Q. I served from April 1983 to April 2001 with 17 years, 11 months and 29 days. I received a separation payment of $32,690. I have since received a 90 percent disability rating through the VA and have paid back the separation pay. I am looking at starting working for the federal service at a GS-9 position at the VA hospital; should I buy back my military time? I am 49 and looking at working until I reach 62. If I buy back my time, how much will I have to pay to buy it back? A. I don’t know…
Browsing: military buyback
Q. I will have 39 years of total service as of May 12, of which four years are military service and 35 years civilian service. I have my 40 quarters paid in. Will I have to buy back my military time to achieve my 80 percent at retirement (41 years, 11 months)? A. Yes, you will. Otherwise, when you retire, those years of active-duty service for which you haven’t made a deposit will be eliminated and your annuity recomputed without them. That will happen at age 62, if you are retired, or when you retire if it’s after that.
Q. I recently spoke with an individual from the Office of Personnel Management’s retirement services regarding offset of FERS pension for Veterans Affairs disability. The individual told me that my VA disability would not be offset from my FERS pension if I was combining my military time with my civil service time. However, the individual also told me that if I buy back my military time and then waive my military retired pay all of my military benefits, medical, ID card, commissary, etc., would also be stopped. Has the law changed? A. I’m not aware that anything has changed. However,…
Q. I will be a 40-year-old physician with 12 years of military service in 2014. I plan on staying in the reserves. I would like to work for the VA as well, but I don’t know how to calculate my potential retirement benefits, assuming I stay in the military and retire from the Navy as well. I have read things about “buying into” a federal retirement with my years of active duty, but I don’t know what that means or what my best option is. What are my options for retirement if I stay in the Navy and work for…
Q. If I have less than three years in civil service but qualify for retirement based on military time I bought back, what is my high-3 calculated from? A. Your annuity will be based on your combined civilian and military service for which you made a deposit. However, you don’t qualify for retirement. To do that, you will need to have five years of actual civilian service and meet the age and service requirements: 62 with 5 years, 60 with 20 years, at your MRA with 30 or at your MRA with between 10 and 29 years. In the last…
Q. I retired from the Air Force in 2002 after 29 years on active duty. I worked nine years in the private sector. In March 2011, I returned to the government as a member of the Senior Executive Service and now have 1½ years under my belt. I have not done a buyback. I understand that to qualify for retirement, I must work at least five years. What are the pros and cons of staying 3½ more years and buying back? A. To be entitled to any retirement benefit, you would have to be employed under FERS for five years. With…
Q. I am a FERS employee with 25 years of service (21 Postal Service, four military, which I bought back). I am 45 years old. As a FERS employee, will I be penalized 2 percent or 5 percent a year for accepting an early-out offer? If so, what other penalties will I face? A. If you accept an offer of early retirement, you won’t be subject to the age penalty. And there aren’t any other penalties that would apply.
Q. Recently, the Postal Service offered early retirement for clerks with 25 years of service. I started in 1988 but have eight years of leave without pay for Title 10 deployments with the Army Reserve. I am planning to retire from the Army Reserve soon and go back to the Postal Service. Should I buy back my military time in hopes that I can take an early retirement next year if offered? Will I still be able to retire from both employers? A. If you make a deposit for your years of active-duty service, they will be added to your…
Q. You answered a question March 1 about military buyback from a person who had 21 years of active-duty retirement. You said, “If you make a deposit for your active-duty service, you’ll have to waive your military retired pay when you retire from your civilian job.” Does that apply to reservists? I am a retired reservist who had planned to buy back 10 years of active duty in 2013-14. I began drawing retired pay last year when I turned 60. As a reservist drawing retirement, will I also have to waive my retired pay when I retire from civilian service…
Q. I have 22 years in the Army Reserve, six of it on active status. If I take a federal job and buy back my six years of active time, can I still draw my Reserve retirement when I turn 60? A. Yes.