Q. I am a 58 year old CSRS offset employee and have 30 years and some months of creditable service. I started with the post office in 1980 as a sub mail carrier and converted to full time in 1986. I understand that when I retire and reach age 62 (if I am retired prior to then) my pension would be reduced by the amount of Social Security I would receive that is creditable to my CSRS offset service. How would I determine what that amount would be? And would I receive additional Social Security benefits from work outside the…
Monthly Archives: March, 2011
Q My husband and I are both CSRS retirees. My husband also receives a small amount from Social Security for quarters completed prior to government service. I do not receive any Social Security. If he passes away before me, would the windfall elimination provision apply to a spousal benefit? Would I even receive a spousal benefit as a CSRS retiree? A. Because you won’t be receiving a Social Security benefit based on your own work record, the windfall elimination provision won’t apply to you. However, any spousal or survivor Social Security benefit to which you’d be entitled will be affected by…
Q. A Federal Times article that appeared in November of 2009 noted: “The new law (granting credit for unused sick leave) gives the credit only to those employees who take an immediate annuity.” Am I correct to assume that the word “annuity” in this case refers to receipt of one’s pension and thus the exercise of full retirement benefits and not to the conversion of a TSP Account into a fixed annuity? A. Yes
Q. I have 14 years as a FERS employee and planning to retire under MRA+10. I am 58 years, 7 months old. I have been advised by the human resources staffs that there is a 5 percent reduction in annuity benefit for each full month (5 percent per year) that I’m under age 62 on the date my annuity begins. Is the 5 percent reduction permanent after I reach age 63? A. Yes, the reduction is permanent if your annuity begins immediately following your retirement. However, when you retire you can moderate or eliminate its affect by postponing the receipt of your annuity…
Q. I’m 52 years old with 24 years of federal service under FERS. We are in a BRAC situation (installation closes on Sept. 14) and I am eligible for the offered Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments. Can I take the VERA and still continue with my attempt to get disability? Can I take the VSIP and still continue with my attempt to get disability? The paperwork I need to sign for the VSIP said that I give up the right to file for disability. But I don’t know if that also applies to VERA. The VERA/VSIP…
Q. Is a CSRS Offset employee retiring with less than five years offset service subject to the government pension offset on a spousal Social security benefit? I know this is true for FERS but have not been able to find any clear guidance for offset employees. I do not have enough Social Security quarters to qualify for Social Security payments on my own. My position will be eliminated due to BRAC and I do not have an enduring job offer. There is a VSIP offer on the table. Please help me make an informed choice. A. According to the Social…
Q. I am a Postal Service CSRS employee with 31 years. I am thinking about retiring on June 3, which is a Friday and the last day of the pay period. Can I work on that day and also retire on that same day. A. Yes. You can go to work on the last day of a pay period and, after having completed your 80 hours, retire at the end of that same day.
Q. I am totally confused on this retirement from federal service. I am retired military and worked about 10 years for DECA. I resigned in 2004 to take a job in the Middle East. Now I am going to be 62 soon and want to apply for retirement. I was told to contact OPM. I did so via e-mail and not DECA because I am not an active federal employee. I did talk to a human resources officer at DECA who said that I was not entitled to both retirements. Then I found a site that said I could get some…
Q. I have been working for 40 years in the government. I am trying to get my information together in order to prepare my retirement papers. I was in the Peace Corps for three years and would like to add those years to my 40 years of government service. I understand I will have to pay back the money I received as a volunteer in the Peace Corps ($75 a month, with interest). I would like to know what procedures do I follow in order to get the information I need in order to pay back the money I received.…
Q. I am a FERS employee with DoD. I plan to retire in December 2016 at age 61. At that time I will have 35 years of service. I will be 62 in February of 2017. My high three will be about $124,000. I am trying to estimate my take-home pay from Social Security and FERS. My FERS annuity will be about $49,000 per year. My Social Security will be about $22,000 per year. Do I have to pay federal taxes on FERS and Social Security, and state taxes (Michigan)? Social Security on the FERS annuity? Medicare on Social Security…