Q. I started employment with the Defense Department in September 1981 under CSRS. In 1995, I took advantage of a Voluntary Early Retirement Authority/Voluntary Separation Incentive Pay because my organization was downsizing. I also took a refund on my retirement account, which I tried to invest in buying a home and lost it. I was reinstated in the government in 2004 and came back as CSRS Offset. I also rolled my 401(k) from the job I had outside the government into the Thrift Savings Plan. I will be 65 on March 7, and was planning to retire in May. Because…
Browsing: credit
Q. About two years ago, a bill was submitted to allow credit of unused annual leave to FERS. Has this bill passed in any form to date? Has this been implemented to date? If so, how does one pursue this? A. Yes, a law was passed that allowed FERS employees to get credit for accrued and unused annual leave in the computation of their retirement annuities. However, the law only granted half credit to anyone retiring before Jan. 1, 2014. Anyone retiring after Dec. 31, 2013, will get full credit.
Q. I have been in CSRS for 30 years as a Veterans Affairs Department employee. The first 24 years, I had a 5/8 VA appointment, the last six, I have been 8/8. For CSRS annuity purposes, do the part-time years count as 24 years or 5/8 of 24 years? A. You’ll get full credit for that time in determining your total years of service. However, your annuity will be prorated to account for that period of part-time service.
Q. Is it true that to receive credit for annual leave and sick leave for the final pay period upon retiring, you must work all 14 days of the final pay period (and thus retire on the last day of the final pay period)? If you retire on the first to 13th day of a pay period, will you receive no annual leave or sick leave credit for the final pay period? A. To receive any credit for annual and sick leave earned during a pay period, you must complete your tour of duty during that pay period. For most…
Q. Is it true that to receive credit for annual leave and sick leave for the final pay period upon retiring, you must work all 14 days of the final pay period (and thus retire on the last day of the final pay period)? If you retire on the first to 13th day of a pay period, will you receive no annual leave or sick leave credit for the final pay period? A. To receive any credit for annual and sick leave earned during a pay period, you must complete your tour of duty during that pay period. For most…
Q. How does the new law that provides sick leave credit for longevity operate with immediate, postponed and deferred retirement? Can you get this sick leave credit for service longevity under each of these three categories of retirement? A. No. It only applies to immediate and postponed annuities. The latter is included because it’s actually an immediate annuity, where the receipt of the annuity is postponed to a later date.
Q. My wife is a CSRS Postal Service employee with four years of military time and will retire in February with 36 years total. She did not pay back her military time. She was told by the post office that Social Security would deduct the money from her check when she reaches 62. 1. My wife does not plan on trying to collect Social Security at age 62, so will they still lower her retirement check? 2. I was told during a civil service retirement seminar that if she waited until age 68, she could go back to work and…
Q. I have 20 years of active-duty service (Army E-6) and have just retired (actual retired date will be Dec. 1). I have been hired by the federal government as a GS-11. Would it be financially beneficial for me to buy back my military time and contribute it to my federal civilian retirement down the road? If I buy back my military time, will that 20 years allow me to retire from my civilian position early, maybe in 10 years with a total of 30 years of service? What is the impact or consequence of this on my military retirement?…
Q. I have been offered early retirement. I have 25 years, six months and 13 days as of the retirement date. The offer showed that I will be rounded up to 26 years by adding five months and 18 days to reach my anniversary date of July 19. I have used five months x 174 hours/month + 18 days x 8 hours/day to total 1,014 hours. If I double that amount, it becomes 2,028 hours, which is more than I now have, per the last pay stub, which shows 1,971 hours of sick leave. I need about 16 hours for…
Q. I am 47 years old and worked for the post office for three years. During that time, I bought back my military service time of eight years. Am I eligible to someday get that retirement for the 11 years? If not, will I be reimbursed what it cost to buy back my time? Is the Thrift Savings Plan a separate entity, and when can I start receiving that? I’m currently working away from the federal realm. A. Reg: No, you wouldn’t be eligible for an annuity because you didn’t have at least five years of actual civilian service. If…