Q. My father retired from the VA canteen cafeteria about 8-9 years ago, I believe. I believe at that time he retired with early retirement benefits instead of full benefits, since he retired early. My question is that at the time he retired he was offered a lump sum of $25,000 and have his monthly retirement benefits decreased by $300 monthly, if he took the lump sum. But he decided at that time he did not want to take a lump sum, because he didn’t think it was wise, but now he would like to see if he can get…
Monthly Archives: December, 2010
Q. I am retiring in April, 2011 under FERS as a law enforcement agent in a covered position. I will have 23 years and two months of service. I have been married for 38 years and my spouse is my age. Is there a benefit to opting for an insurable interest over the standard annuity? Is there a drawback? No one at CBP is able to answer this question for me. I need to get my paperwork submitted in the next few days and cannot decide what to select for retirement annuity. A. I can think of no advantage to…
Q. I worked as a civilian mariner for the Military Sealift Command from 1983 to 1998 and was covered by CSRS. I withdrew my CSRS contributions in a lump sum upon my departure and recently returned to work with MSC under FERS. Am I eligible for CSRS offset? Is there also a way I can refund my previous contributions? A. Unless I’m missing something, you should have been placed in CSRS offset with the option of electing to be covered by FERS. If I’m right, you were erroneously enrolled in FERS and can, if you want to, have that undone and…
Q. In 2011, I will be 46 and have 25 years (covered) as an 1811 in federal service. My agency no longer rehires annuitants. Is it possible to retire with the 25 years covered, start receiving all of my retirement benefits, then be hired in a noncovered GS 1801 position (without affecting the retirement payments/benefits)? I have been told that although I can retire with the 25 years covered, I cannot receive my benefits if I take on another federal position — that’s why rehired annuitant positions were created. I do not want to apply for a new job (1801)…
Q. I earned my 20 years as a law enforcement officer on Nov. 18. However, I am only 46 yrs old. Can I leave federal service and apply for my retirement on my 50th birthday or do I have to be employed by the government until age 50 and then apply for retirement? A. If you resigned from the government, you could apply for a deferred annuity when you reach your minimum retirement age, which in your case would be 56. However, there are downsides to doing that. Alternatively, you could look around for a non-LEO covered federal job. If you…
Q. I had 40 quarters paid into Social Security before I went to work with the Veterans Affairs Department. I have retired with 30 years’ service with the VA. Why do I have my Social Security reduced by the windfall if I had 40 quarters already paid before federal employment? A. It’s not a question of when you earned enough credits to be eligible for a Social Security benefit, only if you did. The law is clear. If you receive an annuity — in whole or part — from a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes, any Social Security…
Q. I was hired by the State Department on Jan. 22, 1984, and was placed under the FERS retirement plan. I have prior active duty and reserve military service. My question(s): Does my military count as service towards retirement and if so, was I placed in the wrong retirement system? If that is the case, is there anything that can be done at this point in time to be placed in CSRS? A. You were placed in the correct retirement system. To be eligible for CSRS, you would have had to have had five years of actual CSRS service before Jan.…
Q. Can I withdraw from my CSRS to make a home purchase? A. If you are asking if you can withdraw some of the retirement contributions that have been deducted from your salary over the years that you have been employed by the federal government, the answer is no. The only way to get access to that money would be to resign from the government and ask for a refund of all your contributions. Of course, if you did that you would void any entitlement to future benefits.
Q. Is there a source to find federal jobs with the special exception for federal annuitants? A. Not to the best of my knowledge
Q. In your article of Nov. 15 on the best time to retire, regarding the lump-sum payment for unused annual leave, you stated: “…most of you will get a lump-sum payment for all your unused annual leave, including the so-called “use or lose” leave you would have lost if you retired after the new leave year begins. I said “most of you” because there are limits on how much annual leave a U.S. Postal Service employee can cash in.” This is the first I heard that there is a limit on how much postal employees may get for unused annual…