Q. I am retiring under CSRS. My early D.C. government agency was closed in 2001. All employees were subjected to a reduction in force. At that time I had 19½ years of service and 867 hours of sick leave. I returned to government employment (another D.C. agency) in 2006 and was put through a reduction in force again in 2010. Although the break was too long for the hours to be re-credited for regular use, shouldn’t they be in time-in-service calculations for my annuity now? A. No.
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Q. My husband retired in CSRS at age 55. He will turn 62 in January and plans to collect his Social Security benefits then. He has BCBS federal basic family plan, which includes me. Is he required to accept Medicare Part A? If so, how does that affect my coverage? I am not collecting any retirement or Social Security benefits at this time, as I am just now 60. A. He isn’t required to apply for Medicare Part A; however, since he has already paid for the coverage and the way his FEHB plan will operate after he becomes eligible…
Q. My husband retired in CSRS at age 55. He will turn 62 in January and plans to collect his Social Security benefits then. He has BCBS federal basic family plan, which includes me. Is he required to accept Medicare Part A? If so, how does that affect my coverage? I am not collecting any retirement or Social Security benefits at this time, as I am just now 60. A. He isn’t required to apply for Medicare Part A; however, since he has already paid for the coverage and the way his FEHB plan will operate after he becomes eligible…
Q. I retired from the Postal Service after 30 years in June 2010. At the time, I did not repay my military service, which was 2½ years. I receive my Civil Service pension based on a combined civil service of 33 years. I also do not qualify for Social Security, as I have fewer than 40 credits (39). I also know that if I do not qualify for Social Security at age 62, after that point the Civil Service will always remain for a 33-year retirement that they do not continue to check eligibility. If I get re-employed with the…
Q. I retired from the Postal Service after 30 years in June 2010. At the time, I did not repay my military service, which was 2½ years. I receive my Civil Service pension based on a combined civil service of 33 years. I also do not qualify for Social Security, as I have fewer than 40 credits (39). I also know that if I do not qualify for Social Security at age 62, after that point the Civil Service will always remain for a 33-year retirement that they do not continue to check eligibility. If I get re-employed with the…
Q. I have 16 years in FERS. But I worked 18 years under CSRS and received a refund for that service in 1992. If I buy back that CSRS time, will it be computed as a CSRS component that will affect my Social Security? If I don’t do a redeposit of the CSRS time, will I be free and clear of any Social Security benefit reduction? A. While you will get credit for that period of service in determining your eligibility to retire, because you took a refund of your retirement contributions after Feb. 28, 1991, you’d have to make…
Q. I retired on an early-out offer on Dec. 31, 2011, with 29.5 years of service at age 52. As a self-employed individual, I am paying both the employer and employee share (slightly reduced) to Social Security. Assuming another 15 years of work, that’s a tremendous amount to be paying into a retirement system with little or no benefit. I also have quarters from pre-CSRS employment. What, if any, Social Security benefit can I receive down the road? A. At age 62, you’ll be eligible for a Social Security benefit. Whether or not you apply for it at that time…
Q. I am a retired CSRS employee. I do not receive Social Security, as I have only 31 quarters paid. My husband is a retired FERS employee, as well as retired military, and receives Social Security payments. If I outlive him, will I be entitled to a portion of his Social Security? A. Probably not. Because you are receiving an annuity from CSRS, a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes, you’ll be subject to the government pension offset. The GPO will reduce that Social Security survivor’s benefit by $2 for every $3 you receive in your CSRS…
Q. I’m a 79-year-old single federal retiree in CSRS. If I marry a woman 10 years younger, what percentage of my retirement will she receive when I die? I also am a military retiree with Medicare and Tricare for Life, so I wouldn’t need the civilian health insurance. A. As a CSRS retiree, you could elect any amount of annuity for your spouse, from $1 a year to 55 percent of your annuity. To pay for it, there would be two reductions in your annuity. The first would be the standard reduction to provide for the survivor benefit. The second…
Q. I worked for an independent federal agency from 1977 to 1989 that had its own retirement system —neither CSRS nor FERS. I had a break in service for one year, then returned to work for the federal government (Transportation Department), where I was erroneously placed in FERS by HR. In 2006, following a FERCCA ruling that took more than 2½ years, I chose to be placed in the CSRS Offset program rather than FERS. I paid Social Security as a federal employee (plus through part-time jobs dating back to 1970) until I retired in 2010 with 32 years of…