Q. I am currently on active duty. Prior to that, I was employed in the federal Bureau of Prisons. What would be my service computation date: the date I began as a civil servant or the date I came on active duty? A. For retirement purposes, your SCD would be the date you entered on duty as a civilian employee of the federal government. Your period of active duty wouldn’t be included in determining your length of service unless you returned to a federal civilian position and made a deposit to the retirement fund for that period of active-duty service.
Browsing: buyback
Q. I bought back active-duty time as a FERS employee and a reservist. Afterward, I was involuntary mobilized and served enough years as a reservist to receive an active-duty retirement (sanctuary program). I have since than returned as a FERS employee. What happens to the previous military time I bought back when I was a reservist? Am I able to keep it without having to waive military pension since it was bought back when I was a reservist? A. No, your entitlement to military retired pay changed the game. If you want to get credit for your periods of active-duty time, you’ll have…
Q. I started my federal law enforcement career in 2002. I was activated under executive order for Operation Iraqi Freedom from 2005 to 2007. How does this time affect law enforcement retirement? I have bought back all of my military time. A. As long as you left from a covered position and returned to a covered position, that period of active-duty service would be counted when determining your eligibility to retire under the special provision for law enforcement officers.
Q. I’m a CSRS employee. I am eligible for retirement. I’ve passed my 62nd birthday and will not have enough quarters to be eligible for Social Security. I have heard different accounts of whether there is a way to get a refund on the money I paid to buy back my six years of military service time. Since I will not be eligible for Social Security and I paid the full amount to be sure I would be able to get credit for my military service, is there a way to get a refund on the nearly $8,000 I paid,…
Q. I have paid the military buyback but am in the process of increasing my disability rating through the Veterans Affairs Department. This would not be advantageous for me to combine my military with civilian service in the federal government. Can I ask for a refund of the military buyback? What is the form or process I would use to do this? A. No, you cannot get a refund of your deposit.
Q. I have to buy back four years, which will give me 30 years with the Defense Department. It will cost me $8,000. I owe about $1,500. The rest is interest. I never knew about this until I started retirement plans. If I had, I would have started a repayment plan. Can you explained why the why there is so much interest and is there way it can be reduced? I have been waiting now for eight months for the Office of Personnel Management to make its final calculations so I can begin to pay. Is there anything I can…
Q. I am 60 years old. I am a regular rural carrier with 18 years of service so far as a full-time employee. I was hired in 1988 as a rural carrier associate. I would like to retire as soon as possible, and would like to know when I could do that. Also, I would need to keep my federal Blue Cross/Blue Shield insurance. I did not make career status until 1994. Are there buyback options for me so I could go back to 1988, and how much would my health insurance cost? I would take the family option. A.…
Q. I have worked in federal civilian service since September 2001. When in college, I worked several summers for a federal government agency. My service computation date does not take this into account. Can I get a record of how much time that was, and if it doesn’t count toward my creditable service date, is there a way to purchase this time to add it retroactively? A. Nondeduction service performed after Dec. 31, 1988, isn’t creditable for either eligibility or computational purposes, nor can you make a deposit to get credit for it.
Q. I had 3½ years in under FERS when I transferred to an agency that does not participate in it. I took a total withdrawal of my TSP funds (which included four years of military service that I bought back). If I return to an agency that participates in FERS, can I buy back the funds/time I withdrew? A. Yes.
Q. I am a non-dual-status employee, under FERS. I resigned in 2007 with a deferred retirement. I didn’t touch it. I came back in 2009 as an emergency hire non-dual-status for two years. I then was made a temporary NTE for two years. I was then brought back as a reinstatement employee NTE four years with my benefits back. Is there any way to pay back any of the time between when I resigned and when I came back as a reinstatement employee? When I resigned, I had 20 years of retirement but was nowhere near the age. I am…