Q: I retired in 2009 with 33 years under CSRS from an Excepted Service position with the Department of Defense Education Activity. As a CSRS annuitant, would my annuity be affected if I am now hired in a NAF flex position? If so, how? Would I still be able to retain my health and life insurance that I carried into retirement? (As I understand it, a NAF flex position includes no federal retirement, leave, etc. benefits, and the part-time hours are determined by the needs of the organization.) A: According to OPM, “Generally, if a CSRS or FERS annuitant is…
Browsing: RETIREMENT
Q: I am considering a short-term FERS GS position and want to know about retirement eligibility. I have four years as a cadet at West Point (1966-1970), and this time was not part of my military retired pay (26 years of Army service). I know cadet time is allowable toward a FERS retirement, but I also know that there is a five-year minimum service requirement to be vested in FERS. Can I use the cadet time (I buy it back) toward the five-year minimum service requirement so that I only have to work one year to reach retirement eligibility? A:…
Q: My brother-in-law recently died and his wife, a retired federal worker, applied for survivor benefits at the Social Security Administration. She was advised that since she is receiving a federal retirement she is not eligible to receive any survivor benefits. I searched this site and others and have been unable to find an exact case. This response from the Social Security Administration seems bizarre. A: She was affected by the government pension offset provision of law. The GPO reduces the Social Security spousal or survivor benefit of anyone who is receiving an annuity from a retirement system where he…
Q: I will retire FERS on July 31, 2011, and will need to use leave without pay to reach that day because of medical issues. Will that affect the way my high-3 will be calculated for the FERS annuity? A: No, it won’t. Your high-3 is based on your highest three consecutive years of average salary, whenever they occur in your career.
Q: Does time spent working in a congressional office have any bearing on status (career, career conditional, etc.) when applying for an agency civilian job? A: If you take a job with a federal agency, any time spent as a congressional employee will be treated as creditable federal civilian service for all purposes. Whether the position you fill would be career or non-career depends entirely on the nature of the appointment.
Q: I have worked for civil service for 29 1/2 years. The command I work for is being affected by BRAC and I turned down my transfer of function to retire. I asked to stay until I fulfill my 30 years of service and it was approved. They now want to move me into a term position so they can recruit against my position. Do you still receive creditable service toward your CSRS under a term appointment? A: Yes.
Q: I will retire at age 63 on Oct. 31, 2010, from Civil Service under CSRS and do not qualify for Social Security. Will my Part A Medicare continue to be deducted from my annuity until I become eligible for Medicare? I know I have to apply though Medicare to have Part B deducted from my annuity three months from turning 65. A: No, Part A deductions won’t be taken out of your annuity. They are only taken out of earnings from wages or self employment, not from annuities.
Q: I am planning to retire from the Social Security Administration in January 2012. I carry an annual leave balance of 240 hours and could possibly accrue a maximum of 208 hours of use or lose leave in 2011. When I retire, is it possible to be reimbursed for 448 hours (240 + 208 use or lose) or is 240 hours the maximum amount that can be reimbursed? A: For most employees, there isn’t any cap on the amount of annual for which you can be reimbursed, as long as you retire before the end of the leave year. That…
Q: I retired on July 3 under CSRS Offset (law enforcement/firefighter). I just received the lump sum payment for my unused annual leave. Deductions for federal and state taxes and Medicare were taken out. There was no deduction for CSRS Offset retirement (typically 1.3 percent), but 6.2 percent was deducted for OASDI. Is the lack of deduction for CSRS-Offset retirement and the deduction for OASDI correct? It seems that it should have been both or neither. A: There weren’t any deductions for CSRS Offset retirement because you are no longer an employee. On the other hand, the lump-sum payment is…
Q: My husband is 66 and has been collecting Social Security since he was 65. He is at the maximum level of Social Security (apart from the early withdrawal reduction) having been at the maximum earnings level for most of his working life. I am 66 and am not collecting Social Security. I am employed part time and earn less than “substantial earnings” as defined by the windfall elimination provision rules but enough to get credit for Social Security benefits. I have about 18 years of substantial earnings and do not expect to have 20 years or more of substantial…