Q. I am 45 years old. I have been working for the federal government since June 7, 1985, approximately 27 years. Our government facility is closing its doors. I was offered a job outside of our local travel area and had to turn it down due to personal reasons. Can I still qualify for discontinued service retirement? What would the penalties be? I have plenty of years but not the age. I have performed all my employment under FERS. A. Because the position you were offered was outside your commuting area, the fact that you turned it down wouldn’t keep…
Browsing: Eligibility
Q. I retired from active-duty service in the U.S. Army in 2002. I became a Department of the Army civilian in 2009. When — how many years — can I retire from federal service? What is the computation/formula used to determine retirement pay? A. When you can retire is determined by your age and service. You can retire at age 62 with five years of service, 60 and 20, at your minimum retirement age with 30 or at your MRA+10 (but fewer than 30). If you make a deposit for your years of active-duty service, you’ll get credit for that time in…
Q. I am three years and eight months younger than my wife. She had carried the insurance premium for both of us since 1976. I had to take up Blue Cross/Blue Shield this year myself, since Medicare is not a family plan. I plan to retire for health reasons on April 27, 2013, with 34 years of service, but I do not know if my Federal Employees Health Benefits plan will continue, due to the recent acquiring of my own plan. I was under her plan as a dependent for 35 years, but I am also a federal employee. If…
Q. I’m a CSRS employee. I am eligible for retirement. I’ve passed my 62nd birthday and will not have enough quarters to be eligible for Social Security. I have heard different accounts of whether there is a way to get a refund on the money I paid to buy back my six years of military service time. Since I will not be eligible for Social Security and I paid the full amount to be sure I would be able to get credit for my military service, is there a way to get a refund on the nearly $8,000 I paid,…
Q. I have civil service retirement with the Postal Service. I have been informed that if I do not pay back the Social Security I did not need to pay when I was in my five years of military service, then once I am eligible for Social Security, the payback will start being deducted from that. I thought once that withdrawal started, it would not stop, even after it was paid up. Is this true? And if I pay it back in full now, my Social Security will not be touched for that at all. Is that correct? I am…
Q. I’m a postmaster who has been offered the buyout if I retire July 31. At that time, I will have 26 years and 10 months of Postal Service time. I also have four years of military time that I have bought back, plus seven months of sick leave time. My total creditable service time is 31 years and six months. Under VERA, I would be eligible for the special supplement. but because I’m already eligible to retire, I must retire that way. Would I still receive the special supplement? I won’t turn 60 until Oct. 17. A. Because you…
Q. I took a reduced Social Security annuity since I decided to draw two years ago at the age of 62. My husband was a government meteorologist for 33 years — three of them being Air Force. We were given the option to pay fully the Social Security for his years in the Air Force. No pension. It counted to his government service and that pension. So we did. $3,600 cash. He retired at 55. So he took a true reduced government annuity, since he did not retire at 65 with the 33 years of service. In the government, you…
Q. I am a retired officer, age 64, and have been a federal employee for two years. I paid a deposit for three years, 11 months credit for time attending a service academy. Am I eligible to retire now with five years, 11 months of service, or do I have to actually be a federal employee for five years and then add the academy time? Not planning on retiring now. Just want to know the facts. A. You cannot retire until you are vested in the retirement system, which requires that you have five full years of actual FERS service.
Q. I am currently retired from Verizon but need to get back to work. I’m trying to find a federal job in the information technology field, and I have a couple questions. First, the applications ask if I am a former federal employee. I worked for the Postal Service for 3½ years from 1973 to 1976, and also worked for another nine months full-time permanent in 1986, so I have over four years of service. I am hoping that I can put down that I am a former federal employee, but not sure if I should. I found a website…
Q. I am 44 years old, and I am covered under FERS with a scheduled leave date of November 1985 but did not start working full time until August 1989. I recently enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits plan, as my wife’s insurance coverage was better than FEHB. If offered, would I be eligible for a VERA/VSIP without any penalty? A. Yes. Although you worked part time for several years, your service computation date shows that you were given full-time credit for those years of service. The only effect of having worked part time is that your annuity will…