Q. Can you tell me if my time on workers compensation is credited to my retirement at age 62 as it is if I were collecting my OPM disability benefit. I was approved for OPM disability retirement and Social Security and I elected to receive workers compensation benefits in lieu of OPM disability retirement. A. According to OPM, “If workers’ compensation benefits terminate, or the former employee elects to receive an annuity in lieu of compensation, the time spent in receipt of workers’ compensation after the date of retirement is not counted in computing the disability annuity or, if eligible,…
Q. I retired from Federal Civilian Service on June 3. I received my final pay check which included my lump-sum payment for annual leave on Friday June 10. I was paid my regular earnings at my pay grade, GS-12, but my lump-sum payment for unused annual leave was paid at the pay rate for a GS-09. Thinking it was a mistake I called the activity payroll office and to my surprise I was told this was because my promotion to GS-12 was temporary and when I retired I was reverted back to my permanent grade GS-09 in order to pay…
Q. My friend is the second wife of a deceased federal retiree. When he died, his first wife, as per the divorce decree, received the maximum annuity. If she dies, is there any way my friend can receive an annuity? A. Only if her late husband elected a survivor annuity for her in order to protect her rights should his former wife lose entitlement to a survivor annuity. She should call the Office of Personnel Management’s Retirement Information Office at 888-767-6738 and provide it with her late husband’s CSA number and other pertinent information, such as his dates of birth and…
Q. I am a federal employee whose career has been interrupted several times with military deployments. After the last 90 day military deployment, my agency adjusted my service computation date by this amount and and explained that I must make a deposit to the retirement fund (FERS) to receive credit. Is this correct? A. Yes.
Q. I have a federal judge as a patient and he has Medicare prime and federal insurance secondary. He claims that under a law called Senior Status, since he is working part time, Medicare would be prime. Would this also apply to his wife? A. I’ve never heard of law to which he’s referring. However, the circumstances under which Medicare or an Federal Employees Health Benefits plan are primary or secondary are spelled out at www.opm.gov/insure/health/medicare.
Q. I will be retiring July 31, 2011. Will the pay for my last two weeks of employment on Aug. 11, 2100, include my lump-sum annual leave payment or is that paid separately? A. There isn’t any governmentwide rule; therefore, you’ll need to check with your local payroll office.
Q. I am, a 1811 employee who will be 57. I face mandatory to retirement in 2012, with 23 years of service under FERS. Two questions: 1) Regarding the supplement from OPM, is there a earnings test/limit associated with the benefit? Or can I make more then the $14,000 without any reduction to the supplement? 2) Regarding returning to federal service, law enforcement or non-law enforcement position, is that possible and what is the process to prevent a reduction in my pay/annuity? Is there a special term/classification I need to address in the application process? A. First, because you will…
Q. I have seen some questions recently concerning federal annuities and waiving military retired pay. Iis there any benefit in doingso? Why would anyone want to do this? Is it better to get one check or two? A. It’s worth it if making a deposit and waiving your military retired pay results in your being able to retire sooner from your civilian employment with a larger annuity than two separate ones would provide. You need to make the decision based on what you gain when compared with what you lose. Note that waiving your military retired pay will not affect any other entitlements you have…
Q. I am medically retired from the Army and employed by the Veterans Affairs Department. I was wondering whether I’ll be able to collect a pension from FERS or does my receipt of retired pay disqualify me? A. When you reach the age and have the civilian service needed to retire, you can do so and receive a FERS annuity based on that employment. It won’t be affected by nor will it affect your medical retirement benefit.
Q. I have been employed full time with the Veterans Affairs Department since March 2010. I am also currently in the Air National Guard with 27 total years of service. I am 51 years old and would like to buy back 15 years of my military service. I have a total of 17 years of active service with all my deployments. If I buy back 15 years, can I collect my full National Guard retirement when I turn 60 and also collect my FERS retirement? How many years will I have to work to get any type of FERS retirement?…