To take money out of a Delaware Life annuity, complete the company’s Withdrawal Request form and send it to P.O. Box 80428, Indianapolis, IN 46280-0428, or fax it to 800-883-9165. The Delaware Life withdrawal form has seven sections, and a request only moves forward when every one is filled in correctly, every required signature is present, and any notarization or signature guarantee the situation calls for is attached. Miss any of that and the form comes back to you.
Where to Get the Form and Who to Call
The form lives in Delaware Life’s online forms library at delawarelife.com/service-forms, searchable by form type or product name. You can also reach it through the customer portal, OnePortal, at portal.delawarelife.io. If you want to confirm you have the right version for your product, two service lines are available depending on when the policy was issued:
- Policies opened September 1, 2020 or later: 800-374-3714
- Policies opened August 30, 2020 or earlier: 877-253-2323
Both lines are staffed Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern time.1Delaware Life. Contact Us
Filling Out the Form Section by Section
Delaware Life uses the phrase “in good order” for a submission it can process without follow-up. That standard turns on these seven sections.
Section 1: Contract Information
Enter your contract number from your annual statement or original policy documents, your Social Security number (or Tax Identification Number if a trust or business owns the policy), phone, and email. A joint owner’s SSN or TIN goes here too. Everything must match Delaware Life’s records. Name and address mismatches are one of the most common reasons requests get kicked back, so pull your most recent statement before you start writing.
Section 2: Withdrawal Amount
Pick one of three options: interest only (fixed annuities only), a full withdrawal of the entire contract value, or a specific dollar amount. Then choose timing: immediate, or at contract maturity, which cannot be scheduled more than 60 days out.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request For a partial withdrawal, the free withdrawal allowance described further down matters here.
Section 3: Living Benefit Withdrawal Option Election
This section applies only to TP10 contracts issued on or after November 10, 2025 that do not include an enhanced death benefit. If that fits your contract, choose an income start date and single-life or joint-life coverage. Otherwise, skip it.
Section 4: Withdrawal Allocation
For fixed index annuities, tell the company where to draw the money from: proportionally across all existing allocations, or from specific accounts at percentages you designate. The proportional option is simpler and spreads the impact evenly across indexed and fixed accounts.
Section 5: Tax Withholding
Elect your federal and state tax withholding here. The next section covers this in detail because the defaults can surprise you.
Section 6: Delivery Instructions
Choose how the money arrives. Direct deposit (EFT) requires a voided check or a bank letter confirming your routing and account numbers. Standard mail for a paper check is free; overnight delivery costs $15. Asking for a check at an address different from the one on file triggers a notarization requirement.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request
Section 7: Signatures
Every owner on the contract must sign. Joint-owner contracts need both signatures. A single-signed form on a joint contract will not be processed.
Tax Withholding Elections You Need to Think About
For a nonperiodic distribution, which covers most one-time annuity withdrawals, the default federal withholding rate is 10% of the taxable amount. If you check nothing, Delaware Life must withhold that 10% automatically.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request You can elect a higher percentage or opt out of federal withholding entirely.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 3405 – Special Rules for Pensions, Annuities, and Certain Other Deferred Income Opting out does not reduce your tax bill. You will owe the same amount at filing time, and on a large withdrawal that can trigger an underpayment penalty.
State rules sit on top of that. Massachusetts and Nebraska require state withholding whenever federal withholding applies. Arkansas, Delaware, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Vermont, and Virginia require state withholding on eligible rollover distributions from qualified plans. Connecticut requires state withholding on all annuity distributions regardless of your federal election. The form’s supplemental pages list the rule for each state, so turn to the page for your state before marking Section 5.
When You Need a Notary or Signature Guarantee
Most withdrawals need neither. A notarized signature is required when:
- The check is going to an address other than the one on file.
- The owner’s address was changed within the last 30 days and the funds are being sent by check.
- The contract has more than one owner but the check is payable to only one of them.
A notary public confirms your identity with a government-issued ID and stamps the signature section. Banks, UPS stores, and law offices typically offer the service.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request
A Signature Guarantee stamp is a different and more involved verification. Delaware Life requires one on any withdrawal of $250,000 or more unless the funds are moving to another financial institution as a transfer, rollover, or exchange, or the check is going to the address already on record.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request A Signature Guarantee provides a financial indemnity against forgery and comes only from a bank, credit union, or brokerage firm participating in a recognized Medallion Signature Guarantee program.4U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Medallion Signature Guarantees: Preventing the Unauthorized You generally need to visit an institution where you already hold an account, since most will not guarantee a signature for non-customers.
Costs to Weigh Before You Pick an Amount
Two separate charges can hit a withdrawal: the contract’s surrender charge and the IRS 10% early withdrawal tax.
Most current Delaware Life products carry a 10-year surrender charge schedule. The Retirement Stages Select annuity offers 5-year and 7-year options.5Delaware Life. Fixed and Fixed Index Annuity Rates The year-by-year percentages are in your contract and the product brochure, and they generally start high and decline each year. After the first contract year, you can withdraw up to 10% of your account value annually, or your required minimum distribution if that is greater, without surrender charges.6Delaware Life. Retirement Stages Select Fixed Index Annuity Anything above the free amount during the surrender period costs you. If your contract includes a market value adjustment, excess withdrawals can also move up or down with interest rates since you bought the contract.
The IRS adds a 10% additional tax on the taxable portion of any annuity distribution taken before age 59½, on top of ordinary income tax on the gain.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 72 – Annuities; Certain Proceeds of Endowment and Life Insurance Contracts Exceptions include distributions after the owner’s death, distributions due to disability, and Substantially Equal Periodic Payments. Non-qualified annuities use last-in, first-out tax treatment for partial withdrawals, so gains come out before your original investment.
One warning on the form itself deserves attention: if you are already taking payments under a SEPP program, any additional withdrawal outside that schedule cancels the SEPP arrangement, and prior withdrawals under it can retroactively become subject to the 10% early withdrawal penalty.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request Confirm with your advisor before adding anything to a SEPP stream.
A Note on 1035 Exchanges and RMDs
If you want to move the contract value into a different annuity rather than take cash, Section 1035 of the Internal Revenue Code allows a tax-free exchange of one annuity for another or for a qualified long-term care insurance contract.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 1035 – Certain Exchanges of Insurance Policies Ownership must stay the same, and the exchange does not waive surrender charges on the old contract.
If your annuity is held in a qualified account such as an IRA or 401(k) rollover, required minimum distributions begin at age 73 for anyone who turns 72 after December 31, 2022, and the starting age rises to 75 for those turning 73 after December 31, 2032.9Congressional Research Service. Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) Rules for Original Owners RMDs taken within the free withdrawal allowance do not incur surrender charges, and you request them through the same withdrawal form. Missing an RMD carries a 25% IRS penalty on the shortfall, so take what the IRS requires even if you would rather leave the money in the contract.
Submitting the Form and What Happens Next
Once every section is complete and any notarization or signature guarantee is attached, send the form by one of these methods:
- Regular mail: Delaware Life, P.O. Box 80428, Indianapolis, IN 46280-0428
- Fax: 800-883-9165
For express mail, Delaware Life uses a separate physical street address printed on the form itself, so check your copy for the current express address.2Delaware Life. Withdrawal Request A tracked delivery service gives you proof of receipt if a dispute ever arises about when the request arrived.
After receipt, Delaware Life verifies the available cash value, checks for outstanding policy loans, and confirms that all required signatures and supporting documents are present. When everything is in order, processing takes five to seven business days. Direct deposits generally land in your bank account within two to three business days after processing. A confirmation statement arrives by mail or in your OnePortal account when the disbursement is complete. If anything is missing, you will receive a notice explaining what to correct. Delaware Life reports the distribution to the IRS on Form 1099-R, which you will receive by early February of the following year.10Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms 1099-R and 5498