New Hires or Newly Benefits-Eligible
Congratulations on joining GW! The University offers many benefits for you and your family.
To elect benefits online, you must take action within 30 calendar days of your hire date.
Effective Date
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The effective date of coverage at GW University is the first of the month following the month of hire or initial date of benefits eligibility unless hired on the first of the month.
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Employees hired on the first of the month are eligible for benefits as of the date of hire. For those hired on any date after the first of the month, their coverage begins the first of the month following the date of hire.
Enrolling
- Attend a New Employee Orientation Webinar Benefits Session hosted every Monday at 1 pm ET. A benefits administrator will review and discuss health, retirement, life insurance, tuition benefits, and answer questions.
- Make your benefits selections online using go.gwu.edu/enroll4benefits.
- Supporting documentation is required to be submitted to Benefits for spouses, domestic partners, and dependent children enrolling in the medical plans. Examples of acceptable supporting documentation:
| Enrolling Spouse | Copy of Marriage Certificate |
| Enrolling Child | Copy of Birth Certificate or Adoption Papers |
| Domestic Partner | Complete declaration of domestic partnership form located in the Forms section. Provide 3 required documents listed in the form |
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If you made an election that is subject to evidence of insurability (EOI), you should receive information on how to submit your EOI directly from Lincoln Financial via postal mail within 10 business days. You will have 60 calendar days from your date of hire to complete your EOI.
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You may elect Spouse (or Domestic Partner) Life Insurance in increments of $5,000 up to a maximum of 50% or $375,000 (whichever is lesser) of your Optional Employee Life Insurance election. Any amount over $30,000 will require Evidence of Insurability (EOI). You should receive information on how to submit your EOI directly from Lincoln Financial via postal mail within 10 business days. Please note: You must elect Optional Insurance for yourself in order to elect it for your spouse, domestic partner, or children. Dependent coverage is limited to 50% of the amount you elect for yourself.
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Waive the two year waiting period for the 401(a) retirement plan by submitting the Prior Employment Verification Form to [email protected]. Employees are responsible for submitting the form to their former employer.
Register Your Accounts
- Activate your FSA with PayFlex using your employee ID or the last four of your social security number.
- PayFlex will send a Welcome Letter with instructions on how to open a Health Savings Account (HSA) account. Activate your HSA before the first payroll deduction to guarantee that your contributions are posted to your account.
- To enroll in GW's 403(b) Plan, please visit Netbenefit.com/GW Fidelity is the master administrator for all of our retirement vendors so all enrollment/changes should be completed on their website. Once you have registered and logged in you will be able to enroll, set your payroll contribution percentage, select investment provider (TIAA-CREF, Fidelity or a combination of both), and choose your investment funds.