Q. I am a CSRS-covered employee nearing retirement. My spouse is a nonfederal employee and has been covered under my FEHB family plan for my entire career. I would like to elect a survivor benefit for an amount to cover her future FEHB premiums only. What amount of survivor benefit should I elect to cover her premiums, no more and no less? A. First, a reminder. By law, you have to elect a full survivor annuity for your spouse unless he or she agrees to a lesser amount or none. That agreement must be presented to OPM in a signed…
Browsing: survivor annuity
Q. I’m a 53-year-old CSRS employee with 34 years of service. I may have the option of an early-out in May. I would like to carry my Federal Employees Health Benefits into retirement. I will choose no survivor benefit, but I would like to have my wife keep my insurance after my death. Can I do this? A. No, you can’t. To be eligible to continue her FEHB coverage, she would have to be covered by the self and family option when you die and be entitled to a survivor benefit. Note: You are required by law to provide a…
Q. My mother is a Postal Service retiree residing in a nursing home. She had to use up all of her own assets to pay the nursing home until she qualified for Medicaid. Now, she has nothing left. I’ve been told that as a retired postal worker, when her time comes, there is a Postal Service “death benefit” that will pay out to her beneficiaries and that Medicaid cannot take that money from her estate because it is technically a “death benefit” as opposed to “life insurance.” Is this true? A. I’ve never heard of such a death benefit and…
Q. I will be retiring this summer, and my ex-husband has remarried, so he has no claim to my annuity when I die. Can I choose to leave my annuity to my children? A. No. However, if you designate them as your beneficiaries and die before your contributions to the retirement fund have been returned to you in your annuity payments, any remaining amount would be paid to them.
Q. I have been a CSRS retiree for six years. I am getting remarried shortly. I want to ensure my Federal Employees Health Benefits continue to be available to my spouse after my death. I understand I have two years from date of marriage to elect a survivor annuity. May I select either a full survivor benefit or a reduced survivor benefit and still retain the FEHB from my surviving spouse? If reduced is an option, how much can it be reduced and still retain the FEHB? A. Because you are a CSRS retiree, with your spouse’s written and notarized…
Q. I am a 59-year-old CSRS employee with 39+ years of service. OPM Form 2801 indicates my spouse needs to sign the Annuity Election section. Is this signature a requirement before I can retire, or can I just ignore it since my spouse isn’t ready for me to retire? A. I assume you are referring to the section of the SF 2801, entitled, Spouse’s Consent to Survivor Election. That only applies if you aren’t electing a full survivor annuity for your wife. If you are providing less than a full survivor annuity, or none at all, not only is she…
Q. Regarding your article on survivor benefits published Feb. 18, it was my understanding that under CSRS, an employee could designate a permanent reduction in their annuity to enable a surviving spouse to receive a portion of the annuity upon the employee’s death after retirement. Since I saw no reference to this in the article, and it would have no impact on the employee while still working, is my understanding incorrect? Outdated? A. That column included information about specific death benefits available to the survivors of federal employees who die in service. What you are asking about is the survivor benefit that…
Q. I am in CSRS. My husband has never worked for the government. I have 37 years working at the Defense Department, and I am going to retire Dec 31. Can my husband draw on my retirement rather than Social Security now? Does he have to wait until he is 65? Or do I have to die before he can draw this? A. Assuming you elect a survivor annuity for him when you retire, he will only receive that benefit if you die. P.S. You have to elect a full survivor annuity for your husband unless he agrees in a…
Q. My husband has 28 years and I have 27 years under FERS as civilians with the Defense Department (Air Force). My husband has been carrying Federal Employees Health Benefits insurance for our family for the past nine years. If he decides to retire early or prior to me, will he have to select an annuity for me so I would have health insurance coverage if he was to pass? I wouldn’t want to have to continue to work and carry insurance for five years prior to retiring if this is the case. A. He wouldn’t have to elect a…
Q. I have decided to retire June 1. I’m in CSRS Offset, will have 36½ years of actual service, and 2,200-plus hours of unused sick leave, for 37½ years of credited service time. This is my 35th year of credited Social Security earnings. I’m aware of the offset reduction. I’m a widower and my retirement forms have been sent in as such. If I were to remarry after the effective date of my retirement but before I were to receive the first full annuity payment, and sent in a revised retirement form, marriage certificate, beneficiary forms, etc., to the Office…