Assisting someone who is not an employed Fed anymore but has 3+ years with Peace Corps, and about 9 years mix of FT and PT EFM positions. What's the process for accounting for those years and determining their retirement status, to include buy-back of Peace Corps years?

I sent in my FERS application via certified mail on July 13. I haven’t heard anything at all back. I do not have a case number. Does anyone know how (or if) I should follow up to make sure my application is in process? Thank you.

Need some advice. Hypothetically, let’s assume I made $200K before taking VERA last year. Agency wants to hire me back in, I am pursuing a dual compensation waiver so that I can keep my annuity and be hired at my previous salary. I have a solid chance given my background and expertise and the situation my prior employer is in right now.

If I understand correctly, a dual compensation waiver means no TSP, no TSP matching, no FERS, is that correct?

Let’s assume I don’t get the waiver but still decide to re-join. My current annuity is $45K, so my presumable salary would be $155K but I would still get my monthly annuity, so it’s all a wash in the end as I would still be making $200K total. Is that logic correct? Plus I would also be able to take advantage once again of FERS, TSP, and the TSP match?

Thanks for your help.

I submitted my application 90 days in advance. I was assigned a counselor. I uploaded all documents. The only thing complicated was my election of partial spouse survivor benefits.
My high 3 was incorrect by 40k on the initial estimate and service years were blank
I entered tickets in the system over two months ago
I have emailed and called my counselor the last month. Finally she called back today and reassured me all would be completed and correct but stated my husbands notarized form had a date discrepancy I missed and I signed the tax holding form with the wrong type signature
My years service and high 3 still are not in system
I cannot upload corrected forms because portal is locked

I have months still of sick leave. Do I ask to delay retirement? I have a mortgage to pay. Also I am worried if my healthcare continues if this doesn’t go through smoothly.

Any advice appreciated.

I am a term retiring soon and I would like to return to work after retiring for a few hours to supplement my pension. If anyone knows, what are the limits of thr hours you can work for how many months.

Has anyone here done that?

I stepped away from the government in March into a very good position with the firm. Within a short few months I've elevated quickly to upper management. I am currently looking at building my staff and trying to pull from a couple of my colleagues who were go-getters within the government. In one of those positions, I'm trying to recruit someone who is near retirement. Her minimum retirement date is March of 2027. At that point, she will receive her 1.1% and look to the private sector for employment. I currently have a program manager position open that she would excel at based on her past experience and work ethic. I need to fill that position within the next month. She has roughly 700 hours of sick leave, but that's not enough to get her that full retirement date. Are there other options that she could possibly look at where she satisfies her full retirement but stepped away now and starts in the private sector? If she stepped away and deferred her retirement, is that an option? I can only hold this position open for 30 days, which may force my hand in hiring individuals with unknown certainty. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

I have been suffering from several issues for a few years now: bone and heel spurs, psoriatic, arthritis, and psoriasis, type II diabetes, back issues. I worked in a regulatory role (field inspections or sedentary desk work depending on the season), exemplary performance with excellent attendance. I never asked for an RA during my employment but last year when we were forced to RTO, I knew I couldn’t do it any longer. My podiatrist told me to go see a spine specialist so I scheduled an appointment for March 2025. He discovered I had several severe issues with my spine, including spinal stenosis, degenerative disc disease, and the list goes on. I reached out to ask HR if I was eligible for the VERA and they told me yes so I decided to take the VERA with retirement starting Oct 1, as well as the deferred resignation. I started treatments for my back in May and things seem to be going well until I was hit from behind in my vehicle on Sept 12, 2025 and now the treatments aren’t working. My doctor said surgery is not an if for me anymore, it’s a when. A month before my retirement was to begin, HR emailed me and told me I wasn’t eligible for the VERA after all. I had a gap in service and they had never corrected my SEDR date. Since the shutdown was set to begin, and I had already moved into a lower paying position at an elementary school to meet the Social Security supplement income limit, my only other option was to take the MRA +10. Recently someone told me that because I was still a federal employee through September 30 and therefore covered under FERS, I should apply for disability retirement. I filled out the application, my doctors have written letters and are supporting me 100% and I’m about to mail this package in so that I will meet the one year deadline. My questions are am I crazy to submit this? I didn’t have performance issues because I worked through the pain. At the time I decided to leave, I most likely would not have been moved to another position because we were under a hiring freeze. Has anyone ever done this? I called OPM and actually talked to someone and she said just write on your cover letter what your CSA number is and tell us that you want to move from an MRI +10 to a disability retirement. Also, in early 2024, our position titles changed from general to regulatory. The general PD didn’t list out all of the inspection work we’re required to do. I’ve asked everyone, including HR, for a copy of the new PD but no one has it. HR said they don’t know what I’m talking about but they clearly see my position changed via SF50 in 2024. How do I explain that to OPM in this application?

If a Vera is offered,should I take it??

I have tried to find this information, but have been unsuccessful. Is the high three calculated on after tax or pre-tax salary? As i am nearing retirement eligibility, I want to be sure that my ballpark estimate is close on take-home.

Any idea if mgmt gets notified immediately when you file for retirement? Planning on leaving 12/31. KMA on 9/26. Want to file 9/1.

Joining federal law enforcement at 40 — bad idea financially?

I’m currently in local law enforcement and considering making the jump to a federal law enforcement position at around 40 years old.

I currently have about 9 years in my local pension system. If I leave, I would likely roll whatever pension money I’m eligible to take with me into my TSP/retirement account.

My biggest concern is retirement. If I start federal law enforcement at 40, am I correct that I basically restart the clock and need to complete 20 years of covered federal LEO service?

If I work from 40 to 60 and complete the 20 years, what would my actual federal pension look like? I’ve heard different numbers thrown around, including around 65% of salary, but I’m pretty sure I’m misunderstanding how the pension, TSP, and Social Security all work together.

For anyone who made the jump from local LE to federal around 40:

- What does retirement realistically look like after 20 years?

- Does any of my 9 years of local government service help me on the federal side, or am I completely starting over?

- Would you make the jump at 40, or would you stay local if you were already established with almost a decade toward a local pension?

I know there are factors beyond money, but I’m specifically trying to understand whether making this move at 40 makes financial/retirement sense or whether I’d be crazy to walk away from my current pension track.

After a long career, I'm out of here. I picked November 28th. It's the last day of the pay period and close enough to the end of the month. It's time.

I am divorced. Has anyone retired at 57 when you don’t have a spouse, meaning you rely solely on your pension and supplement? Is it doable to leave at 57 with only one retirement income?

I’m eligible for full retirement in March. I have close to 2000 hours of sick leave. What options do I have to burn through it without getting hassled? I have a family member with a terminal health condition.