Q. My husband entered military service June 14, 1988, and has 24 years and 23 days of active-duty service, according to his DD 214. He retired as of Jan. 1, 2012. He worked as a Defense Department civilian from May 14, 2012, to Aug. 7, 2012. How much time does he get added to his service computation date for his 24 years of military service? A. He won’t receive any credit toward his service computation date unless he makes a deposit to the civilian retirement system. The deposit would be a small percentage of his basic pay while on active…
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Q. I served for 13 years and four months in the active-duty Air Force after graduating from a service academy. After taking a job in the airline industry, I continued serving in the Air Force Reserve for another 10 years. I turned 60 in March and started drawing reserve retirement pay in April. I am considering employment as a Federal Aviation Association air safety inspector when I retire from my airline job, perhaps this year. I’ve been told by a friend at the FAA that all of my active-duty time plus my time at the service academy will count toward…
Q. In May, I will have 20 years under FERS with 10 years of military service included. I have bought back my military time. Will I be eligible for the special retirement supplement? A. With 30 years of service, you could retire at your minimum retirement age. MRAs range from 55 to 57 depending on your year of birth. If you retire on an immediate annuity before age 62, you’d be entitled to the special retirement supplement. However, the SRS would be based solely on your years of actual FERS service. Active-duty service for which you’ve made a deposit wouldn’t…
Q. I am a federal firefighter and a FERS employee. In 2022, I will have 21 years of creditable service and four years of bought-back active military time and be 48 years old. 1. Will I be able to retire under the provisions of 25 years of service at any age? 2. Will I receive the special category retirement percentages (1.7 x high-3 x creditable service, etc.)? 3. Will I receive the special retirement supplement until 62? 4. Will I not be able to withdraw any Thrift Savings Plan annuities until 62? A. Reg: 1. No, you won’t be able…
Q. I have just returned to federal civil service after being away for 4½ years. I have made a lump-sum deposit for those 4½ years. If I retire tomorrow, how will my high-3 salary be calculated? Would it reflect the salary tables for 2008 to 2012 — the years I was away — or would my actual salary from 2004 to 2007 be used? A. Your high-3 would be based on the average of the highest three consecutive years of basic pay you actually received, not what you would have received if you’d been at work.
Q. I was active-duty Navy (1980-84), then active Coast Guard (1991-2000). I received a tentative offer for employment with Army a few weeks ago (I’ve been a contractor since 2000). All required documents are submitted. Now I wait. How do I buy my 13 years active duty into FERS? Can I use my existing 401(k) to pay this? How much would it cost me? I also found out that, as of Jan. 1, the deduction for retirement went up to 3.1 percent. I guess a tentative offer before Dec. 31 doesn’t count for hired, so my pay is decreased. Adding…
Q. I would like to retire this year. I will be 56 in September with 34 years of creditable service — 28 under FERS and six years of military time that I bought back. Will I be eligible for the special retirement supplement, along with a FERS retirement? Or will I have to work for two more years under FERS to get the SRS? A. Because you will have reached your minimum retirement age, you’ll be entitled to receive the special retirement supplement when you retire. However, the SRS will be based solely on the years you were covered by…
Q. I am a FERS employee considering buying back my service time. I retired after 23 years in the Army. I’m 49 years old and have five years of federal time as of 2013. Would it be in my best interest to buy back my military time and put it toward federal retirement? What would be the impact? A. Here’s the upside. If you make a deposit to get credit for your active-duty service, you’d have 28 years of creditable service. If you retired at your minimum retirement age (56), you’d have 35 years of service and your annuity would…
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. Can I buy back my reserve schooling and my summer camps that are active duty on my chronicle statement? On SF 50 block 31, if I buy back three years of my active duty from my reserves and I started in 2005 for the civilian federal government, is it supposed to be counted from 2002? It’s now 2012. Does it mean I have 10 years of federal time? I retired out of the Army Reserve with 20 years. Out of those 20 years, I have two DD-214s — one for basic and Advanced Individual Training and one for Afghanistan…