Q. I am in CSRS Offset and, this month, I have 26 years of federal service. I will turn 62 in June and am thinking about retiring this year. Once I retire, I will be eligible for Social Security. If I choose to wait until, for example, I turn 66, my understanding is, when I retire and start collecting my CSRS (offset) pension, the Social Security I would be entitled to (at 62) will be deducted from my pension. Is the offset/reduction figure set by a formula, or is it dollar for dollar? If I choose to take Social Security at 66, when the amount is higher, is the offset/reduction equal to the social security at 66, or does it remain the same amount or formula as when I hit 62?
A. The offset to your CSRS annuity will occur automatically at age 62, if you are retired, or when you retire if it’s after age 62. The reduction will be the dollar amount that you earned while a CSRS Offset employee. If you want to postpone the receipt of your Social Security benefit to a later date, you can. If you decide to do that, you may want to call the Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 and ask what the effect would be on the amount of benefit you’d receive at different points in time.
