Pre-Retirement Planning for FERS (Update Available)
Overview/Description Target Audience Expected Duration Lesson Objectives Course Number Overview/Description
Congress created the Federal Employees Retirement System, commonly called FERS, in 1986, and it became effective on January 1, 1987. Federal employees are entitled to two key benefits under FERS: Federal Employees Health Benefits, or FEHB for short, and Federal Employees Group Life Insurance, or FEGLI. This course includes information about many aspects of these programs that employees should know so they can engage in sound retirement planning. The topics that are covered include eligibility requirements, various types of FERS retirements, the types of service that are creditable under FERS, how to calculate your annuity estimate, and eligibility requirements for survivor benefits. All Federal employees should be aware that the Federal government starts the retirement planning process immediately upon being employed in a permanent position. The government has passed legislation that each FERS employee will be mandated to contribute into the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund (CSRDF), the Social Security (SS) Fund and into the Medicare Fund. Legislation was also passed to establish a voluntary savings and investment plan – the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) – so each employee has a supplemental annuity in retirement. Although the government has started the planning process, each employee needs to also plan and prepare for retirement. It is a full career process, from date of employment until date of retirement. This course will provide the employee with sufficient information to be able to make informed decisions concerning retirement planning. This course was edited and updated by Georgia Bohuslav, Federal Retirement Consultant, Subject Matter Expert (SME). The course materials and content are for informational purposes only and do not constitute personal retirement advice. Transmission of the information is not intended to create a retirement consultant relationship with an employee. Readers should not act upon this information without seeking individual retirement counseling with a Human Resource Specialist within their specific agency. The information provided is general information only and it may or may not reflect the most current retirement information.
Pre-Retirement Planning for FERS (Update Available)
identify eligibility requirements related to continuing FEHB into retirement
identify eligibility requirements related to continuing FEGLI into retirement
identify the FERS eligibility requirements related to immediate and early voluntary retirement
identify the FERS eligibility requirements related to deferred retirements, disability retirements, and annuity supplements, Social Security, Long Term Care, and Thrift Savings Plans
identify requirements related to creditability of service under FERS
identify items to check for when reviewing your OPF
identify eligibility requirements for FERS survivor benefits