Q. I am 54 and have almost 25 years of service to my agency. I am considering separating in a few months when I reach my 25-year mark. I understand my annuity will be 25 percent of my high-3 salary years. Can I assume that the salary used for computation is what I actually earned as a .8 employee, rather than the full GS salary rate? If I take deferred retirement at age 62, will I avoid any penalties? And will I be able to opt back into federal health insurance at age 62?
A. If you resign from the government, you would be able to apply for a deferred, penalty-free annuity at age 60. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to re-enroll in the Federal Employees Health Benefits program. No one who receives a deferred annuity can do that.
