Q. My spouse is sick. I am 59 and have 19 years of service. Can I take early retirement and keep my health insurance and life insurance? A. Yes, you could retire under the MRA+10 provision and continue your health and life insurance coverage, as long as you had been enrolled in them for the five consecutive years before you retire. However, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent for every year you were under age 62. Alternatively, you could ask your employer to let you work part-time and retire on a penalty-free annuity at age 60.
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Q. I retired from the Navy Reserve with 39 years (9 active duty) and received a regular retirement check (over 60 years). I have a 60 percent service connected disability and receive VA disability pay. I am in FERS and will soon retire with 20 years service (bought back the 9 AD years). Will I be allowed to keep my military retirement pay, disability pay and FERS retirement pay? Also, will there be any impact to my full Social Security annuity when I turn 66 and 10 months? A. Yes, you’ll be able to receive reserve retired pay and your…
Q. I am a federal law enforcement retiree (I left service in 2015) and get my FERS annuity and special supplement. I was recently approved for Social Security Disability. Does SSDI affect my supplement, i.e., is it considered wages that count against the supplement limit on earnings? Will my FERS annuity be affected? A. Your special retirement supplement won’t be affected. That’s because only earnings from wages or self-employment can affect that benefit. Social Security Disability Insurance is neither.
Q. If I’m at my minimum retirement age, have 20 years of service, retire and postpone my retirement until 59 instead of 60, would my annuity be reduced by 5 percent or 15 percent? A. You’d be retiring under the MRA+10 provision. Therefore, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent for every year you were under age 62.
Q. Individuals covered under CSRS pay CSRS employee deductions, and are excluded from Old Age, Survivors and Disability Insurance taxes of Social Security. They may contribute up to the Internal Revenue Service elective deferral limit each year to the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP), but CSRS employees who contribute do not receive any government contribution. There are so many references in Office of Personnel Management materials, congressional papers and Treasury manuals that prohibited those working under this system from paying into Social Security, how can Congress and Social Security turn around and penalize survivors whose spouses paid into Social Security? Why…
Q. I resigned under FERS at age 52 with 30 years of service. Can I put in at age 56 and 2 months for collecting my retirement? A. If you were born in 1965, you would be entitled to an immediate unreduced annuity when you reach your minimum retirement age, which is age 56 and 2 months. Note: As a deferred annuitant, you wouldn’t be entitled to the special retirement supplement. Reg Jones is away until May 2. Daily posts of previously submitted questions will continue, while newer queries will be answered following his return.
Q. I’m a 62-year-old FERS retiree who is receiving a Social Security benefit. I’m thinking about taking a job in the private sector. How will that affect my Social Security benefit? A. If you are under full retirement age, your Social Security benefit will be reduced by $1 for every $2 in earnings that exceed the annual earnings limit, which is $17,640 in 2019. In the year when you reach your full retirement age, your benefit will be reduce by $1 for every $3 you earn over a different limit, which is $46,920 in 2019. Beginning in the month you…
Q. I’m receiving my husband’s Cvil Service monthly annuity, which he elected me to receive. He only had 25 quarters of private-sector work. During his federal service, he did not pay into Social Security. Will I be able to collect his federal annuity and my full Social Security because it was my own work, or will my Social Security be reduced?
Q. I was approved for FERS Disability Retirement in June 2016 and have been receiving my disability annuity ever since. What happens to my federal health benefit plan and dental plan when I turn age 62? Do the medical and dental convert to Medicare or does the coverage remain the same? If the plan remains the same, do the premiums change annually?
Q. Would you kindly explain the difference between total annuity paid out versus contributions paid out?