A follow-up. On April 30, a reader wrote: Q. I am a retired federal employee covered under CSRS Offset. I am 65 and have been receiving Social Security payments since I was 62. I will be submitting a request for withdrawal of my Social Security and pay back all the Social Security that I received to date. I will be applying for new Social Security after the process is complete. My pension was reduced when I first received the Social Security payment. Once I receive the new higher Social Security payment in the future, would my pension be reduced more?…
Monthly Archives: June, 2012
Q. I am in FERS, 58 years old, with 25 years in at the VA medical center. I read here, I think, that a Postal Service employee had 25 years in and you said he can retire with 30 years in. But you said if you were born between 1953 and 1964, you can go with 25 years in. Is this true? A. No, twice over. I didn’t say that, and it isn’t true. Here are the age and service requirements for a FERS employee to retire: 62 with five years of service, 60 with 20, at the minimum retirement…
Q. I am a FERS employee with 26 years, four months service. I am 51 years, two months old. My place of work is experiencing a restructure/reorganization and is offering VERA/VSIP. Will I be able to get the special retirement supplement when I am at the minimum retirement age? I have a Thrift Savings Plan account and was looking at a lump sum from that. A. Yes, you will be eligible to receive the special retirement supplement when you reach your MRA.
Q. I entered active duty with the Army on Sept. 16, 2002, and got an honorable discharge for medical reasons on Nov. 5, 2003. Those dates were recorded on my DD-214. I joined the federal civilian workforce in May 2004, and that federal agency calculated my service computation date as March 12, 2003. I think this calculation is wrong. If it is, which documents should I reference to have this corrected? And whom should I contact for the correction, as I just transferred to another federal agency? A. You’ll find the definition of creditable service and the methodology used for…
Q. I’m planning to retire at the end of 2012. In addition to my annual use-or-lose leave, I have 105 hours of restored leave that expires in December 2013. Do I need to bring the combined total of my leave down to the maximum 240 carryover, or could I get paid for 240 hours in the annual unused leave plus the 105 restored leave? A. As long as you retire before the end of the leave year, you’ll receive a lump-sum payment for all your unused annual leave.
Q. I have to buy back four years, which will give me 30 years with the Defense Department. It will cost me $8,000. I owe about $1,500. The rest is interest. I never knew about this until I started retirement plans. If I had, I would have started a repayment plan. Can you explained why the why there is so much interest and is there way it can be reduced? I have been waiting now for eight months for the Office of Personnel Management to make its final calculations so I can begin to pay. Is there anything I can…
Q. What is the least amount of survivor annuity that a CSRS retiree can request and still provide health coverage for a spouse? A. Because you are covered by CSRS, the minimum amount of survivor annuity you can request would be $1 per year. However, you could only provide less than a full survivor annuity with your spouse’s written and notarized consent. Assuming that you were enrolled in the self and family option of your Federal Employees Health Benefits plan when you die, that would preserve your spouse’s entitlement to continue that coverage, for which she would have to pay…
Q. I worked for federal government for 20 years under CSRS, then resigned in 1997 and left my retirement contributions in CSRS, understanding that I could start to receive an annuity at age 62. Since that time, I have worked for 15 years for state government, paying into Social Security. If I were to return to federal service, into which retirement system would I be placed? What would the benefits be to returning to federal service as far as retirement benefits concerning CSRS and Social Security? A. Because you left your contributions in the retirement fund, you would be eligible…
Q. My brother-in-law is retired military and has worked for the Air Force as a civil servant for approximately 25 years (FERS). He is 64. His job is offering a Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment, but he was told he could not get the VSIP because he receives a military retirement pension. My benefits specialist said this was not true — that VSIP has nothing to do with the military pension. Have you heard of this? If so, what regulation? A. What he was told is completely untrue. The fact that he is receiving military retired pay has no bearing on…
Q. I am a retired officer, age 64, and have been a federal employee for two years. I paid a deposit for three years, 11 months credit for time attending a service academy. Am I eligible to retire now with five years, 11 months of service, or do I have to actually be a federal employee for five years and then add the academy time? Not planning on retiring now. Just want to know the facts. A. You cannot retire until you are vested in the retirement system, which requires that you have five full years of actual FERS service.