Q: I was employed in temporary positions with the federal government from 1971 through 1986. During that period, I accumulated 10 full-time years of federal service during which I paid in only to Social Security because temporary federal employees were not allowed to partcipate in the Civil Service Retirement System. My first permanent federal appointment was in December 1986, at which time I enrolled in the Federal Employees Retirement System. My understanding is that for the approximately six years I worked prior to 1982, I will receive 90 percent of the CSRS annuity calculation without making a re-deposit. However, I…
Browsing: Federal Employees Retirement System
Q: If I retire with 30 years of federal service under the Federal Employees Retirement System at my minimum retirement age of 56 and I go back to work outside of the federal government, will I lose my Social Security supplement? A: If you exceed the Social Security earnings limit, your special retirement supplement will be reduced by $1 for every $2 you earn. In 2010, that limit is $14,160.
Q: I am under the Federal Employees Retirement System and work for the Defense Logistics Agency. I have worked at DLA since 1986 and worked for the Social Security Administration for two years before that. Two questions: What is the cutoff date for Civil Service Retirement System eligibility, and does my time working for SSA count toward FERS or CSRS? A: Because you were hired in 1984, you were covered by an interim system made up of CSRS and Social Security. Because you had not served at least five years under CSRS when the Federal Employees Retirement System became effective…
Q: I am a 58-year-old physician with 16 years of military service from 1978 to 1994. I am taking a job with the Veterans Affairs Department. In the benefits booklet I received, there is a note as follows: “Physicians and dentists covered under Title 38 provisions must complete 15 years of creditable service in order to use Physicians/Dentists Special Pay as basic pay in determining the high-3 average salary used in the computation of a [Federal Employees Retirement System] annuity. If I buy into FERS for my 16 years of military service, does this count toward “creditable service,” or is…
Q: For those covered under the law enforcement provision of the Federal Employees Retirement System, is the Social Security earnings test applied toward funds received from their Thrift Savings Plan if those amounts exceed the earnings test for the special law enforcement officer/firefighter Social Security supplement after their minimum retirement age? A: No. The Social Security earnings test only applies to earnings from wages or self-employment.
Q: I have a co-worker who is under the Federal Employees Retirement System. She has a little more than 24 years of federal service and just turned 49. She has gone through two performance improvement periods and is facing the possibility of involuntary separation because of performance issues. She has been given a notice of intention to separate her from service. She responded with some reasons why it shouldn’t happen at all and also with other possible solutions, such as a downgrade and/or transfer, or putting her on leave/leave without pay until she is eligible for a discontinued service retirement.…
Q: My wife died 13 years ago. How do I assign my survivor benefits to my common-law wife? A: You can submit new designation-of-beneficiary forms: SF 2823 for Federal Employees Group Life Insurance; SF 2808 for the Civil Service Retirement System or SF 3102 for the Federal Employees Retirement System survivor annuity; and TSP-3 for your Thrift Savings Plan investments (available on the TSP website). Some of these benefits may only be available in a state that recognizes common-law marriages. Check with an attorney to make sure that your state is one of them.
Q: I am under the Federal Employees Retirement System and have 25 1/2 years of federal service. Early in my career, I had a few years of part-time employment. What is the formula to figure how this impacts my annuity? A FERS Benefit Estimate Report from the Office of Personnel Managment listed a FERS part-time proration factor of 92 percent at age 50 with 23 1/2 years of service and 94 percent at age 56 1/2 with 30 years of service. I am assuming this means my annuity will be reduced by 6 percent at 30 years of service. If…
Q: I left federal civil service in 1982 after 17 1/2 years of service, and I am considering returning on a part-time (50 percent) basis. I had more than seven months of unused sick leave when I left; will I get the unused sick leave reinstated? What amount of sick leave will I earn? At what rate will I earn annual leave? Also, I was under the Civil Service Retirement System when I left. If I return to civil service, will I go back under CSRS, would I go under the Federal Employees Retirement System, or would I have a…
Q: My question is about how or if the years served at a service academy (the Air Force Academy, in my case) may be credited as years of active-duty service upon active-duty retirement. I understand that those years may be “bought back” if I am counting those years toward a civilian federal retirement under the Federal Employees Retirement System, but what about active-duty military retirement? May those years be bought back? A: A deposit into the civilian retirement system may be made to get credit for time spent at one of the military academies. Similarly, a deposit may be made…