Q: I am a FERS employee and at the end of May 2011 I will have 32 years of federal service. At that time, I will have about 280 hours of annual leave accrued and I was thinking about taking terminal leave at that time rather than retiring in May and taking a lump-sum payment. This would give me a little more accrued time for retirement calculation as well as allow me to put into TSP for a little longer. I have enough money put away for us to live on once I finally retire while I wait for all…
Q: I will retire as a CSRS-Offset participant in December of 2011 with 34 years of federal service and 30 years and six months of “substantial earnings” of Social Security credit. Will I be affected by the WEP? A: No. Although the windfall elimination would apply to you because you’ll be receiving an annuity in part from a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes (CSRS, not CSRS Offset), the fact that you have at least 30 years of substantial earnings under Social Security will mean that there won’t be any reduction in your Social Security benefit. But…
Q: As a FERS employee, if I take the early age 62 retirement and my wife waits to draw hers until I draw mine (she will be 67 then) will she still receive half of mine if her full benefit is less than half (she has the minimum credits) or do we have to wait until I reach my full retirement age? If she draws hers at 62, would she not get half of mine because I’ll only be 57 and still working? A: You’ll find the answers you’re looking for and more at www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/quickcalc/spouse.html
Q: Can you tell me how to compute my retirement pay of which I have nine years, three months, 20 days post-1956 military time that will be paid off soon? Also, I have 30 years in the post office of which the first six years are under CSRS and the rest are FERS to this date. My other question is, what years are included in the FERS supplement computation? Is it my whole 30 years of service in the U.S. Post Office or just the FERS service time, which is 24 years? A: The CSRS component of your annuity will…
Q: I have been retired from FERS since 2007. In 2007, I received an estimate of what my Social Security benefits would be at 62. I am now past 62 and have not worked nor have I paid into Social Security for 2008, 2009 or 2010. Will my Social Security benefits be reduced because I have years after 2007 showing no Social Security wages? A: Your Social Security benefit will be based on your average indexed monthly earnings during the time you were employed and paying Social Security taxes, no matter when they occurred. It won’t be reduced because you…
Q: My husband died after 35 years of federal service. I receive a survivor benefit. He had been on workers compensation for about 15 years, so he did not retire per se. When he died they took him off workers compensation and restore him as an employee, so I receive 55 percent of his salary. When I turn 65 will I also be able to receive Social Security. I was not a government employee, but I paid into Social Security. I have heard that because I am receiving a survivors annuity, I will not be able to receive my Social…
Q: I’m a federal employee under FERS, I was a state of Florida employee for nine years until 1998. Can I transfer my years of service from the state of Florida to FERS? A: No, you can’t.
Q: I retired early as my command relocated more than 50 miles outside my commute area. I subsequently sold my home and moved. Are any of my expenses such as buyer assisted closing cost and move expense tax deductible? A: No.
Q: I am a postal inspector by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and recently received a step increase, from GS/EAS 15, step 7 (119554) to step 8 (122875) based on time in grade. The step increase was reflected in my pay stub beginning with pay period two, but did not impact my take-home pay. This is likely due to the LEP and SPA that I receive as an 1811, which has kept my total compensation at level 4 of the executive pay grade (155500) for the last two years. I also noticed that my LEP was reduced, probably to absorb…
Q: My father has been a retired Department of Defense Civil Service employee since 1989. He received a pay cut of $48 for the first time this month with no explanation. We can find no evidence that a federal pay cut was implemented. Do you have any information regarding this? A: According to the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association: While all of the attention recently was on Congress extending the Bush-era tax cuts — which happened — a lesser-known federal tax credit for employees and retirees that was part of the 2009 stimulus law was allowed to expire.…