Q. What are the conditions that govern federal employment after CSRS retirement? I am planning on retiring soon with 32 years and may have an opportunity to work part time for the agency I am currently employed with. (Department of Veterans Affairs). A. Unless you are hired into one of those rare positions that would allow you to receive both your annuity and the full salary of your new job, the salary of that job would be offset by the amount of your annuity. For example, if your annuity was $50,000 and the salary of your new job was $80,000,…
Browsing: CSRS
Q. I am so confused about the deposit for post-1956 military service. I am a widow 53 years old who has been receiving a survivors annuity (CSRS) since my husband’s death in 2006. At the time the annuity was approved, I received a letter from OPM asking me if I wanted to make the deposit and was told that my annuity would be reduced by an estimated $193 monthly at age 60 if I did not make the deposit, and I was found eligible for Social Security benefits. I did not reply as I was totally confused and could not get any answers. I recently sent a letter…
Q: I am a FERS TRANSFER and I will be retiring with 30 years with CSRS and 13 years with FERS. If my husband’s SSI spousal portion is higher than my full SSI, can I take the full spousal portion or is it subject to windfall elimination provision, too? A: Because you will be receiving an annuity — in whole or part — from a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes (CSRS), any spousal Social Security benefit to which you would otherwise be entitled would be affected by the government pension offset provision of law. The GPO…
Q: If Congress passes the part-time employee equity act this fall, how would this impact a CSRS Offset employee with the last 20 years of service as a part-time employee? Would it make a substantial difference in the retirement benefit calculation to wait until this act passes before retiring? A: Where have you been? As of Oct. 28, 2009, Public Law 111-84 changed the way CSRS part-time employment would be calculated. To learn how that change would affect you, go to www.federaltimes.com. At my site, click on “read more.” Under Retirement, click on CSRS annuity computation, then continue to scroll…
Q: I have a question about CSRS/FERS military service payback. I served in the Air Force from April 1981 to May 1989. After separation I started working for a section of the DOJ in April 1990 under the FERS system. I know it is late in the game, but I am trying to do a buyback for my military time. I have heard different answers as to whether my military time would be considered a CSRS component or if it would be paid back as part of FERS. I am under the impression that it would be a CSRS component.…
Q: I retired in 2009 with 33 years under CSRS from an Excepted Service position with the Department of Defense Education Activity. As a CSRS annuitant, would my annuity be affected if I am now hired in a NAF flex position? If so, how? Would I still be able to retain my health and life insurance that I carried into retirement? (As I understand it, a NAF flex position includes no federal retirement, leave, etc. benefits, and the part-time hours are determined by the needs of the organization.) A: According to OPM, “Generally, if a CSRS or FERS annuitant is…
Q: Does time spent working in a congressional office have any bearing on status (career, career conditional, etc.) when applying for an agency civilian job? A: If you take a job with a federal agency, any time spent as a congressional employee will be treated as creditable federal civilian service for all purposes. Whether the position you fill would be career or non-career depends entirely on the nature of the appointment.
Q: I will retire at age 63 on Oct. 31, 2010, from Civil Service under CSRS and do not qualify for Social Security. Will my Part A Medicare continue to be deducted from my annuity until I become eligible for Medicare? I know I have to apply though Medicare to have Part B deducted from my annuity three months from turning 65. A: No, Part A deductions won’t be taken out of your annuity. They are only taken out of earnings from wages or self employment, not from annuities.
Q: I worked in the VA system from 1974 to 1993 and am eligible to draw my retirement in four years when I am 62. If I am re-employed by the VA before I begin to draw my retirement, will I continue in the CSRS system or must I be part of FERS? A: You would automatically be covered by CSRS Offset (CSRS and Social Security), with the option of electing to be covered by FERS.
Q: In 1985 I was injured and was covered under worker’s compensation. In 1996 I switched over from worker’s compensation to OPM disability pay. In 1999 I returned to duty as a federal agent and was placed under CSRS-Offset. I have been told that I am under offset because I was off the government payroll for more than a year before returning to work. As I was getting paid by OPM and worker’s compensation for on-duty injuries during the whole period I was off, I am concerned that I am not in the right retirement program. A: What you were…