Q. I left federal service in 1988 after 13 years of service and took out my CSRS money, which was about $20,000 at that time. I have decided to return to federal service and want to be in CSRS Offset. I was told that repayment would include yearly interest and would be about $80,000. How is interest calculated? May I roll over either an IRA, Roth or my personal 401(k) into the CSRS Offset account to repay my debt and avoid paying taxes? What about the taxes on the $20,000 that I paid in 1988? Would they eliminate at least taxes on $20,000 of my IRA, etc., repayment if I cannot roll it over?
A. To find out how interest on redeposits is calculated, go to www.opm.gov/retire/pubs/handbook/C021.pdf.
