Q. I will retire at the end of March. I am a FERS employee with 30 years service, and am age 57 1/2. My Human Resources office told me I will be penalized on my Supplemental Social Security payment at an amount of 5 percent per year until I reach age 62. My question is: Will this Supplemental Social Security payment increase yearly as I approach age 62, or does it remain the same. A. It sounds like your HR office was talking about the age penalty that’s applied to the annuities of employees who retire under the MRA+10 provision…
Browsing: SOCIAL SECURITY
Q. I am a 58 year old CSRS offset employee and have 30 years and some months of creditable service. I started with the post office in 1980 as a sub mail carrier and converted to full time in 1986. I understand that when I retire and reach age 62 (if I am retired prior to then) my pension would be reduced by the amount of Social Security I would receive that is creditable to my CSRS offset service. How would I determine what that amount would be? And would I receive additional Social Security benefits from work outside the…
Q My husband and I are both CSRS retirees. My husband also receives a small amount from Social Security for quarters completed prior to government service. I do not receive any Social Security. If he passes away before me, would the windfall elimination provision apply to a spousal benefit? Would I even receive a spousal benefit as a CSRS retiree? A. Because you won’t be receiving a Social Security benefit based on your own work record, the windfall elimination provision won’t apply to you. However, any spousal or survivor Social Security benefit to which you’d be entitled will be affected by…
Q. Is a CSRS Offset employee retiring with less than five years offset service subject to the government pension offset on a spousal Social security benefit? I know this is true for FERS but have not been able to find any clear guidance for offset employees. I do not have enough Social Security quarters to qualify for Social Security payments on my own. My position will be eliminated due to BRAC and I do not have an enduring job offer. There is a VSIP offer on the table. Please help me make an informed choice. A. According to the Social…
Q. I am a FERS employee with DoD. I plan to retire in December 2016 at age 61. At that time I will have 35 years of service. I will be 62 in February of 2017. My high three will be about $124,000. I am trying to estimate my take-home pay from Social Security and FERS. My FERS annuity will be about $49,000 per year. My Social Security will be about $22,000 per year. Do I have to pay federal taxes on FERS and Social Security, and state taxes (Michigan)? Social Security on the FERS annuity? Medicare on Social Security…
Q. I was married to my husband for almost 25 years. I worked under CSRS for 42 years. I have been divorced since 1998. My ex-husband recently passed away. I believe he was on disability retirement. He was not a government employee. Can I draw anything from his pension. I am 69 years old. A. We don’t know anything about nonfederal benefits, so we can’t comment on whether you’d be entitled to anything from his former employer. On the other hand, you may be eligible for a a former spouse Social Security survivor benefit. The only way to find out…
Q. I am a federal employee with 31 years of service. Civil Service Offset, with 10 years CSRS and 21 years in FERS. I plan to retire at age 59 1/2. Will there be any penalty? Will I be eligible for Social Security special retirement supplement? A. Because you have reached your minimum retirement age and have at least 30 years of service, there won’t be any reduction in your annuity. Further, you will receive the special retirement supplement.
Q. I am a retired governent employee receiving a pension. My husband was killed in a car accident in January of this year. My widows benefits from him under Social Security is being offset and I plan to appeal. Are there any cases where exceptions have been made? A. No there aren’t. The law is fixed and doesn’t allow for any exceptions.
Q. Will the 2 percent reduction in employee Social Security tax for 2011 and 2012 reduce the benefit that the employee will receive when he applies for a Social Security benefit? A. No. Social Security benefits aren’t based on the amount you contribute through taxes. They are based on the number of Social Security credits you have earned, your average indexed monthly earnings (AIME), and the age at which you apply for benefits.
Q: I retired under the CRSR Offset pension. Am I correct to understand that, at age 62, OPM will automatically reduce (offset) my federal pension, or, will OPM wait until I apply for my Social Security benefit and then reduce my federal pension? A: OPM will automatically reduce your CSRS annuity when you become eligible for a Social Security benefit. It makes no difference when or if you apply for one.