Browsing: Creditable service: CSRS

Q: I am 65 years old and will be 66 in January. I am contemplating retirement from the federal government. I worked in the private sector for more than 20 years and switched over to the government in 1985. I am under the Civil Service Retirement system. I was informed by a co-worker that my Social Security benefits, which I am counting on heavily to support my family, will be reduced substantially because I am under CSRS. Is this true? A: Your Social Security benefit would only be affected if you have fewer than 30 years of Social Security-covered employment.…

Q: I’m under the Civil Service Retirement System and have a period of about one year of nondeduction service immediately prior to Oct. 1, 1982. I also have about a year of nondeduction service starting Oct. 1, 1982. Which would it make more sense to make a deposit for, the year prior to Oct. 1, 1982, or the year commencing on that date? A: For nondeduction service performed before Oct. 1, 1982, you have the option of making a deposit and having your annuity reduced by 10 percent of the amount that would have been deducted from your salary plus…

Q: I understand that under the Civil Service Retirement System, we can use unused sick leave toward federal service time that is used to determine the amount of time considered under the CSRS retirement pay formula.  Also, I understand that under CSRS, the maximum time allowed is 42 years, which translates to 80 percent of the average salary in a worker’s “high-3” years. My questions are, if someone is covered by CSRS, if they add up their military and civil service time and get 42 years, can unused sick leave be added to the 42 years to get more than…

Q: Can an active-duty service member roll his retirement into government service and add those years together with existing military service years? This was possible 20 years ago or so, but I was wondering whether it still is an option. I’m a 27-year veteran about to retire, and I’d rather go straight into government service and forego my retirement check from the military, if that is possible. A: Nothing has changed. You can make a deposit to the civilian retirement system for any years of active-duty service and, if you are eligible for military retired pay, waive that pay when…

Q: I am a civilian federal employee who started with the government in September 1986. Is it true that no retirement deductions were taken until Jan. 1, 1989? If this is true, how can I get credit for the two-plus years during which no deductions were taken? A: If you were hired into a position that required deductions from your pay, you would have been covered by Civil Service Retirement Offset (CSRS and Social Security) for the months preceding Jan. 1, 1987, when the Federal Employees Retirement System went online. Your CSRS Offset time would have been converted to FERS…

Q: I retired with Civil Service Retirement System at 50 years old with 25 years’ law enforcement service. I’ve been self-employed for the past three years and reached my 40 quarters, including my pre-federal employment. I make a decent self-employment income now at around $90,000, and pay substantial Social Security quarterly payments. My concern is that basically the offset is going to take away most of my Social Security pay at 62/65. That said, are my payments to Social Security still mandatory? I realize my quarterly taxes are, and the IRS distributes them accordingly. A: Deductions for Social Security are…

Q: I worked for the federal government from 1968 to 1986, then worked in the private sector from 1987 to 2005. I withdrew my retirement money when I left government service. If I return to federal service, should I opt to be placed in the Federal Employees Retirement System or Civil Service Retirement System? I assume it would make sense to re-deposit the money I withdrew and pay the interest? A: If you returned to work for the government you would be placed in CSRS Offset (CSRS and Social Security) with the option of transferring to FERS. Even if you…

Q: An employee told me that if you retire (under the Civil Service Retirement System) with your full 41 years, 11 months, or more of service, and have more than one year of sick leave, you have the option to receive the cash payout for the sick leave instead of taking the extra 2 percent. Is there any truth to this rumor? A: No, there isn’t. Unlike annual leave, sick leave has no cash value. On the other hand, it can be added to actual service time after you become eligible to retire and used to increase the amount of…

Q: I have over 30 years of federal service — military plus civil service. From 1977 to 1990, I was under the Civil Service Retirement System. Then I took a 2 1/2-year break from federal employment. When I came back into civil service, I was put under the Federal Employees Retirement System. When I returned to civil service after the 2 1/2-year break, shouldn’t I have remained under CSRS instead of being placed under FERS? A: As a rule, when you returned to work for the government, you should have been placed in CSRS Offset (CSRS and Social Security), with…

Q: My wife is a government employee who was reinstated from former government service (she resigned in 1993). She entered government service in 1980 and was under the old retirement service. She resigned to have a child in 1984 and withdrew her retirement. She was reinstated in 1986 and came under the new retirement system. She again resigned and was reinstated in 2009. She has more than 13 years of government service. Can she pay back the retirement she received plus contributions she would have made over the years to fall back into the old retirement system? A: She may…

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