Monthly Archives: November, 2011

Q. I went into the Navy on April 20, 1976,  got out March 19, 1980, and went to work for the Army Department as a full-time permanent employee. I worked from Feb. 2, 1981, to Jan. 29, 1988, under CSRS.  I left to work in private industry and took a payout for my retirement at that time. I went back to work for the federal government on May 8, 1989, and worked for the Navy Department until  Aug. 29, 1997, under the CSRS  interim/offset plan. When the base closed, I transferred to the U.S.  Postal Service on Aug. 30, 1997,…

Q. What are the requirements for federal disability retirement?  Does one have to be injured on the job?   I qualify for regular Social Security disability, but I understand that federal disability pays more.   I am still working and trying to hang in there for six months until age 62. A. To be eligible for FERS disability retirement, you must be unable to provide useful and efficient service in your current position or in any other position in your agency for which you are qualified at the same grade or pay in your local commuting area.

Q. I am retired with a disability under CSRS and selected survivor annuity benefits and survivor health benefits for my wife at the time of retirement in 1978. My wife receives a minimum retirement from the state of Florida and will soon draw Social Security. When I die will the CSRS  survivor annuity, the Social Security or the state retirement be reduced? A. Neither her earned Social Security benefit nor her CSRS survivor annuity will be reduced. She’ll have to check with her former employer to see if her state benefit will be affected.

Q.  I am anticipating retiring the end of February.  I understand that, as a FERS employee, the end of the month is the best time to retire.  However, I have a trip planned beginning Feb. 24.  Which would be the better option and is it possible? 1.  Retire on Feb. 29 and take annual leave for the four workdays I will be gone. 2.  Retire at the end of the pay period,  Feb. 25,  take Feb. 24 as annual leave whereas I will be selling back three of the leave days I would have used in option 1. Either way,…

Q. I am regular full-time Civil Service CSRS employee with  insurance coverage (Blue Cross/ Blue Shield) for my wife and myself.  My wife is retired military with Tricare. My insurance costs me about $400 a month and I understand Tricare would cost me only about $500 a year. I want to retire next year. I’m 60 years old. Would you suggest dropping BCBS and going over to Tricare? A. I’m old enough and wise enough not to give advice. What I can tell you is that if you drop your FEHB coverage, you won’t be able to re-enroll if you…

Q. I am retired from the Army with 20 years and 50 percent disability. I have been working in a civil service job for seven  years. How many years do I have to continue working to retire again? A. You didn’t tell me how old you are, so you’re going to have to figure out when you can retire on your own.  Here are the age and service requirements to retire: 62 with 5 60 with 20 MRA with 30 MRA with 10 MRAs (minimum retirement ages) range between 55 and 57, depending on your year of birth. If you retire…

Q. I’m a single CSRS retiree for two years with 29 years of service and an early out. I am dying and want to calculate what my lump sum might be for my beneficiary after my death. How does USPS calculate what is left of my lump sum with only two years in retirement. Is there a certain  percentage the Post Office puts in monthly and a certain percentage they take from my retirement contributions monthly for retirement funds? A. The lump sum is the amount of your retirement contributions, minus any annuity that you have already received. For example, if…

Q. For a FERS employee who is age 60 and has 28 years of service, are there any disadvantages to retiring midmonth instead of at the end of the month? Using December as an example, would leaving midmonth or at the end of the month both mean an effective retirement date of Jan. 1, so the first retirement check would be Feb. 1? A. Your retirement would be effective on the day you retired. However, as you noted, you wouldn’t be on the annuity roll until Jan. 1 and your first annuity payment wouldn’t be due until Feb. 1.

Q.  I am 50 with 20 years of civil service. I have mother who is 87 and now needs my care. I was wondering if I have to quit civil service to tend to her or is there a hardship retirement program I can use. A. No, there isn’t.

Q. I was born in 1952. I began working for the federal government in 1977 under CSRS, transferred to FERS in 1988, and resigned from federal employment in 2001.  I expect to apply for a deferred retirement annuity.  Will my deferred annuity be greater if it begins when I am age 62 (in 2014), rather than when I am age 60 (in 2012)? A. It makes no difference. Since your deferred annuity will be computed as if you had retired on the day you left government, you might as well apply at the earliest possible date. Since you had a combined…

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