Q: I worked as a civilian federal employee from July 2006 through December 2008. During that time, I bought back my three years of active-duty military service. Does this give me enough credited service to receive a retirement under the Federal Employees Retirement System? A: No, it doesn’t. You’d have to have five years of creditable civilian service to be eligible for a deferred annuity at age 62.
Browsing: military service
Q: I retired from the Army in 2007 and receive both military retirement pay and Veterans Affairs Department disability pay. I immediately went to work for the federal government under the Federal Employees Retirement System. When I retire from government employment, will I be paid all of the following: military retirement pay, VA disability pay, FERS retirement pay and Social Security benefits? A: Yes, you would be able to receive all four benefits. Just remember that your FERS retirement annuity would be based solely on your years of civilian service unless you chose to make a deposit for your years…
Q: I served for 27 years in the Navy and so earned retirement annuity. After a few years in the private sector, I was hired under the National Security Personnel System on August 4, 2008. At the time of my hire they awarded me partial credit for military service and gave me the service commencement date of July 4, 1992. In was born in 1955. The FERS retirement calculator says that I would therefore be retirement eligible as soon as July 4, 2012. Should I elect to retire at his point or a date after that, will I earn both…
Q: I started at the Bureau of Land Management July 19, 2009, with no previous federal experience, except U.S. Army. I retired from the Army (early retirement) with about 17 years and 6 months active duty and six years Reserve. I have been told that as I retired from the Army, I am not due more leave time; I need to start at the bottom. Some people say that my Army time should count toward years of service for more leave. Can you enlighten me? A: For retired members of the armed forces, annual leave credit is only given for 1) actual…
Q: I spent five years on active duty and 15 years on reserve duty in the Army. I started receiving my military pension when I turned 60 in October 2007. I am a FERS employee for the Justice Department and I completed the military buyback in August 2006. I want to retire in January and the HR department cannot give me an answer about waiving my military pay. I read in the FERS Handbook that military pay would have to be waived unless the employee is “receiving military retired pay under provisions of 10 U.S.C. 12731-12739 (retired pay under Chapter…
Q: I am a National Guard Technician with eight years as a GS employee. Can I apply any of those years toward a “6c” retirement (such as a Special Agent position within DEA or customs)? I turn 37 in January and would like to apply for a Special Agent position but I will be older than their mandatory hiring age limit unless those National Guard years apply (I won’t be able to have 20 years of service before the mandatory retirement age of 57). A: No, your years as a National Guard Technician cannot be counted toward retirement as a…
Q: I am an information technology specialist under the Federal Employees Retirement System. I have a service computation date of 1998. I retired early from the Navy with 18 years of military service and part of my retirement is a 30 percent service-connected disability from the Veterans Affairs Department, the rest is from the Navy. If I buy back my military time, will I lose my disability payment along with my retired payment from the Navy? A: If you make a deposit to get credit for your active duty service, you will also have to waive your military retired pay…
Q: I am not retired yet, but I’d like to know how I will calculate what the additional benefit will be to my retirement income if I were to repay my military service deposit? In other words, from an expected retirement income perspective, how do I determine if it’s in my best financial interest to repay my military service deposit? A: Here’s the simple answer. If you are a Civil Service Retirement System employee, each additional year of service would produce approximately 2 percent increase in your annuity. If you are a Federal Employees Retirement System employee, it would produce…
Q: I just recently became employed as a GS. In reviewing my Notification of Personnel Action form (SF-50), I had a number of questions which I asked of our human resources personnel: The form indicated I have no veterans’ preference and no creditable years of military service, though I have almost 25 years of service. The response I received was that I would have to surrender my pay and purchase the years of military service if I want to have it credited for civilian service. I have no intention of doing this. I was referred to the Office of Personnel…
Q: Can an active-duty service member roll his retirement into government service and add those years together with existing military service years? This was possible 20 years ago or so, but I was wondering whether it still is an option. I’m a 27-year veteran about to retire, and I’d rather go straight into government service and forego my retirement check from the military, if that is possible. A: Nothing has changed. You can make a deposit to the civilian retirement system for any years of active-duty service and, if you are eligible for military retired pay, waive that pay when…