Q: I took an immediate retirement at age 51 under the law enforcement provision of CSRS with 30 years of service. Mandatory retirement is age 57. After one month, I returned to federal service in a term position as a re-employed annuitant with a dual compensation waiver (pension plus salary). My term position may expire in the next 12 months. Can I forgo my CSRS pension and compete for a law enforcement position again? Assuming the new position is a promotion over my last permanent position, would my CSRS pension be recalculated upon my final retirement? Would I be obligated to repay the pension money I have received for the past year, assuming I am not seeking creditable service for the time, since it was a term position?
A: By law, time spent as a re-employed annuitant under a dual compensation waiver isn’t creditable for any retirement purpose. When your employment ends, your annuity will simply continue without alteration. If you were re-employed in a position where the waiver didn’t apply, your salary would be offset by the amount of your annuity. If you worked full-time for one year, you’d be eligible for a supplemental annuity. If you worked for at least five full-time years, your annuity would be recomputed as if you were retiring for the first time.
