Q. I am a career federal employee with almost 41 years of service and plan to continue my federal employment well beyond 41 years. I understand that the maximum retirement benefit for CSRS employees (excluding sick leave credit) is 80 percent and to achieve that level requires 41 years, 11 months of credible service. Since CSRS employees contribute 7 percent of their salary into their retirement fund, what happens to the 7 percent contribution after completing 41years, 11 months of service and reaching the maximum benefit of 80 percent?
A. When you retire, any excess contributions will be returned to you, with interest, with the option of purchasing additional annuity that isn’t subject to the 80 percent limit.
