Q: Please explain what CSRS Offset is. A: Civil Service Retirement System Offset employees are those who are covered by both CSRS and Social Security. In general, there are two categories of employees who are covered by CSRS Offset. First, those who had a break in service that exceeded one year and ended after 1983 and had at least five years of creditable service as of January 1, 1987. Second, employees who were hired before Jan. 1, 1984, acquired CSRS interim coverage between 1984 and 1987, and had at least five years of creditable civilian service by Jan. 1, 1987.…
Browsing: Benefits
Q: I retired under the Civil Service Retirement System Offset pension plan in 2001 (early buyout retirement at age 51 with 23 years of service). My husband passed away in August 2006. I started receiving a survivor benefit based on his Social Security earnings when I turned 60. My question is, should my CSRS Offset pension have been reduced by the amount of the Social Security that I am receiving based on his earnings, or does that reduction not take effect until I turn 62 and then is based on my Social Security benefit? The amount I am receiving as…
Q: I’m currently an employee under the Civil Service Retirement System drawing a monthly payment from Social Security under my ex-husband’s benefits. I’ve called and visited the local Social Security office and can’t seem to get a straight answer: I understand that I can’t draw Social Security in my own right because I am a CSRS employee, but will I continue to be able to receive Social Security from my ex-husband’s (now deceased) Social Security account? A: You might be able to receive survivor Social Security benefit while you are still working. To find out what the eligibility requirements are…
Q: My husband retired with a government pension based on work for which he did not pay Social Security taxes. If he should die before me, I will receive a monthly spousal annuity payment equal to 70 percent of his benefit. He was also eligible for Social Security benefits, and the amount was reduced because of his government pension. I have not worked long enough to receive a pension or Social Security benefits on my own record. Will I be entitled to Social Security benefits on my husband’s record? And how will those benefits be affected by the spousal annuity?…
Q: I was a U.S. Postal Service employee from Feb. 1975 until Feb 1983. I will turn 65 in May. I am not eligible for government retirement, since those eight years were my only government employment. Nor am I eligible for Social Security benefits. Is there some way that the postal service can credit my employment with them for Social Security benefits? A: No, there isn’t any way that can be done. On another subject, if you left your retirement contributions in the fund when you left the Postal Service, you would be eligble for a deferred annuity. If you…
Q: My fiancé has been informed he has terminal cancer. We were planning our wedding for next month. He has just applied for Social Security disability. He already collects a disability pension from a county school board, of which I am not entitled to when he passes. If we marry, how will that affect my civil service retirement pension (I am 58, he’s 62); and am I eligible to receive his Social Security disability benefits after he passes? Do we have to be married for a certain amount of time first? A: Your CSRS annuity won’t be affected because you…
Q: When I started receiving Social Security retirement, my Social Security employment history was just under 30 years and so a modest WEP was applied to my benefits. Early the next year, with my 30th year W2 in hand, I was able to have my Social Security benefits recalculated to an amount absent the WEP. I also have a modest CSRS pension from about 11.5 years of service. When I reached age 62, but before I began taking Social Security benefits, a CSRS offset was applied, as I understand is a requirement of law. However, now that it can be…
Q: I am 62 years old, and my Federal Employees Retirement System disability retirement benefit has been recalculated to a regular annuity. I am still on Social Security disability. Will Social Security offset the amount that I will be getting in my annuity? A: No, it won’t.
Q: I recently went into the Social Security office and was given three different answers by three different people regarding offsets and the windfall elimination provision. I received an increase in my Social Security monthly payment for 2011 based on my 2009 earnings. In 2009, I made more then the minimum and qualified for another year (26 years now) toward my 30-year full exemption from the offset and windfall, so should Social Security also have given me an additional 5 percent because I now have one more year of substantial earnings toward my 30-year exemption? I was told by the…
Q: My question deals with my wife’s Social Security survivor benefit upon my death. I am 70 years old and my wife is 68. Both of us started taking Social Security when we were 62. I receive $1,663 in gross Social Security payments a month, and my wife receives $136. I worked in private industry and retired. My wife worked for the Defense Department and retired under the Civil Service Retirement System, never paying into Social Security. My question is, with these figures, if I died today, what would my wife be entitled to? A: Any Social Security spousal benefit…