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.
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Q. I started at a federal agency in June 2010 as a GS-14. I bought back my military time (10 years). I was recalled to active duty in the Army in March 2011. I was on active duty, and in a leave-without-pay status, until March 2012. I returned to my agency after completing my service. I may take a GS-12 position closer to home. I’m close to retirement age. If I switch to GS-12 in July, would my high-3 be a mix of GS-14 and GS-12? If I switch to GS-12 in January 2015, would my high-3 be as a…
Q. When doing an online search about leave without pay during the high-3 years for annuity calculation, I found the FedExperts response from Nov. 30, 2012. It stated that less than six months LWOP per calendar year does not count against time in service, nor does it reduce one’s salary calculation for the high-3 years. However, on my CSRS Personal Benefits Statements for 2011 and 2012, it appears that it does reduce the retirement annuity. In September/October 2011, I took 79 hours of LWOP. My Jan. 2, 2011, CSRS PBS shows a high-three of $110,657, and an annuity of $6,982…
Q. I’m 58 and have worked under FERS for 20 years. If I take an early-out, do I get any penalties? What would my retirement benefit be? A. If you retired under the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority, you wouldn’t be subject to an age penalty. Your annuity would be computed using the standard formula: .01 x your high-3 x your years and full months of service.
Q. Is Voluntary Early Retirement Authority offered to those who are already eligible to retire? Does VERA apply to your high-three calculation for retirement? A. It’s clear from your questions that you are asking about the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment, not VERA. According to OPM, “The Voluntary Separation Incentive Payment Authority, also known as buyout authority, allows agencies that are downsizing or restructuring to offer employees lump-sum payments up to $25,000 as an incentive to voluntarily separate. When authorized by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), an agency may offer VSIP to employees who are in surplus positions or have…
Q. How many years of federal service does one have to work before retiring and receiving the exact amount of pay they are getting while working? Someone said you had to work until 35 years of service to receive your full retirement pay. A. Regardless of which retirement system you are in, it would be impossible to retire and receive an annuity that equaled what you were earning as an employee. Under FERS, even if you worked for 50 years, your annuity would only equal 55 percent of your highest three years of average salary (.011 x your high-3 x…
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. I have been on FERS disability retirement from the Postal Service since November 1996. I turned 62 in October and received a letter from the Office of Personnel Management notifying me that my annuity was recalculated and what my new monthly annuity would be. My creditable service calculation is correct, but the high-3 doesn’t look right. FERS Publication RI 98-1 states, “The total service used in the computation is increased by the amount of time you were on the disability annuity roll and your average salary is increased by the FERS cost-of-living increase during the time you were on…
Q. I have six years in the Navy. I understand I can pay back/down those years for maximum retirement benefit. I’m 48 years old, have no savings and started this job to get on with planning for the future. I am a GS-7, step 1. I’m planning on contributing at least 5 percent a month of my pay, and I understand the Veterans Affairs Department will match 4 percent. I’d like to retire at 62ish. Here is a copy of my latest leave and earnings statement: ———————————————————————- Pay Period: 12-22 Name: ALLEN, TROY J Gross Pay 1,586.40 Federal Tax Amt Withheld 179.76…
Q. I am 54 and have 28½ years in with the Postal Service. My first official retirement date is July 9, 2014. However, I am being told that if I retire now with the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority, my annuity will be higher than if I wait until 56 due to the 5 percent penalty for each year I am under 62. That would give me a 30 percent penalty on my annuity. Is this correct? I just want to go the way I will have the most in my annuity. A. The person you talked to was confused. If you…