Q: I am under the Federal Employees Retirement System and work for the Defense Logistics Agency. I have worked at DLA since 1986 and worked for the Social Security Administration for two years before that. Two questions: What is the cutoff date for Civil Service Retirement System eligibility, and does my time working for SSA count toward FERS or CSRS? A: Because you were hired in 1984, you were covered by an interim system made up of CSRS and Social Security. Because you had not served at least five years under CSRS when the Federal Employees Retirement System became effective…
Browsing: Civil Service Retirement System
Q: I am under the Civil Service Retirement System and plan to retire Dec. 31. I have already paid my military deposit on my 20 1/2 years of service; my civil service time is 33 years and nine months, which would give me more than 54 years of service at the time of my retirement. That is well beyond the 41 years and 11 months required for the 80 percent maximum retirement benefit. At my time of retirement, it is my understanding that the Office of Personnel Management will automatically refund the excess retirement contributions I will have made for…
Q: I’m on Civil Service Retirement System disability retirement. Will my annuity be affected if I return to work for my local county government or the federal government? A: If you were to be rehired by the federal government, the salary of your new position would be offset by the amount of your annuity. If the salary for that position was equal to or exceeded 80 percent of the current pay for the position you held before retiring on disability, your disability annuity would be suspended. If you went to work in a nonfederal position, there wouldn’t be any offset…
Q: I am 53 years old with 30 years of service under the Civil Service Retirement System. If I were to die before I reach age 55, what would happen to the money I have contributed to CSRS? My wife has been a homemaker with no retirement plan, and I plan on having the spousal support when I do retire. A: If you were to die while still employed, your wife would be entitled to a survivor annuity equal to 55 percent of the annuity you would have received had you retired. There would be no age-based reduction if you…
Q: My wife died 13 years ago. How do I assign my survivor benefits to my common-law wife? A: You can submit new designation-of-beneficiary forms: SF 2823 for Federal Employees Group Life Insurance; SF 2808 for the Civil Service Retirement System or SF 3102 for the Federal Employees Retirement System survivor annuity; and TSP-3 for your Thrift Savings Plan investments (available on the TSP website). Some of these benefits may only be available in a state that recognizes common-law marriages. Check with an attorney to make sure that your state is one of them.
Q: This question is in reference to your Dec. 15, 2009, article, “It’s not too late to retire in 2009, or plan for 2010 or 2011” I am planning to retire in 2011; a co-worker is planning to retire in 2010. As per your article, it looks like the planets are lining up, as the leave year and calendar year will end at the same time. Both of us are Civil Service Retirement System employees and work for the U.S. Postal Service. The 2010 leave year ends Jan. 1, 2011. In the Postal Service, we can carry over 560 hours…
Q: I will be retiring from the Postal Service through the Civil Service Retirement System shortly. Will I be paid for any holidays that occur during my accrued annual leave? A: At retirement, unused annual leave is projected forward. The amount of money you receive in a lump-sum payment will be identical to what you would have received if you were still on the job working eight hours a day, 40 hours a week and 80 hours a pay period.
Q: My father retired several years ago under the Civil Service Retirement System. At the time of his retirement, he elected to reduce his benefits to provide my mother with spousal survivor benefits. She died a number of years before him, but it does not appear that he ever adjusted his benefits after her death. He recently passed away, and I am the executor of his estate. Does the estate have a claim to the difference between the benefits he actually received and what he was entitled to receive in the years after her death? A: You’ll need to notify…
Q: I left federal civil service in 1982 after 17 1/2 years of service, and I am considering returning on a part-time (50 percent) basis. I had more than seven months of unused sick leave when I left; will I get the unused sick leave reinstated? What amount of sick leave will I earn? At what rate will I earn annual leave? Also, I was under the Civil Service Retirement System when I left. If I return to civil service, will I go back under CSRS, would I go under the Federal Employees Retirement System, or would I have a…
Q: I am a Civil Service Retirement System optionally retired rehired annuitant. Because I am under CSRS for retirement, is my salary as a rehired annuitant subject to Social Security withholding? A: As a pure CSRS rehire, you aren’t subject to Social Security deductions unless you were hired as a senior official. If you were, you’d be covered by CSRS Offset, and Social Security deductions would be mandatory.