By Reg Jones
Early retirement
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am being offered early retirement and must be separated from the service no later than July 31. What is the earliest date I could leave?
A. If you meet the age and service requirements, you can retire at any time between the date on which the offer is made and the date on which it ends.
Tags: Early retirement
Rules on remarriage
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am a single CSRS annuitant, age 69. My wife passed away before I retired. I may remarry. According to my research, I have two years after marriage to request a survivor benefit for my new wife. Also, I must be married nine months before my new wife can receive a survivor benefit. What occurs if I were to have requested a survivor’s benefit for her within the two years after marriage, but I passed away before the nine months occurred?
A. If you had been married for nine months before you passed away, she would be entitled to the survivor benefit. If you hadn’t, she wouldn’t.
Tags: CSRS, remarriage, RETIREMENT, Survivor benefits
Retire and rehire
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am biological research technician retiring from the Veterans Affairs Department on May 31. My boss wants to stay involved with the laboratory training new students in molecular biology. He wants to rehire me two days per week after I retire. Is this possible without affecting my annuity?
A. Unless you can be appointed under either an exceptional needs authority or on a limited time appointment, the salary of your new position would be offset by the amount of your annuity. Your boss can only propose that; only your agency can decide if that’s appropriate.
Tags: annuity, Offset, rehire, RETIREMENT, salary
Social Security reduction
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I retired (CSRS) on April 30. I have 31 years creditable service. I am 65. I did not buy back my four years of military service. I know there is a 2 percent per-year reduction in annuity. I will receive 58 percent instead of 66 percent. I will be eligible for Social Security benefits in December. I will be 66 then. I had 40 quarters paid into Social Security before starting work for the government. Will there also be a reduction of the Social Security benefits? If so, how much?
A. Yes. Because you didn’t make a deposit for your years of active-duty service, your annuity will be reduced by 8 percent (2 percent for each of those four years). Further, because you will be receiving an annuity from CSRS, a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes, your Social Security benefit will be subject to the windfall elimination provision. You can learn about the WEP by going to www.socialsecurity.gov/pubs/10045.html and calculate what the reduction would be at www.socialsecurity.gov/retire2/wep.htm.
Tags: annuity reduction, creditable service, CSRS, military buyback, RETIREMENT, SOCIAL SECURITY, taxes, windfall elimination provision
Medicare
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am a federal government retiree who turned 65 in March. I have Kaiser of Southern Cal health benefits. Do I have to enroll in Medicare? Should I enroll in Medicare? If I enroll in Medicare, will it change coverage for my wife? How would I enroll?
A. Medicare is a benefit that is personal to you. While you don’t have to enroll in Medicare Part A, it wouldn’t make any sense not to. You paid for that coverage through payroll deductions, and there aren’t any premiums to pay. Medicare Part B is different. You would have to pay monthly premiums for that coverage. So you’ll need to compare the benefits in your Federal Employees Health Benefits plan with what Part B has to offer and make a decision. If you decide not to enroll at present and later change your mind, you’ll have to pay higher premiums. For more information about Medicare and to enroll, call 1-800-772-1213 or go online to www.medicare.gov.
Tags: enrollment, FEHB, Medicare, RETIREMENT
Annual leave
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am planning to retire Jan. 12, 2013. I will have 340 hours. I heard this year’s leave period ends Jan. 12, 2013. Will I receive cash for all of my 340 hours if I retire effective Jan. 12, 2013?
A. Yes.
Tags: annual leave, RETIREMENT
Medically retired military buyback
May 16th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I was medically retired from the military after about 15 years of service. I was receiving a pension from the Army until I was awarded compensation from the Veterans Affairs Department. The VA compensation was more than the Army pension that is taxable; therefore, I receive a VA compensation that is nontaxable (80 percent). Within the past three or four years, I was awarded combat-related special compensation because the injuries were considered to be combat-related during my military career. My time of service was Sept. 21, 1981, to June 19, 1996. Does the military buyback option apply to me without giving up my military pension?
A. Yes, it does.
Tags: disability, medical retirement, military buyback, pension
Death of retiree
May 15th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. My father was a retired (1979) federal employee receiving monthly retirement payments via direct deposit. He died last week.
1. What do I need to do?
2. Who do I notify to stop his monthly retired pay and to initiate the process for obtaining his government life insurance?
A. You need to call the Office of Personnel Management’s Retirement Information Office at 888-767-6738. Make sure to have your father’s full name, Social Security number, date of birth and Civil Service Annuity number at hand when you do that. The benefits specialist will send you the paperwork you need to close out his account.
Tags: LIFE INSURANCE, OPM, retired, SOCIAL SECURITY, Survivor benefits
Social Security
May 15th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am 71 years old and collect Social Security. It is only $1,138 per month, and I am having an impossible time living on this. If I go back to work, how much can I earn before my Social Security is affected?
A. Because you have already reached your full retirement age, there is no limit on the amount you can earn from wages or self-employment without affecting your Social Security benefit. Further, you’ll once again have Social Security deductions taken from your earnings, which will result in your Social Security benefit being increased over time.
Tags: RETIREMENT, SOCIAL SECURITY
Excess payments
May 15th, 2012 | Uncategorized
Q. I am CSRS and made 41 years, 11 months in August 2011. I continue to have deductions for retirement taken out of my pay. As I understand it, the Office of Personnel Management will send me a lump sum for my excess payment after I retire. My options are to accept the refund or return the money to buy additional annuity.
1. Will the excess retirement dollars from September 2011 to Dec. 29, 2012 (date of retirement) equate to another 2 percent annuity?
2. Do I have the option of putting that money in a Voluntary Contributions Program account?
3. Can I take that refund and put it in my Individual Retirement Account, without taxes being withheld at the time of IRA deposit?
A. OPM will refund your excess retirement contributions, plus interest, and offer you the opportunity to buy additional annuity. The method used to determine the amount is the same one used in the Voluntary Contributions Program. As such, how much you can buy depends on your age and the amount of the refund. At age 55, each $100 would buy you $7 of additional annuity. The amount increases by 20 cents for each full year you are older than 55. So, for example, if you retired at age 62, every $100 would buy you $8.40 of additional annuity. Although it wouldn’t be increased by any cost-of-living adjustments applied to your regular annuity, you’d receive that increase for the rest of your life.
While you can’t roll the excess contributions into a VCP account, which would be pointless anyway because interest payments stop when an employee retires, you can roll over the non-interest portion of your refund into an IRA.
Tags: annuity, CSRS, interest, IRA, lump sum, OPM, refund, RETIREMENT, voluntary contributions program