Q. I retired in 2010 with 40 years of service, including four years of military service (1972-1976) that I did not pay back. While I am 62 and don’t qualify for Social Security yet, I recently received a notice that I now qualify for survivor benefits. Will this affect my CSRS annuity? Second, is the one-time Catch 62 check at age 62 in law or process? My concern is that if it is process, then it could easily be changed because of the budget situation to check every year after age 62 or when you start to draw Social Security…
Browsing: OPM
Q. I am a CSRS employee. Upon retirement, I would like to know what minimum percentage/amount of survivor benefit has to be in effect for my husband to continue to receive health benefits if I pre-decease him. Does the annuity have to be enough to cover the premium? If so, what would happen if the insurance rates increased dramatically over time and the annuity no longer covered 100 percent of the premium? My husband is willing to provide a notarized “less than all” annuity base. The bottom line is that I want to carry only enough survivor benefit to ensure health…
Q. I’ve been in CSRS since Feb. 10, 1975, and I turned 65 in January. 1) Which day, in late leave year 2015, would be the best day to retire? 2) What should be my schedule for submitting retirement documents?
Q. My mother is a survivor of a retiree and has full medical coverage. She is 92 and in relatively good health, taking no medication to speak of and enjoying her daily routines. Her monthly medical insurance for Horizon Major Medical is now $451.66. Is this above or below what would be considered average for single seniors?
Q. I worked in the civil service program for 34 years and retired in 1998. I named my wife as the survivor annuitant. In August 2005, she and I divorced. Even though the annuity was not mentioned in the divorce documents, I did not change the designation. Now I have been residing with a significant other for more than six years. I would like to marry this woman and name her as the annuitant for my federal retirement. With no mention of the annuity in the divorce documents, can I make this change? If so, and since I have continually…
Q. I am a retired federal employee (1999) under CSRS. I got married in March 2012. My wife has little income, so I would like to add her as a beneficiary to my annuity in case I die. Can this be done, and if so, what would be the costs and reductions in my present annuity?
Q. I started work at 16 during the summer to help pay for college. From 1966 to 1974, I made very low incomes but contributed to Social Security. Then I worked for the Forest Service and became a CSRS employee for five years. I resigned and got a refund on my retirement because I did not think I would work there again. But because I had five years in, the Forest Service says I still have a vested interest in CSRS and will pay me $202/month for that vested service when I retire. Between 1990 and 1999, I stayed home…
Q. I am retiring under CSRS offset. In 2007, I worked as a temporary employee for four months. During that time I paid FICA, but not the additional 0.8 percent toward my retirement. OPM states that I need to pay the full 7 percent to get full credit toward my retirement. Given that the CSRS offset contribution is 7 percent, divided by 6.2 percent toward FICA and 0.8 percent toward CSRS, wouldn’t paying an additional 7 percent be a double payment toward FICA? Shouldn’t I just be liable for the 0.8 percent deposit? If I must pay a full 7…
Q. I’m trying to understand how my retirement income will be affected by the government pension offset and windfall elimination provision. I’m a CSRS Offset employee (55 years old) contemplating retirement in the next year with more than 32 years’ service. I also receive a monthly spousal annuity from my deceased wife’s CSRS service. I understand that when I turn 62, my own CSRS pension will be reduced by whatever Social Security amount I’m eligible for (should be more than 30 years of Social Security earnings), but I just read something indicating that my spousal annuity also might be reduced…
Q. I am 43 years old with 20 years of federal service: nine years as Border Patrol agent and 11 as an 1811 (Postal Inspector). Will my Border Patrol time count as out at any age with 25 years?