Q. If you buy back your military time, does the time count toward a 20-year retirement, or is the time only used in figuring your annuity?
A. If you make a deposit to get credit for your active-duty service, it will be used in determining your length of service and in your annuity computation. Whether it will result in your being able to retire when you have 20 years of service will depend on your age. Only those who have 20 years of service when they reach age 60 can retire on an immediate unreduced annuity. However, although those who reach their minimum retirement age can retire with between 10 and 29 years of service, their annuities would be reduced by 5 percent for every year they are under age 62.
