Q. My mother has a small monthly annuity from OPM based on civil service with the Veterans Administration. This annuity income pushes her over the total income cap for other unrelated health benefits. Is it possible to suspend (but not forfeit) her OPM annuity. The goal would be to give her the option of restarting the annuity if she determined that she wanted the annuity income at some future date? A. No. She could forgo her annuity entirely, but she wouldn’t be able to restart it.
Monthly Archives: November, 2011
Q. I have been offered a job with a state agency. I am two months shy of my 50th birthday and have 22 years in a covered law enforcement position under FERS. Can I take leave without pay or annual leave for the last two months and start the new job during that time? A. That’s entirely up to your agency. You can ask, but they have no obligation to agree to your request.
Q. I retired at 54 under the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority and am eligible for the supplement at 56, which is two months away. Since I been in the FERS retirement system for two years, will my special supplement start automatically or do I have to apply for it? If it does start automatically, about what time frame can I expect notification from the OPM about the change in my annuity, or will they just start it and will need to keep checking my account? A. You will begin receiving the special retirement supplement automatically. I have no idea when…
Q. My husband served eight years active in the Navy and stayed in the Guard for 20 years. He just turned 60 and is receiving his Navy retirement check. He is also employed under FERS and has already paid back his military time. Our question is: Can he draw his military retirement check along with his retirement check from civil service, which will be figured using buyback military time? If he has to choose and keeps his retirement check, will they give him back his buyback amount? A. He will receive both retirement checks, with no reduction in either. As…
Q. Under CSRS retirement, a person gets credit for each month of service. Whenever I look at FERS information it talks only of years of service. Does a person get credit for partial years of service in FERS? A. Both retirement systems operate the same way. Annuity computations are based on formulas that include years and full months of service.
Q. I am 57-year-old FERS employee with 26 years of federal service. Am I eligible to retire? A. Yes, but only under the MRA+10 provision (minimum retirement age plus at least 10 years of service). However, if you do that, your annuity will be reduced by 5 percent for every year you are under age 62. You could, of course, reduce or eliminate the age penalty when you retire by postponing the receipt of your annuity to a later date.
Q. I have been employed by the federal government for about 10 years and am reaching the age of 65, Must I retire at age 65? A. No. Mandatory retirement ages have been established only for such occupations as law enforcement officer, firefighter and air traffic controller.
Q. If I retire at age 62 with 16 years’ service, will I take any type of cut to my FERS pension? A. No. Anyone who retires at age 62 or later with at least five years of service won’t be penalized. However, since you have fewer than 20 years of service, your annuity will be computed using the standard formula: 0.01 x your high-3 x your years and full months of service. If you had 20 or more years, the first multiplier would be increased to 0.011.
Q. I will be 68 next year when I retire as a CSRS annuitant. Like all feds, I currently pay into Medicare. Will I continue to pay into Medicare from my annuity check? I currently receive a small Social Security payment because, when I reached 66, I had sufficient credits to qualify because of prior years of nonfederal work. I am eligible now (at no cost) for Medicare Part A, although I have federally sponsored medical insurance. So will I continue to pay into Medicare when I retire? A. No. Premiums for Medicare Part A coverage are only deducted from…
Q. I was hired into federal service on Sept. 20, 1982. I am under CSRS. I am currently not eligible to collect Social Security. I have three years of military service, from Sept. 15, 1972, to Sept. 14, 1975. Will my military service be used to compute my CSRS retirement annuity? A. Those years of active-duty service will be included in determining your years of service and used in the computation of your annuity. However, if you are retired and eligible for a Social Security benefit at age 62, those years will be deducted and your annuity recomputed without them. If you retire…