Q: I’m confused by what I’m reading regarding forfeiting military retirement pay. In some cases, your answer states the individual will not lose his military retirement pay if he buys back the time. Other answers say that the individual must waive his military retirement. Do only the 20-year active-duty retirees forfeit military retirement pay? I’m a reservist who will retire in three years at my 20-year total service mark, 11 of which were active duty. I’ve been offered a GS position that I am considering. I would like to receive credit for those 11 years, and it appears that my…
Monthly Archives: April, 2010
Q: I am a Federal Employees Retirement Service employee and bought back many years of military service. Since Sept. 11, 2001, I have been called back to active service enough times to get an immediate military retirement (22 years) as a reservist. What will this do to my FERS retirement? I have paid all my military time in FERS. A: It won’t make a difference. You’ll be able to receive both your FERS annuity and reserved retired pay with no reduction in either.
Q: I am a former federal employee. I joined federal service in 1981. I worked with the Immigration and Naturalization Service before transferring to the State Department in July 1982. I came in under the Civil Service Retirement System. In 1985, I was automatically transferred to the Federal Employees Retirement System without my knowledge. Some employees who were transferred to FERS received a refund for their CSRS benefits. I never received a refund, and now I am under FERS. The Employee Benefits Information System is not showing that I contributed to CSRS. Can you please let me know if I…
Q: I was able to retire from federal service under discontinued service retirement and as a Federal Employees Retirement System annuitant. Therefore, I have been receiving the FERS supplement for Social Security. I will be 62 in September 2011. At that time, my FERS supplement ends and I will begin collecting Social Security retirement benefits. I also have severe fibromyalgia and other health problems. Will I be able to apply for Social Security disability? I realize that I would have to make my disability case with Social Security. If I am still eligible to apply for disability, when should I…
Q: I am a employee with the Transportation Security Administration and my wife is an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. I am covered by her health plan. Can I also have insurance through TSA as a secondary policy? A: No, you cannot.
Q: I was a federal employee for 23 years in the legislative and judicial branch. I spent about a year and a half of that time as a congressional staffer. About two years of my time at the judiciary were part time (four days a week). I left federal service at age 43. I was under the Civil Service Retirement System and left my money in the system when I left. I could go back to work for Congress for a few years. I understand that I would have to go into the Federal Employees Retirement Service. What would be…
Q: I plan on taking a deferred retirement at age 54 with 32 years of federal service in May 2012. I have been in the Federal Employees Health Benefits program since 1985. My wife plans taking a job in the federal government prior to me taking the deferred retirement. When she is hired, the plan is for me to transfer to her FEHB. When I reach age 56 in May 2014, how will the deferred retirement impact the three parts of the Federal Employees Retirement System (basic retirement with high-3, etc.; supplement, which should be 32/40 x what I receive…
Q: I am a Title 38 Veterans Health Administration part-time registered nurse and will be going full time my final three years. I will be retiring with 31 years of service at age 58. Are my part-time years computed on a prorated basis for my retirement annuity? A: Without getting into agonizing detail, your period of part-time service will be treated as if it were full-time service when determining your eligibility to retire; however, because you were less than full time, when computing your annuity, that period will be prorated. For example, if you had 30 years of service and…
Q: I went to a Civil Service Retirement System seminar recently and an interesting question about retirement calculation came out during your Q-and-A: What I fail to follow was the first two options (of three) you mentioned regarding the basic life insurance choices. First, if I opted to keep my basic life insurance at its current level, would that mean that the insurance’s face value would remain the same for me as when I was employed through the rest of my retirement years? I would then assume that I will still continue to pay the same premium on basic life…
Q: I have 30 years of federal service and am under the Civil Service Retirement System. Next week, I will be 52 years old. I was thinking about retiring before age 55, and I know about the 2 percent reduction in monthly retirement benefits for every year under age 55. When I contacted the Office of Personnel Management about an early retirement, the answer was that I had to wait until age 55 to retire unless my agency offered an early out or buyout. Maybe I’m not using the correct terminology. Is there any way for me to “retire” before…