Q. After serving 15 years of active duty with the Army I ETS’d to pursue a federal position (FERS) and continued my military career as a reservist. I’ve bought back the 15 years. I was involuntarily mobilized and attained enough active duty to retire under the sanctuary program. What happens to the 15 years that was already bought back as a reservist prior to retirement? A. If you retired from the Reserve, that will have no effect on your FERS retirement. You’ll get full credit for the time for which you already made a deposit. If you want to get…
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Q. I will be 61 in November, and I have 27 years of service with the Veterans Affairs Department under FERS. I also have three years and seven months of military service that they say I can’t count unless I pay for it. When can I retire? A. You can retire now because you are at least 60 years old and have at least 20 years of FERS service. P.S. They are right. You won’t get any credit for your active-duty service unless you make a deposit for that time. If you did, your annuity would be 3.7 percent higher.
Q. July 2009 was my official government start date. However, I was a contractor to the government in the same agency prior to this time, from April 2005 to July 2009. I was credited service time for leave by the executive officer for the time I worked as a contractor. Therefore, on my SF-50, line 31 lists my service date (leave) time as April 2005. Do I get credit toward retirement for the April 2005 date? How can I confirm what service date applies for pension? Can I access this? Or is the SF-50 the only source which confirms I…
Q. I am paying back more than nine years of active-duty Air Force service and I still owe $6,000. I am considering retiring next month under FERS. Can I continue to make those payments from my annuity check while ensuring I get full credit for my military time? A. No, you cannot. If you haven’t completed the deposit by the time your annuity is finalized, the money you have deposited will be refunded to you.
Q. I will be 64 this year and am considering retirement as a Senate employee. If I retire and begin my annuity from FERS, can I be employed part time and not lose any of my annuity or benefits if I earn less than the earnings limit set by Social Security? A. With rare exception, if you retire and are re-employed by the federal government, the salary of your new position will be reduced by the amount of your annuity. So, before you accept another position, you’ll need to find out if it is exempted from this basic provision of…
Q. I am a reservist eligible for an active-duty retirement (21 years active duty and four years reserve duty). I have not retired yet. If I obtain a federal civilian position prior to retiring from the Reserve, will I be eligible to buy back my 20+ years of active duty? Or does the fact that I am eligible for an active-duty retirement (i.e. will receive retired pay immediately after retiring from the Reserve) make me ineligible to buy back my military time? A. Yes, you could make a deposit to get credit for your active-duty service. However, to get credit…
Q. I am a FERS employee and a disabled vet. I was given a medical retirement for injuries I received during my tour of duty in the Navy in 1972-75. I waived my military retirement in lieu of a Veterans Affairs Department pension about 15 years ago. I have made the service credit deposits required so that my military time will be credited to my FERS retirement. I recently attended a retirement seminar and was told that I will have to sign a waiver of military retired pay when I file for my FERS retirement. Does this mean I will lose…
Q. I am a FERS employee who is trying to figure out the best possible time to retire. I have 30 years of service but am only 59. I want to take full advantage of my accrued sick leave of over 2,000 hours. I was considering January 2014, but I’m not sure that is the smart thing to do, when I could also wait until I reach age 62 in April 2015. A. Only you can answer your question. And you have already thought of some of the things to consider that can help you do that. For example, you’ve…
Q. I have 15 years on active duty and am working toward a FERS retirement. I received a severance payment. Do I have to buy back the active-duty time or the severance pay to count the time on my present federal retirement? A. You would only have to make a deposit to the civilian retirement system to get credit for your active duty service. The severance payment is yours to keep.
Q. I will have 20 years of service on Oct. 26. I have more than 1,300 hours of sick leave saved up. We were told that I could use half of my sick leave and retire early with 20 years of computed service. Now that I am in that window, I am told that I cannot retire with 20 years of service until Oct. 26 to receive the 20-year mark. What happens to the sick leave? Do I lose it, or do they use it to add to my retirement income? A. Unused sick leave can’t be used to meet…