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How to use your website
Participant Website
Reference Guide
The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company
Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York
2079442
RET IREMENT PLA N SERVICE S
Point. Click. Take Charge!
Participating in your employer-sponsored retirement plan gives you access to LincolnFinancial.com,
where you can manage your retirement account and take advantage of a wide range of
comprehensive information, tools and other helpful resources. This quick reference guide shows
you how to register, navigate through the website, and use basic functions and applications.
Since not all Lincoln Financial retirement plans are alike, some of the features described in this
guide may not be available to every plan.
If you have questions or need additional assistance,
please call the Lincoln Customer Contact Center.
Registration
Enrollment
My Account Overview home page
Account Summary
Managing your investments
Changing your contributions
Accessing your Account Activity
Adding/updating your beneficiaries
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Requesting a loan
Initiating a withdrawal
Viewing your statement
Electing eDelivery
Using the Retirement Outlook tool
Resource Center
Forms
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Registration
New users
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Go to LincolnFinancial.com and select
Register Now from the Login area.
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Select Retirement Account under Policy/
Account/Certificate Holders.
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On the Registration – Account Look Up
page, enter your date of birth and Social
Security number. Then, type in the three red
moving letters/numbers you see in the box
(these are not case sensitive). For a new set of
letters/numbers, click the Refresh button.
When finished, select Next to go to the
Login Information page (see Login
information).
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3
Already registered?
Upgrade your security.
If you are an existing user of the Lincoln website,
you will need to upgrade your registration to
take advantage of our new security features.
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Go to LincolnFinancial.com and select Employer
Retirement Plans from the Account drop-down
menu. Enter your username and select Login.
On the next page, reenter your current username
and select Next. You will be directed to the Account
Profile Upgrade page where you will be asked to
enter your date of birth and Social Security number,
then select Next (see Login information).
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Login information
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Enter your display name (the name that will be
displayed on the website once you log in). If you
are a new user, create a username and password
using the guidelines noted on the page. If you
are a current user, you may need to select a new
username and password that meets our new
security requirements (your current username and
password will be prefilled). Enter your email address
and phone number, then read and accept the terms
and conditions for the website. Select Next.
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On the Login & Confirm page, click Next to go
to the final steps of the process.
Enter your new username and select Continue.
Then, enter your password and choose Enter.
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Read the explanation about the security
image/phrase and security questions.
Select Continue.
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Select a security image and phrase. Note: That the
phrase is part of the image and cannot be changed.
You may use the image and phrase already selected
from the website’s default settings by selecting
Continue with current image/phrase. If you
would like to choose another security image and
phrase, select Get a new image and phrase.
Once completed, select Next.
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Select three different security questions and
provide answers to each. Answers must be at least
three characters and are case and punctuation
sensitive. Select Finish.
You will be directed to your Lincoln website
home page.
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Enrollment
You can enroll in your retirement plan in just
six easy steps.
Note: Online enrollment is not available for all
Lincoln retirement plans and is not necessary for
employees who are already participating.
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Once you register and log in, you will be directed
to the My Account Overview home page. Select
Enroll Now to begin the online enrollment process.
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Note: If you exit or go back to a previous step at
any time in the enrollment process, your information
will be saved until you return. All information is
confidential and not shared with your employer or
retirement plan representative.
Step 1: Get Started
2
On this page, you can either watch an
informational video about enrollment or start the
enrollment process by selecting Start Enrolling.
If you choose not to enroll, select Decline. With
either selection, you will be prompted to confirm
your decision. If you choose to decline, you can
still enroll at a later date.
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Step 2: About Me
3
Confirm that the information provided by your
employer is correct. If no changes are needed
select Continue.
Select Make Changes if you need to update your
phone number or email address. Any other changes
must be made through your employer. When your
changes are complete, select Submit Changes.
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Beneficiaries
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5
If your plan requires, you will next be asked to confirm
or update your marital status. If this is a plan feature,
married participants must designate a spouse as the
primary beneficiary, or submit a Spousal Beneficiary
Consent Form.
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Select Add/Update to add a primary beneficiary.
Then select Add.
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Complete the information for the beneficiary you
are adding: Name, Social Security number (optional),
Relationship, Date of Birth and Address (optional).
Enter 100% for the benefit amount, unless you
are adding more than one primary beneficiary
(total must equal 100%). The percentage will
automatically default to 100% if you are adding
your spouse as the beneficiary.
When finished, select Submit Changes.
Note: You must designate a primary beneficiary(ies)
before naming a contingent beneficiary(ies).
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Your successful election will be displayed in the
beneficiary list. If there are errors in the information
you provided, you will receive an error message.
Note: If you have an ERISA plan, and you are
married and elect someone other than your spouse
as the primary beneficiary, you will receive a prompt
with information about additional requirements. The
prompt will include a link to a Spousal Beneficiary
Consent Form. You will need to complete this form
and mail a hard copy to the address indicated on
the form.
To add a contingent beneficiary, follow the same
instructions as above. Note: If you have an ERISA
plan and you are electing someone other than your
spouse as a contingent beneficiary, you do not need
spousal consent.
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When your beneficiary designations are complete,
select Continue.
Step 3: My Retirement Outlook
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Follow the prompts outlined in Using the
Retirement Outlook tool to create a projection
of the estimated income and assets you will have
when you retire based on your current age, savings,
income, and investment goals.
Completion of this section is optional when
enrolling online. If you prefer to skip this step
and complete it at another time, select Update
Retirement Goals from the I’d Like To drop-down
menu on the My Retirement Outlook home page.
See Using the Retirement Outlook tool later in
this guide for more detailed instructions.
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Step 4: My Contributions
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Choose the amount you would like to contribute
to your retirement account from each paycheck.
Information is provided about the maximum you
can contribute, and (if applicable) regarding your
employer’s matching contributions. When finished,
select Continue to My Investment Choices.
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Step 5: My Investment Choices
10 Select your investment approach. Information about
each approach available to your plan is outlined
on this page. Once you select your investment
approach, select Continue.
After you have made all of your selections, you
will have the opportunity to verify your investment
choices and select Submit.
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Step 6: Summary
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During this final step, a summary of your
information and elections will be provided for
review. Select Make Changes next to any
category you wish to change. When finished, select
Complete Enrollment.
An enrollment confirmation page will appear. You
can proceed to the My Account Overview home
page by selecting Finish.
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My Account Overview home page
These helpful tools and resources can be
accessed from the My Account Overview
home page
1
Profile & Preferences — Add or change your
display name, email address or password.
2
I’d Like To menu — This drop-down menu
provides quick links to the most frequently used
participant actions.
3
Account Summary — Provides information about
your Lincoln retirement account(s), and access to
transactions. You may also access the Account
Summary by clicking on the plan name.
4
Resource Center — Links you to educational
resources, including videos, articles and information
about the Lincoln InStep® Participant Retirement
Program. You can also access the Resource Center
by clicking the boxes across the bottom of the page.
5
Forms — Takes you to administrative forms related
to your account
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About Lincoln — Information about Lincoln
Financial Group
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Search — Allows you to search the website
by keywords
Changing your profile
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If you need to change your display name, email
address or password, click on the drop-down arrow
next to the “profile” symbol at the top of the My
Account Overview home page.
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Updating your profile
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From the Profile Information page that appears,
you may make changes to your account (email
address, display name, etc) profile by selecting Edit.
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Note: Account linking will let you know if your
retirement account is “linked” to any other accounts
you may have with Lincoln. If you have accounts
that aren’t linked, simply add the username and
password for the other account(s).
10 When you are finished making your changes on
the Profile & Preferences page, select
Save Changes.
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Changing your password
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On the Profile & Preferences page, select
Security Settings. Follow the Password Policy
instructions for changing your password. After your
changes are complete, select Save New Password.
Note: You may only change your password if you
know your existing password. If you’ve forgotten
your password, select Forgot My Password on the
Login page.
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Review/Update contact information
12 Select Review Contact Information from
the I’d Like To drop-down menu on the My
Account Overview home page or the Account
Summary page.
You can only change your email address or phone
number in this section. If you need to change other
information, please contact your employer.
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Account Summary
1
From the My Account Overview home page, you
can access information about your plan by selecting
the Account Summary tab, or by selecting the name
of the plan you want to see information about. The
Account Summary page provides current information
about your account — such as account balance,
investment allocation, account activity and more — as
well as access to tools for managing your account. My
Message Center provides alerts regarding account
activity, and important information and announcements
from Lincoln Financial Group.
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The dashboard at the bottom of the page offers easy
access to the information and transactions you need.
Educational articles are also available under each tab.
Performance
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This section provides information about your
personal rate of return, account holdings and
investment elections. You can also research your
investments and make changes. (See Managing
your investments.)
Contributions
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3
This section provides information about your
retirement account contributions — current deferral
amounts and recent contributions. You can also make
changes. (See Changing your contributions.)
Recent Activity
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2
This section shows recent activity in your
retirement account. It also provides access to
information about past account activity that
can be downloaded into Quicken® format.
(See Accessing your account activity.)
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Beneficiaries
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You can view and update your beneficiary
information from this section. (See Adding/
updating your beneficiaries.)
Plan Information
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This section of the dashboard provides a summary
of the features of your plan(s), including information
about loan guidelines, vesting types/amounts, and
withdrawal information as allowed by your plan.
Loans & Withdrawals
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This section provides information about the
availability of loans and withdrawals, as well as
helpful planning tools. (See Requesting a loan
and Initiating a withdrawal.)
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Managing your investments
Exchange: Movement of all or a portion of your current balance from one investment to another.
Does not impact how future contributions will be invested.
Rebalance: Allows readjustment of your entire account balance based on investment elections you
have made. This can be completed on a one-time basis or a reoccurring schedule.
Future investment elections: Make changes to where your future contributions are invested.
Does not impact investment allocation of current balances.
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To make exchanges, rebalance your account or select
future investments, choose Review My Investments
from the I’d Like To drop-down menu on the My
Account Overview home page.
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2
On the next page, select Change Investments.
Note: If you are planning to make an exchange or
rebalance and elect future investments, you must
make your future investment elections first, then
complete exchange or rebalance.
3
On the Change My Investments page, choose from
the investment approach options available to your plan.
If you chose to manage your own investments, select
My Own Investment Choices.
If you would like to exchange, or move all or a portion
of your current balance from one investment to another,
select Exchange on the Change My Investments
page and complete the information as directed.
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If you would like to rebalance, or move current
balances between multiple investments once or on a
recurring schedule, select Rebalance and complete
the information as directed.
4
If you would like to change your future investment
elections, or where your future contributions are
invested, select Future Investment Elections and
complete the information as directed.
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Changing your contributions
1
You can view your current contributions by selecting
Review My Contributions from the I’d Like To
drop-down menu on the My Account Overview
home page.
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Changing contributions
2
On the Contributions page you will see an
overview of your current contributions by type.
Select Change Contributions.
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You can change the amount you would like to
contribute per paycheck, as well as the type of
contribution (pretax, post-tax Roth, etc.). You may
calculate these amounts in dollars or percentages,
depending on your plan.
Once you have decided on the contribution amount,
select Continue.
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Since not all Lincoln Financial retirement plans are alike, some of the features described in this guide may not be available to every plan.
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Review your changes. If you would like to make
additional changes, select the Back link. If you
would like to cancel this transaction, select the
Cancel link. If the changes are correct, select
Submit Changes.
4
You will receive a message at the top of the
Contributions page indicating that your changes
were a success. Your new contribution amounts will
also be reflected on this page.
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Accessing your Account Activity
1
To review recent account activity and download it into
a Quicken® or Microsoft Excel® file, select See Account
Activity from the I’d Like To drop-down menu on the
My Account Overview home page.
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Accessing account activity
2
3
On the Transaction History page, select the date
ranges for the account transaction history you want
to view, and the type of information you want to
access (contributions, exchanges, distributions, etc.).
When ready, select Retrieve History.
2
To get additional information about a transaction,
click on the transaction number. You can download
your transaction history into a spreadsheet or a
Quicken-compatible file by choosing the appropriate
file format from the Download History list.
Select Save to save the file on your computer. For
Quicken downloads, open the software and follow
the steps for uploading/importing a file.
Since not all Lincoln Financial retirement plans are alike, some of the features described in this guide may not be available to every plan.
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3
Adding/updating your beneficiaries
1
To add or update your beneficiary(ies), select Review
Beneficiaries from the I’d Like To drop-down menu
on the My Account Overview home page. You will
be asked to Confirm or Update your Marital Status
before adding primary beneficiary information.
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Adding a beneficiary
2
Select Add/Update to add a primary beneficiary.
Note: If you are married and elect someone other
than your spouse as the primary beneficiary, you will
receive a prompt with information about additional
requirements. The prompt will include a link to the
Spousal Beneficiary Consent Form. Please complete
and mail a hard copy to the address indicated on the
form. This requirement cannot be completed online.
3
On the Add/Update Primary Beneficiaries page,
complete the information for the beneficiary you are
adding: Name, Social Security number (optional),
Relationship, Date of Birth and Address (optional).
The percentage will default to 100% if you are
adding your spouse as the beneficiary. Select Add.
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4
Your successful election will appear in the Primary
Beneficiaries list.
If there are errors in the information you provided
(such as total percentages under 100%, or incorrect
zip code for city/state), you will receive an error
message. After you correct the errors indicated,
select Submit.
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To add a contingent beneficiary, follow the same
instructions as above and enter your information in
the contingent beneficiary section.
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Updating a beneficiary
6
Select Add/Update next to the appropriate beneficiary.
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Make any needed updates by typing over the
existing information.
When you are finished updating, select
Submit Changes.
If there are errors in the information you provided
(such as total percentages under 100%, or incorrect
zip code for city/state), you will receive an error
message. After you correct the errors indicated,
select Submit.
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Deleting a beneficiary
8
Select Add/Update next to the appropriate
beneficiary.
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On the Add/Update Primary Beneficiaries page,
select Delete Beneficiary next to the one you wish
to remove.
Update the percentages of the remaining
beneficiaries so the amount totals 100%.
9
Note: if you want to delete a primary beneficiary and
designate a new one, and contingent beneficiaries
exist, you must delete the contingent beneficiaries
first. Then, add the new primary beneficiary, followed
by the contingent beneficiaries.
10 Your successful deletion will be displayed in the
appropriate beneficiary list.
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Requesting a loan
1
You can access Loan Information by selecting See
Loan Information on the I’d Like To drop-down
menu on the My Account Overview home page.
1
Requesting a loan
2
Balance and other information about your current
loans will be shown on the Loan Information
page, along with the amount of funds available
for a new loan. For help deciding if you’d like to
request a new loan, select Actions, and then
select Model a Loan.
2
Or, if you’re ready to request a new loan, select
Actions, and then Request a Loan.
3
On the Request a Loan page, under Loan Terms,
enter your loan parameters, and then select
Calculate to view the payment amount.
If you prefer to use a different phone or email
address other than what you provided during
registration, complete the Contact Information
section. If your plan requires, you must certify your
marital status before proceeding.
Once the information is complete, select Continue.
Since not all Lincoln Financial retirement plans are alike, some of the features described in this guide may not be available to every plan.
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In the Disbursement section, choose how
you would like your loan disbursed. When the
information is complete, select Continue.
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Next, confirm your method of repayment and the
frequency of your payments in the Repayment
section. Select Continue.
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In the Documentation section, choose your
methods for receiving and signing the loan
documentation.
When finished, select Continue.
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Review the loan information displayed in the
Summary section, and select Submit to confirm.
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Initiating a withdrawal
1
You can access Withdrawal History by selecting
See Withdrawal Information from the I’d
Like To drop-down menu on the My Account
Overview home page.
1
Modeling a withdrawal
2
Withdrawals cannot be requested online at this time;
however, information about withdrawal types and
amounts are available to view. To utilize this tool,
please select Actions, then Model a withdrawal.
2
Follow the prompts to determine what withdrawal
types may be available to you. After entering the
requested information, you will be able to view the
approximate cash total, along with estimates of any
associated fees and tax withholdings.
3
If you would like to initiate a withdrawal request,
complete the appropriate form and return it to the
address noted. Withdrawal forms are available under
the Forms tab on the My Account Overview home
page.
3
Since not all Lincoln Financial retirement plans are alike, some of the features described in this guide may not be available to every plan.
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Viewing your statement
1
To view your statements online, go to View My
Statements in the I’d Like To drop-down menu on
the My Account Overview home page.
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2
On the View a Statement page, select the date
range you would like to view and click Continue.
Choose from one of your recent quarterly
statements, available to view immediately as a PDF,
or enter a custom date range.
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If you select custom dates, you will be asked to
verify your request before it is submitted. Review the
information provided and click Submit Request.
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4
On-demand statements requested with custom
dates will be available online within one to three
business days. To view your custom statement,
return to View My Statements and your requested
statement will appear in the Enter a date range
drop-down menu.
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Electing eDelivery
You can elect to receive your retirement
account statement online. For certain types of
plans, you can choose to receive shareholder
reports and prospectuses by email as well.
1
To elect these options, select Change eDelivery
preferences from the I’d Like To drop-down menu.
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2
The next page confirms your current choices. If you
would like to make changes, select Make Changes.
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3
On the Change Communications page, make your
selection(s), enter and confirm your email address,
then select OK.
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Using the Retirement Outlook tool
With the Retirement Outlook tool, you can find
out if you’re on track to reach your retirement
goals. This tool does the math for you and
helps you answer these key questions about
your retirement planning
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• Where are you now?
• How big of a nest egg will you need?
• What other retirement savings do you have?
• What rate of return do you expect?
• What is your retirement outlook?
If there’s a possible savings shortfall in your future,
the Retirement Outlook Tool can help you find ways
to get back on track.
1
To access My Retirement Outlook, select
Update Retirement Goals from the I’d Like
To drop-down menu on the My Account
Overview home page.
2
The first section displays your current age and
provides a tool to help you consider where you
are now and estimates your retirement outlook.
To get started, enter your annual income and
select Continue.
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Next, determine how much money you will need.
Enter the age when you would like to retire and the
percentage of your current income that you will need
to live comfortably in retirement. Select Continue.
3
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4
5
Third, enter any additional retirement savings
accounts you may have. Select Add/Update to
enter information for each one. You may add as
many accounts as you like. In addition, you can add
estimated monthly income (such as Social Security
or a part-time job). After adding each account,
select Add again to input another. Do not select
OK until you’ve added all accounts.
4
The fourth section provides information on
investment styles, to help you determine the
hypothetical annual rate of return you hope to
achieve between now and retirement.
Once you enter an assumed rate of return,
select Continue.
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6
The final section provides a summary of the
information you’ve provided. (Note: If you
transferred money to your Lincoln plan from your
previous employer’s retirement plan, the balance
will show on this page.) The charts on the right
will show you, based on the information you have
provided, the amount you’re likely to need for
retirement, how much you’re likely to have, and
any shortages or overages. This can be viewed as
an overall asset amount or a monthly income
amount. As you move the Annual Savings or
Assumed Rate of Return slider, the charts will
adjust accordingly.
6
When you are finished reviewing, select Continue.
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Resource Center
The Resource Center provides access to information,
planning tools, and other resources to guide you
every step of the way — from enrollment in your
Lincoln plan through your retirement.
1
You will find relevant content, videos, articles,
calculators and more to help you
• Get started
• Save more
• Invest wisely
• Step into retirement
• Manage life events that may affect your savings
Access the Resource Center by selecting the
tab that appears on the My Account Overview
home page.
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1
Forms
1
The Forms section of the website provides access
to the forms you need to manage your account.
1
You can get to the Forms section by selecting the
Forms tab on the My Account Overview home
page, or choosing Forms in the I’d Like To dropdown menu.
Need help?
For further assistance, Contact
Information may be found under the
Site Help link on the My Account
Overview home page.
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Important disclosures:
©2013 Lincoln National Corporation
Login: Employer Retirement Plans
LincolnFinancial.com
Lincoln Financial Group is the
marketing name for Lincoln National
Corporation and its affiliates.
Affiliates are separately
responsible for their own financial
and contractual obligations.
LCN1304-2079442
POD 6/13 Z01
Order code: LAP-GDE-BRC001
Mutual funds and variable annuities are
sold by prospectus. Investors are advised
to carefully consider the investment
objectives, risks, charges and expenses
of a mutual fund, and in the case of a
variable annuity, the variable contract
and its underlying investment options. To
obtain a mutual fund or variable annuity
prospectus that contains this and other
information call: 800-4LINCOLN. Read the
prospectus carefully before investing or
sending money.
Variable annuities are long-term investment products designed
particularly for retirement purposes and are subject to market
fluctuation, investment risk and possible loss of principal. Variable
annuities contain both investment and insurance components,
and have fees and charges, including mortality and expense,
administrative and advisory fees. Optional features are available
for an additional charge. The annuity’s value fluctuates with the
market value of the underlying investment options, and all assets
accumulate tax-deferred. Withdrawals of earnings are taxable as
ordinary income and, if taken prior to age 59½, may be subject
to a 10% federal tax penalty. Withdrawals will reduce the death
benefit and cash surrender value. There is no additional tax-deferral
benefit for an annuity contract purchased in an IRA or other taxqualified plan.
Variable annuities sold in New York are issued by Lincoln Life &
Annuity Company of New York, Syracuse, NY, and distributed by
Lincoln Financial Distributors, Inc., a broker-dealer. For all other
states, variable annuities are issued by The Lincoln National Life
Insurance Company, Fort Wayne, IN, and distributed by Lincoln
Financial Distributors, Inc., a broker-dealer. The Lincoln National
Life Insurance Company does not solicit business in the
state of New York, nor is it authorized to do so. Contractual
obligations are subject to the claims-paying ability of the
appropriate issuing company.
The mutual fund-based programs include certain services provided
by Lincoln Financial Advisors Corp. (LFA), a broker-dealer (member
FINRA) and an affiliate of Lincoln Financial Group, 1300 S. Clinton
St., Fort Wayne, IN 46802. Unaffiliated broker-dealers also may
provide services to customers.