Q: I retired from the military, then became a civil service employee. My military time for retirement was based only on my commissioned time, i.e. from entry to extended active duty to the date I separated for retirement, but not including the ROTC summer basic training I received before getting the commission. For civil service retirement computation, can the six weeks of ROTC basic training be included since it was government employment, paid at the E-3 rate? Of course I would need to make a deposit for that time. A: No.
Browsing: military service
Q: I was in the Marine Corps in the late 1970s for four years. I bought these four years in the 1990s toward my FERS retirement. Do these four years count toward my meeting my mandatory retirement age and qualifying for my Social Security supplement? At MRA, I will have 28 years of FERS and four years of FERS-purchased military time. A: Those four years will count in determining your total length of service and used in your annuity computation. They won’t be used in determining the amount of your special retirement supplement. The SRS is based solely on the…
Q: I’m 56 years old, and I retired from the Air Force in 1995 ( I took the early-out with 15.5 years active-duty service). I am eligible to retire from corporate life after 15 years there. So, now I’m below age 59 and considering starting one last career in the State Department. If I join the State Department, do I understand correctly that I can pay 3 percent of my active-duty base pay for the 15.5 years and thus have credit for 15.5 years toward a 20-year retirement with the State Department? Could I retire from the department with benefits…
Q: I am wondering if a person is retired from the Army, then goes to work for the U.S. Post Office and retires from there, does he get to collect both pensions? A: Yes.
Q: I recently began federal employment after serving 10 years of active duty in the Air Force. I am buying back my time in one lump sum at the end of this month. However, I have been toying with the idea of returning to active duty in two or three years. If I return to active duty and retire from the Air Force, what happens to my deposit? Also, if after retiring from active duty, I return to federal employment, what effect would the original buyback deposit have on my potential civil service retirement? A: If you left your contributions…
Q: I am considering buying back my military time. I am a federal employee under FERS and retired from the Naval Reserves in January 2010. If I buy back my time (which is about eight years of active duty), will it affect my military retirement at age 60? Also, what is the true advantage of buying back my time? A: If you make a deposit for your period(s) of active duty service, those years will be included when determining your total years of civilian service and in your annuity computation. For most FERS employees that would mean an increase of…
Q: I am a federal employee who bought back three years of active duty many years ago. During my federal service I have been receiving VA disability for a service-connected injury that happened on active duty but did not happen during a period of war or by an instrument of war. Will my FERS retirement annuity be affected in any way by my “non-war time” service connected VA disability? A: No, it won’t.
Q: I am a retired soldier with 22.5 years of active-duty service, half enlisted and half officer, and four years in the reserves. When I entered the GS system a little over a year ago, I was told that my service time was used to compute my annual and sick leave and that I would be maxed out at eight hours per pay period because I had more than 20 years of service. I was only accruing four hours per pay period for some time, but just figured there was a paperwork backlog. I eventually asked about the matter and…
Q: I am 58 years old, and I started work for the government in 1981. I have 30 years of service as a Defense Department civilian employee and four years as an active-duty service member. I am under the Civil Service Retirement System and plan to retire at age 62 with 38 years of total service. I have not bought back any of my active-duty time. What impact will that have on my retirement annuity and what impact will that have if I decide to take another job after I retire? A: Because you were first hired before Oct. 1,…
Q: Is military active duty for training time creditable toward total years of civilian service for retirement purposes under the Civil Service Retirement System or Federal Employees Retirement System? If so, has it always been that way? If it has not always been that way, when did it change? Please include any relevant law or regulation. A: You’ll find what you’re looking for on the Office of Personnel Management website here.