Q. My husband has to date a total of 31 years with the AOC. He left his job for six months to help with the family business and then returned to his job. During the time away from his job, he was refunded his retirement. He returned to the same job with the AOC and has been there over 25 years since his return. However, he was informed that the AOC incorrectly kept him in the CSRS program when he should have been place in CSRS Offset. They are requesting a reply within 30 days of this information. We are not sure how…
Monthly Archives: March, 2012
Q. I am a CSRS employee who will have 34 years of federal service this September, and I will be 54 years old in October. I know the best scenario is 35 years and age 55. But I have a personal family situation that has me thinking I may want to retire at the end of this year. How much of a penalty would it be for me? A. You wouldn’t be eligible to retire. The earliest you could do that would be when you reach age 55.
Q. I work for a federal agency that has offered a VERA/VSIP. I have 31 years of civilian service under CSRS, and I’ll be 53 years old on July 12. Employees who accept the buyout offer are to be off the agency payroll by June 2012. I’ve applied for the offer, but I’ve only been enrolled in the health insurance program for 2½ years. I’ve also discovered that the estimated annuity calculated through Employee Benefits Information System is not accurate because it is based on working 40 hours a week for 31 years (I was part time for 17 years,…
Q. I recently discovered that I am eligible to receive eight hours of annual leave (currently receiving six hours) per pay period due to an Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal I received during active-duty service. I have completed nine years of federal service and would like to know if and how the additional two hours of annual leave over a nine-year period will be credited back to me. A. If your agency determines that you are entitled to additional hours of annual leave due to an administrative error, it must adjust your leave balance to reflect the additional hours. If that…
Q. Assume a child is disabled at birth and over age 18, and therefore would be eligible to get a survivor annuity at any age. If this child has two CSRS parents, and one passes, the child gets a survivor annuity on the account of the deceased parent (currently $487 per month). So when the remaining parent dies, the amount should be upped to the higher rate (currently $584). But is the child eligible for another survivor annuity on the account of the newly deceased parent? Can this child get two survivor annuities, each $584 per month? Or are they limited to receiving just…
Q. I am 40 years old and have 22 years of federal service as a FERS employee. I am eligible for retirement with 25 years/no MRA with an early-out, deferring retirement until age 57, correct? Can I keep my benefits from age 43 until 57, or at least have the benefits at 57 during retirement? I have been enrolled for 22 years. Also, if there is no early-out offered, what is the earliest age I can retire with so many years? By the time I’m 50, I’ll have 32 years in. A. You appear to misunderstand the rules. If you were…
Q. I am a retired Postal Service employee. My accountant has informed me that if I am able to pay my annual health insurance premiums in a lump sum, I can deduct it from my taxes. Does the Office of Personnel Management allow me to do this? A. No.
Q. I am currently a civil service retiree. I was told that if I apply for Social Security benefits, I will be required to also sign up for Medicare Part B or I cannot get the SS benefits. Is this true? A. No, it isn’t true. However, when you apply for a Social Security benefit, you will automatically be enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B. If you don’t want Part B, you’ll have to say that you don’t want it.
Q. My first 25 years of federal service are covered under CSRS. I left for five years and was rehired under CSRS Offset. Do I receive two different checks covering my 25 years in CSRS and my 13 years in CSRS Offset? Are my 25 years in CSRS affected in any way by the CSRS Offset time? A. You will receive one retirement check that reflects all your years of CSRS-covered service (CSRS and CSRS Offset). If you retire before age 62, your CSRS annuity will be offset at age 62 by the amount of Social Security benefit you earned while covered by CSRS…
Q. A widower is receiving death annuity payments from a deceased wife. He is now age 73 and would like to remarry. He is retiring in 30 days and wanted to know if he would lose the annuity? A. Remarrying would have no effect on his continued entitlement to a survivor annuity.