Q. I have 26 years as an Air Force Reserve technician; I have been offered an Active Guard Reserve tour that would give me 20 years’ active duty in five years. Will I lose my civil service retirement if I retire on the military side with 20 years, or will I be able to draw both since I have worked both? A. If you will be receiving military retired pay, to get credit for your years of active-duty service in your civilian annuity, you’ll have to make a deposit to the retirement fund and waive that pay when you retire.…
Browsing: military buyback
Q. I am 51 years old and have 16 years of 6c time in federal law enforcement. I am also a veteran and bought back 11 years of active-duty time, bringing my total federal time to 27 years. I am considering leaving the government for a position with a private company. I want to make sure I understand what I would give up before I leave, and it is my understanding that my benefits would be based on a straight 1.0 percent per year vice 1.7 percent since I will not have completed 20 years of 6c time. I am…
Q. I am a civilian federal firefighter. I bought back 12 years of active-duty military time into FERS. I will have 25 years total (12 military and 13 civilian) when I am 43 years old. Can I retire at that time since firefighters can retire at 25 years of service at any age, even though only 13 of those years are as a civilian? A. No, you can’t. You would have to have 25 years of actual firefighter covered service to retire under the special provision.
Q. I receive military retirement pay for 21 years of service in the Air Force. I started working as a federal civilian employee (GS 9 step 1) two months ago. I have not bought back my military time. I am 41. If I continue to work as a federal civilian for another 20 years and buy back my military service, which would give me 40 years total, does my combined retirement/annuity add up to more than if I wouldn’t buy back my military time, keeping my separate military retirement check and my separate FERS annuity check? A. You are asking…
Q. I plan on retiring in 1½ years. I will be 56 and have 23 years federal service. I bought back my three years of military time, but I understand that I will not be able to use that unless I do 30 years. I am FERS and was born in 1958, so my minimum retirement age is 56. Will I be able to retire at 56 with 23 years of federal service? A. You could retire under the MRA+10 provision. However, your annuity would be reduced by 5 percent for every year (5/12 percent per month) that you were…
Q. I am a career conditional employee with 1½ years total civilian service time who is eligible to buy back my military time. Due to the current budget constraints, I fear that I could be subject to a reduction in force. If I buy back my time and am RIF’d prior to completing my five years of civilian service that are required to be vested in FERS, what happens to my military deposit? A. You’ll have a choice to make. You can either ask to have that money refunded to you or you can leave it in the fund. If…
Q. I have just started the process to buy back my five years of active-duty military service. Doing so would enable me to retire at age 56 with 33 years’ service. I retired from the reserves with 22 years and will be entitled to a military pension at age 60. In a retirement seminar recently, a presenter told me I should not buy back my time because I would then forfeit my military pension. At a previous seminar, we were told it would be foolish not to buy back one’s military time. Who is correct? A. The first presenter was…
Q. My service computation date is Oct. 14, 1994, and I did military buyback (eight years). I entered federal civil service in August 2002. What is my retirement date? At age 57, I will have 20 years of civil service. This is without the military buyback. What would my total time be for retirement? A. Because you made a deposit for your active-duty service, your SCD is correct for both leave accumulation and retirement purposes.
Q. I retired in 1988 after 11 years of active service in the Air Force. Am I eligible for benefits; and for some form of retirement pay when I reach 62? I was thinking of getting a federal job to complete the active service to 20 years. A. Because this is a site for federal civilian employees and retirees, I don’t know if you are entitled to any military benefits. You’ll have to take that up with your former branch of service. If you did come to work for the government, you wouldn’t get credit for your active-duty service unless…
Q. I am a federal civilian firefighter under FERS. I recently bought back 12 years of active-duty military time to be applied to my retirement. I understand that as a firefighter, I can retire at 20 years at age 50 or 25 years at any age. Do my 12 years of military time count toward this since I bought them back? I have been a federal civilian firefighter for only two years. With the 12 years added, I’ll be 43 with 25 years’ service computation (military plus civilian). Can I retire at 43 years old with the 25 years? A.…