To request money from a Global Atlantic annuity, download the withdrawal form that matches your specific product, complete the owner, withdrawal-type, banking, and signature sections, and submit the Global Atlantic annuity withdrawal form to the Forethought Life Insurance Company office that handles your contract number prefix. The form, the address, and even the withdrawal options vary by product, so getting the right version in front of you is the first real step.
Pick the Form That Matches Your Contract
Global Atlantic does not use one universal form. Fixed annuity holders use the “Withdrawal Form — Fixed Annuity.”1Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form Fixed Annuity Variable annuity holders use a product-specific version, such as the “Withdrawal Form — ForeRetirement Variable Annuity.”2Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form ForeRetirement Variable Annuity Life insurance policyholders requesting a partial surrender of cash value use yet another form. Submit the wrong version and the request comes back unprocessed.
Download the correct form from Global Atlantic’s forms library at professionals.globalatlantic.com or through the policyholder portal at mygalife.globalatlantic.com.3Global Atlantic. Forms Library You can also call customer service and ask for a paper copy by mail. Have your contract number on hand before you start. It sits on the front page of your original policy document and on your annual statements, and the first section of every form asks for it.
How to Complete the Form
The form is organized into lettered sections. Layout differs slightly across products, but the core sections are consistent.
Owner Information
The opening section asks for your contract number, full legal name, date of birth, residential and mailing address, email, phone, and the best time to call.1Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form Fixed Annuity Your name must match what Global Atlantic has on file exactly. If you’ve changed your name since the policy was issued, update the records with customer service before you submit. A mismatch is one of the most reliable ways to have the form kicked back.
Type of Withdrawal
Pick one of three withdrawal types:2Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form ForeRetirement Variable Annuity
- Partial withdrawal. You take a specific dollar amount and keep the policy active. On the fixed annuity form, Global Atlantic accepts only an exact dollar amount: no percentage requests, and no instructions to “leave a specific dollar amount in the contract.” The minimum partial withdrawal is $1,000.1Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form Fixed Annuity
- Full surrender. You close the contract and receive the cash value, minus any surrender charges and tax withholding. This permanently terminates the policy and the death benefit.
- Systematic withdrawal. Recurring payments on a monthly, quarterly, semiannual, or annual schedule. For variable annuity systematic withdrawals, you can elect either a fixed dollar amount per payment or a percentage of total premiums invested.2Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form ForeRetirement Variable Annuity
Your selection determines which later sections you fill in. The form tells you which sections apply to your choice, so follow those pointers and skip the ones that don’t.
Payment Method
The banking section asks for your bank’s routing number, your account number, and whether the account is checking or savings. Direct deposit is noticeably faster than a mailed paper check. Verify every digit. A single transposed number sends your funds nowhere and adds days or weeks while it gets corrected.
Signature and Power of Attorney
Sign and date at the bottom. Global Atlantic may ask for a signature guarantee if they cannot verify your signature against their records.1Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form Fixed Annuity A signature guarantee is not the same as notarization. You obtain one from a bank, credit union, or brokerage firm participating in a medallion signature guarantee program. If someone is signing under a power of attorney, Global Atlantic requires a signature guarantee plus a current, notarized copy of the POA agreement signed by the owner and two witnesses, unless the POA is already on file.
Check Your Free Withdrawal Amount First
Most Global Atlantic annuities include an annual free withdrawal provision. On SecureFore fixed annuities, you can withdraw up to 10% of the beginning-of-year contract value each year without surrender charges. During the first contract year, the 10% free amount is based on the original annuity deposit.4Global Atlantic. SecureFore Fixed Annuities Staying inside that limit is the simplest way to avoid charges.
If you take more than the free amount, or you fully surrender during the surrender charge period, a percentage charge applies to the excess. Surrender schedules vary by product and decline over time. A contract might start at 8% in year one and step down to 0% by year eight or nine.5Global Atlantic. ForeAccumulation II Rates The exact schedule for your contract is printed in your policy document. Look it up before you choose a dollar figure so the net deposit doesn’t surprise you.
Where to Send the Completed Form
The correct address depends on the prefix of your contract number. Global Atlantic routes policy servicing through Forethought Life Insurance Company, and the wrong office slows everything down.6Global Atlantic. Contact Us – For Financial Professionals
- Contract numbers starting with 5, 6, 7, or 8: Forethought Life Insurance Company, P.O. Box 758507, Topeka, KS 66675-8507. Fax (785) 286-6104.
- Contract numbers starting with 2: Forethought Life Insurance Company, P.O. Box 246, Batesville, IN 47006. Fax (877) 554-2413.
- Contract numbers starting with A, B, C, D, or E: Forethought Life Insurance Company, 123 Town Square Place, PMB711, Jersey City, NJ 07310. Fax (855) 299-0104.
Uploading the completed form through the policyholder portal at mygalife.globalatlantic.com is the fastest route and gives you immediate confirmation of receipt. Fax is next fastest. If you mail a paper copy, use certified mail or a trackable service so you have proof of delivery.
How Long Processing Takes
Timelines depend on the type of withdrawal. For setting up systematic withdrawals on a variable annuity, Global Atlantic asks you to allow 30 days from the date you mail the form.2Global Atlantic. Withdrawal Form ForeRetirement Variable Annuity For registered index-linked annuity withdrawals, processing occurs two valuation days after Global Atlantic receives a form in good order. Once approved, electronic funds transfers typically land in your bank account within three business days after the effective date.
Incomplete forms, missing signatures, and name mismatches are the usual causes of delay. Status updates come through the online portal or by mail once review begins. If nothing has arrived by the expected window, call customer service with your contract number ready.
Tax Withholding on the Form
The form includes a section where you elect how much federal income tax to withhold from the distribution. For nonperiodic payments such as a partial withdrawal or full surrender, the default federal rate is 10% if you do not make an election.7Internal Revenue Service. Pensions and Annuity Withholding8Internal Revenue Service. 2026 Form W-4R You can pick a higher rate or elect 0% and handle the tax yourself at filing time. Electing 0% doesn’t erase the tax; it just defers when you pay.
For periodic payments like systematic withdrawals, withholding uses IRS Form W-4P, which works more like the W-4 you give an employer. Without a W-4P on file, Global Atlantic withholds based on default assumptions that may not match your actual situation. The form may also include a line for state income tax withholding. Whether state withholding is mandatory, optional, or unavailable depends on your state of residence.
Situations That Change What You Should File
A few circumstances change either the paperwork or the tax consequences enough that you should pause before using the standard withdrawal form.
You’re under 59½ and the annuity is qualified. The IRS adds a 10% additional tax on the taxable portion of an early withdrawal from a qualified retirement annuity under 26 U.S.C. § 72(t), on top of ordinary income tax.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S.C. 72 – Annuities; Certain Proceeds of Endowment and Life Insurance Contracts Statutory exceptions include distributions after the account holder’s death, disability, terminal illness, qualified domestic abuse situations (up to $10,000), and federally declared disasters.10Internal Revenue Service. Substantially Equal Periodic Payments
You’re taking a required minimum distribution. If your Global Atlantic annuity sits inside a qualified account like a traditional IRA, RMDs begin at age 73 (rising to 75 in 2033).11Congress.gov. Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) Rules for Original Owners The first RMD is due April 1 of the year after you turn 73, and every one after that is due December 31.12Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Topics – Required Minimum Distributions Missing an RMD triggers a 25% excise tax on the shortfall, dropping to 10% if corrected within two years. Use the standard withdrawal form each year, or set up a systematic withdrawal matched to your annual RMD so you don’t have to resubmit paperwork every December.
You inherited the annuity. Beneficiary withdrawals may require different paperwork than the owner withdrawal form. For deaths in 2020 or later, most non-spouse beneficiaries must empty the account by the end of the tenth year following the owner’s death, with no required annual amount in between.13Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Topics – Beneficiary Surviving spouses generally have more options, including rolling the annuity into their own IRA. Non-spouse beneficiaries who inherited before 2020 may remain on a five-year or life-expectancy schedule. Call customer service to confirm which Global Atlantic form applies.
You want to move the money to another annuity, not cash it out. A 1035 exchange transfers your contract value directly to a new annuity at another company with no tax triggered.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S.C. 1035 – Certain Exchanges of Insurance Policies The funds must move directly between the two insurance companies; if the money passes through your hands, the exchange fails and the entire distribution becomes taxable. Global Atlantic has separate 1035 exchange paperwork, so don’t use the standard withdrawal form for this.