How to Use Fill-in Forms

What would you like to know?

• Software Requirements
• Opening a Fill-in Form
• Completing a Fill-in Form
• Locked Areas
• Guide to Entering Information
• Special Tax Notice

Filling out an OPERS form just got a little easier.

Now, when you view a form at your computer, you can also type your information directly onto the form. Safety features on the forms will help make sure your information is entered correctly, and applied to the correct areas on the form depending on the selections you make along the way.

Not all OPERS forms are currently available in a fill-in format, but more and more will be added throughout the coming months. Click here for a list of the forms currently available as fill-in forms:

Software Requirements

To view, complete and print an OPERS fill-in PDF form you'll need the freely available Adobe Reader software installed on your computer. Version 6.05 or later of Adobe Reader will allow you to complete the form online.

Opening a Fill-in Form

There are two ways to open a form:

1. Directly in your Web browser

   Your Web browser may be configured with an Adobe Reader plug-in to automatically open the file within your browser's window download. To download the file directly, click on the icon for the fill-in form and it will open automatically in your Web browser window.

2. Directly in Adobe Reader

   To open the form directly in Adobe Reader, right click on the link for the yeahfill-in form, select “Save Target/Link As...” and “Save” the form to a location on your computer that you can easily access (i.e. Desktop). Then, go to that location on your computer and double-click on the file name to open it. This should trigger Adobe Reader to automatically open the form. At no time will data entered in the form be saved. Only a blank form is saved.

Completing a Fill-in Form

Positioning your cursor over a set of boxes in a fill-in area will allow you to type letters, numbers or symbols into that area — depending on the type information that is required.

When you place the cursor over a box, the cursor will change appearance to a hand pointer which allows you to select a check box. You can also move from one fill-in area to another by hitting the tab button.

An error sound and/or message will alert you if you enter the incorrect type of information into a fill-in area. An error message will inform you of the correct method to enter the information.

Here are some examples:

Locked Areas

Some fill-in areas will be locked – meaning you will not be able to type information into the boxes – depending on what type of information is required. Here are some conditions:

• The information is being supplied by an authority, not the person filling out the form (i.e. a physician, employer, fiscal officer).
• The information must be entered in the presence of a witness who also must sign the form.

Guide to Entering Information

Here is a helpful key to how to enter information into various fill-in areas:

• Social Security Number

  123456789 (Do not enter spaces, dashes or forward slashes)

• Date Format

  MMDDYYYY (Do not enter spaces, dashes or forward slashes)

• First Name Format

  No spaces, numerals or symbols are allowed; either upper-case or lower-case letters are acceptable.

• Last Name Format

  Spaces and symbols are allowed; either upper-case or lower-case letters are acceptable.

• Phone Number Format

  1112223333 (Do not enter spaces or symbols)

• Street or Mailing Address, City, Province

  Spaces and symbols are allowed; either upper-case or lower-case letters are acceptable.

• Relationship

  No spaces, numerals or symbols are allowed; either upper-case or lower-case letters are acceptable.

• Dollar Amounts

  Do not enter dollar signs ($) or commas (,); Only enter (.) to denote cents; Most fill-in areas will accommodate up to $999,999.00. If you need to enter a higher dollar amount, then write in into the fill-in area after printing the completed form.

• Limitations

  Some fill-in areas (ie. Date of Birth, Phone Number) will limit the number of characters you can enter; an error sound and/or message will alert you to this.

• Locked Areas

  Fill-in areas that need to be completed by an authority other than the person filling out a form are locked. These will need to be filled in by hand.

  Also, fill-in areas that need to be completed or signed in the presence of a witness are locked. These will also need to be done by hand.

• Upper or Lower Case Letters

  Information can be typed in either format into a fill-in area.

For additional help with fill-in forms, see the Adobe Reader's online help information.

Special Tax Notice

Some OPERS forms have a Special Tax Notice attached to them. You do not need to print this out to send in when you send in your completed form.