Q. I retired from the Air Force with 24 years of service and was selected for a firefighter position at the age of 44 with an age waiver since I was a firefighter for my entire Air Force career. Can I take the Minimum Retirement Age of 57 and 13 years of civil service and retire early without penalty? I have just finished my third year of civil service, so I still have 10 years until my 57th birthday. I am trying to plan whether it is a possibility or if I will have to wait the additional 7 years to retire with 20 years of civil service credit.
A. While you could retire under the MRA+10 provision, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent for every year you were under age 62. Further, your annuity would be computed under the standard formula, not the enhanced one used for retiring law enforcement officers and firefighters.
