Q. I am a under CSRS. I maxed out (41 years, 11 months) in January. I am aware that CSRS deductions will continue and will be returned to me with interest upon my retirement. However, my leave and earnings statement does not indicate how much is being put into this account. The L & E statement also indicates that the government is also still contributing. Is this normal, or should I be seeing how much is in this account? A. Nothing changes when you reach the number of years and full months of service that would produce the maximum earned…
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Q. I am a 59-year-old Army civilian and have 30 years of service as of early August. I had left government service and did not withdraw my contributions from CSRS. I came back to the government after a more-than-five-year absence in the private sector. Hence the CSRS Offset status. Instead of retiring, could I resign and apply for my retirement at a latter age, say 62 or later? Between now and that time, I would be working in the private sector again contributing to Social Security. I still do not understand why the CSRS pension is reduced by Social Security…
Q. I have 12 years of service as a foreign service officer under the Foreign Service Pension System. If I leave the government, can I withdraw my retirement contributions and my agency’s contribution? Are there reinvestment requirements or tax implications? A. You can withdraw your retirement contributions, but not those you agency made. The latter were put there to fund your retirement, not your bank account. When refunded to you, the contributions will be tax-free because you already paid taxes on them; however, any interest you receive will be taxable as ordinary income.
Q. I’ll be 62 years old in March and covered by FERS for six years. After retirement, I’ll leave the country. Besides a small amount in the Thrift Savings Plan, there will be no health care coverage (will be covered by my home country) or other retirements service in the future. Social Security will be my only monthly U.S. income. The rough estimate retirement amount from FERS will be around $260 per month. Do I get the amount that I contributed AND the amount the government contributed in a lump-sum payment? A. No, you wouldn’t get a lump-sum payment. Instead,…
Q. I am rather new to civil service and am not well-versed at finding information on my FERS retirement account. I see deductions from my check on my leave and earnings statement and the current balance. However, I also see contributions made by the government on my behalf are going into my account. The balance for my contributions is clearly found; the balance on the account to include the contributions made by the government on my behalf is not. Combined contribution amounts should make the overall amount in my account considerably more than what it shows on my LES. Please…
Q. I have been working for the federal government for just over two years. I am planning on moving in the next few months. I have applied to federal jobs, as well as private-sector jobs and have, so far, heard back from the private-sector jobs. I read that the Thrift Savings Plan is vested at three years and that employees are entitled to retirement benefits after five years. If I were to leave the federal system at this point, would I be able to return to the system in the future and “restart,” as it were, at my two-year mark?…
Q. I am 59 years old. I worked for the federal government from August 1978 to January 1981, had a break in service, then started over again in May 1982 until Dec. 31, 1999, with the Panama Canal Commission. Am I eligible for deferred annuity? A. If you left your contributions in the retirement fund, you may be entitled to a deferred annuity at age 62. To find out, during the year in which you will turn 62, go to www.opm.gov and click on Find Form(s). Open up and complete Standard Form 2801, Application for Immediate Retirement, and send it…
Q. I started working for the government in 2008 and resigned for personal reasons this year. I was told by one representative at the Office of Personnel Management that because I vested more than three years, I am eligible for a refund of retirement I paid into FERS, as well as monies the government paid. I was then told by another rep that that is not true, that I can only get the money I invested into retirement. Can you please tell me which on is true? A. You can only get a refund of your retirement contributions. No one…
Q. I am a GS employee that is also a member of the Air Guard. I will be leaving on leave without pay to go through military training for roughly five to six months. How will this affect my FERS retirement and my Thrift Savings Plan contributions? Do I have to buy back my military retirement to obtain my FERS retirement contributions during my LWOP? A. Reg Jones: You will be on LWOP-US. Therefore, you will have to make a deposit to the retirement system to get credit for that period of active-duty service. Mike Miles: You may not contribute…
Q. I was a half-time Veterans Affairs Department psychologist at an outpatient clinic from 1981 to 1993. During the first part of the period of employment, I recall that I was part of the standard VA retirement system. If my memory is correct, I was compelled to join the Thrift Savings Plan and also had some reduced level of participation in the some retirement plan (maybe it was Social Security) in the final years of my employment. I received an annual notice regarding TSP, but I have not received any other information on any possible retirement benefits. I am now…