Q. I am a reservist eligible for an active-duty retirement (21 years active duty and four years reserve duty). I have not retired yet. If I obtain a federal civilian position prior to retiring from the Reserve, will I be eligible to buy back my 20+ years of active duty? Or does the fact that I am eligible for an active-duty retirement (i.e. will receive retired pay immediately after retiring from the Reserve) make me ineligible to buy back my military time?
A. Yes, you could make a deposit to get credit for your active-duty service. However, to get credit for it in your annuity computation when you retired from your civilian job, you’d have to waive your military retired pay.
