benefit, please contact the Oklahoma Department of Human Services at (866) 411-1877 or visit www.okdhs.org. My child does not attend college or another degree program soon after high school? • SEED OK Account: The money will remain available until your child reaches age 30. If your child does not use this money by age 30, the funds will be used for other Oklahoma families. • Your Account: Money may be used for your child's post-secondary education at any age. You can also change the beneficiary of Your Account to another family member after the SEED OK study ends in 2014. We move out of Oklahoma? If you move to another state, the State of Oklahoma will maintain the SEED OK Account and Your Account. Your child will still be able to use the money for education after high school. This information is meant to answer general questions you may have about SEEK OK. For complete details about the Oklahoma College Savings Plan, please read the Disclosure Booklet. For details about the Savings Match (available from 2008-2011), see the Savings Match Terms.
If I have questions about an Oklahoma College Savings Plan Account, who should I contact? SEED OK Oklahoma College Savings Plan,
More Information for SEED OK Participants
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