Q: Is a reserve-component retired military person considered a nonveteran the same as an active-duty retired military person in a reduction-in-force? A: To find out how your service in the armed forces would be credited during a reduction-in-force, read the Office of Personnel Management’s VetGuide, located online here.
Browsing: military service
Q: I am a 58-year-old physician with 16 years of military service from 1978 to 1994. I am taking a job with the Veterans Affairs Department. In the benefits booklet I received, there is a note as follows: “Physicians and dentists covered under Title 38 provisions must complete 15 years of creditable service in order to use Physicians/Dentists Special Pay as basic pay in determining the high-3 average salary used in the computation of a [Federal Employees Retirement System] annuity. If I buy into FERS for my 16 years of military service, does this count toward “creditable service,” or is…
Q: I am a retiree under the Civil Service Retirement System. I had five years of military time which I did not make the deposit for and 26 years of federal service. I am not eligible for Social Security at this time. I have been told that if I return to work and qualify for Social Security, on my 62nd birthday my annuity will be recomputed and my five years of military service will be removed. Also, I was told my Social Security would be reduced to zero. Is all this true? A: The post-1956 military service rules are simple:…
Q: I understand that a military deposit has an effect on a person’s service computation date, Thrift Savings Plan funds and leave issues, but does it have any bearing on a new hire’s employment status? To clarify, will it change a person from “career conditional” to “career” if they have more than three years of military service? A: Making a deposit for active-duty service in the armed forces has no effect on a new hire’s employment status. As a rule, he must complete a probationary period and have three years of substantially continuous service to receive a career appointment.
Q: I am a Reserve JAG in the Air Force and work for the Patent Office as an attorney. I received an e-mail from a guy I met on a cruise last month who is working for the federal government in Iraq. He can’t seem to to buy in for his retirement because his DD 214 indicates that he may get a disability retirement under TDRL. However, he didn’t, and now he has no retirement and can’t get credit for his service. That is wrong. Apparently his agency thinks that only the DD-214 is authorized to state whether he is…
Q: I have served in the Navy for seven years. Will I be able to carry over my time to the U.S. Postal Service? A: Yes, but only if you make a deposit to the civilian retirement system. The deposit equals 3 percent of your basic military pay while on active duty, excluding allowances or differentials you may have received. Interest charges are added if you delay making the deposit after you are hired.
Q: I retired from the military in 2000 after 20 years of service and started receiving a regular military retirement anunity (with a 30 percent disabled Veterans Administration offset). I didn’t buy back any military time for FERS. I also am approaching age 50 and have just past 10 years FERS service. What are my best options for retiring at age 55? Also, would it still be to my advantage to buy back my military time since I do have a 30 percent disability and that could increase in the future. A: You don’t have any options for retiring at…
Q: Can a retired military member elect to buy back only a portion of his military time? A: If your active-duty service was continuous, the answer is no. If you were on active duty during separate, distinct periods of time, you can chose the period (or periods) of time for which you want to make a deposit.
Q: I just received my military service deposit amount plus accrued interest on my military time. The deposit amount for my service from August 1968 to August 1972 was $896, with $3,330.43 in accrued interest, for a total of $4,226.43. The accrued interest seems awfully high. The interest accrual history runs from October 1986 ($103.88) to October 2009 ($166.22). A: I can’t tell whether the final number you got is correct. What I can tell you is that annual interest rates have been high after Dec. 31, 1984. Before that, they were a flat 3 percent. After that, market rates…
Q: I am a federal employee working under the Federal Employees Retirement System. I have served approximately 7.5 years on active military duty, either as an active-duty soldier or as a reservist activated under Title 10. I have bought back the 7.5 years of military time. In doing so, am I entitled to receive the equivalent of annual leave time that I would have received had I been employed with the federal government? If so, will it be calculated at a rate of four hours per pay period or the six hours that I am currently accruing? A: Accordng to…