New Hampshire's College Savings Plans

New Hampshire currently has two 529 College Savings Plans:

The UNIQUE College Investment Plan (UNIQUE Plan)
The Fidelity Advisory 529 Plan (FA 529 Plan)

New Hampshire’s 529 Plan evolution began in the summer of 1996 with a Legislative study committee recommending State sponsorship of a savings plan rather than a prepaid tuition plan. Legislation was passed in the 1997 legislative session which established a framework for the 529 Plans. Following an exhaustive Request For Proposal process, Fidelity Investments was awarded a 15-year contract,with optional renewal periods, for investment management and administrative support. The UNIQUE Program was launched in 1998 as one of the first-in-the-nation college savings plans in the marketplace. In July, 2001, New Hampshire launched its second plan, the FA 529 Plan, which is only available through financial advisors.

UNIQUE Advantages

Besides the federal tax incentives and other benefits of participation in 529 College Savings Plans, discussed under What Are College Savings Plans the UNIQUE Plan offers other advantages:

Low Start-up Cost – A $50 initial investment is all that is required to open an account ($15 per month if contributions will be made through an automatic payment plan).
No Annual Fee.
Flexible Investment Options. The New Hampshire 529 Plans offer a large variety of aged-based portfolios and static portfolios, both actively-managed and index portfolios. Participants can change the allocation of future contributions at any time and can change existing investments annually.
State Tax Exemption – Investment earnings are exempt from New Hampshire’s Dividend and Interest tax regardless of the participant’s state of residency.
High Contribution Limit – Contributions can be made to accounts until a maximum market value of $350,000 is reached. This maximum amount is reviewed annually, as of December 31, and is applicable throughout the following year.
Rewards Card – An AMEX rewards card offers a 2.0% rebate on eligible purchases to the UNIQUE account with no annual limits. Several cards can link to a single account or a single card can be allocated among several accounts.

For additional information please reference the Enrollment and Fact Kit available by navigating to page 17 using the page toolbar at Fidelity Investments

Structure and Organization

All plan assets are held in trust with the New Hampshire State Treasurer as the Trustee. State oversight of the New Hampshire Plans is provided by the 13-member New Hampshire College Tuition Savings Plan Advisory Commission responsible for the proper administration and management of the 529 Plans. The New Hampshire Higher Education Savings Plan Trust (the Trust) has been established as the legal vehicle to enable the New Hampshire College Savings Plan (the Plan) to carry out and promote the State's purposes of the Plan, pursuant to RSA 195-H:4 and as determined, selected and approved by the Advisory Commission.

The New Hampshire State Treasurer (the Treasurer), in the role of Trustee and with the advice and consent of the Advisory Commission, has all powers necessary and convenient to carry out the responsibilities and purpose of the Trust, including those of a fiduciary and as a Shareholder of the underlying investments utilized by the Plan for portfolios offered through the Plan. As fiduciaries, the Treasurer, as Trustee, and the Advisory Commission members are legally and ethically bound to always advocate for and act in the best interests of Plan stakeholders, primarily the Plan Participants. Guidelines for Shareholder Proxy Voting have been established by the Advisory Commission for use by the Treasurer, as Trustee and Shareholder, in proxy voting.

Open an Account

A UNIQUE College Savings Plan account can be opened directly with Fidelity Investments either online or by downloading and filling out a paper application. Please click on the following Fidelity links to open an account.

Gifts and other Deposits

Contributions to a child’s UNIQUE account make wonderful gifts and anyone can make a contribution. Please click on the following Fidelity links for a Gift Card and a deposit slip.