FedBenRetire210-660-4040Book a free reviewFERS Retirement
What the annuity is, how it is calculated, and the three ways you become eligible.
What FERS is
The Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) is the successor to the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS). It started for new hires on January 1, 1984, and took full effect for every employee not vested with five years of service prior to January 1, 1987.
During the transition, some employees were given the option to switch to the new FERS system. Everyone hired after the formal implementation of FERS was entered into it automatically.
CSRS and FERS differ mainly in the sources and amounts of income they provide at retirement. CSRS retirees generally have not paid into Social Security and are therefore ineligible to receive it. They are paid only through the CSRS annuity, but at roughly twice the FERS rate.
How your FERS annuity is figured
The FERS annuity is a defined benefit plan, similar to the CSRS annuity. The primary difference is what participants pay into their respective systems.
Social Security
FERS participants pay the standard 6.2 percent of annual salary into Social Security. At retirement they receive a standard Social Security benefit that does not reduce their pension. Most CSRS participants receive nothing from Social Security, and where they do qualify those benefits are reduced by the amount of their CSRS pension. CSRS Offset works the other way: the pension is reduced by the amount of Social Security received.
Who qualifies for FERS retirement
This is the goal for most federal employees: get as much retirement pay as soon as they qualify. There are three basic standards for immediate retirement with 100 percent of your pension.
Age 62 with 5 years
Retire at age 62 or older with at least five years of creditable federal service.
Age 60 with 20 years
Retire at age 60 or older with at least twenty years of creditable federal service.
MRA with 30 years
Retire having reached your Minimum Retirement Age, between 55 and 57 depending on birth year, with no less than thirty years of creditable federal service.
Keep reading
Run these numbers against your own record.
A counselor walks your annuity, TSP and survivor elections using your service computation date, not a general example.
FERS questions we get asked most
What is FERS?
The Federal Employees Retirement System is the retirement system that replaced CSRS. It started for new hires on January 1, 1984 and took full effect for every employee who was not vested with five years of service before January 1, 1987. Everyone hired after that was entered into FERS automatically.
How do I know whether I am FERS or CSRS?
It is printed on your SF 50 in the retirement plan block. If it still is not clear from there, bring the form to your review and we will read it with you.
How much do FERS employees contribute to the annuity?
It depends on when you were hired. Employees hired before 2013 pay 0.8 percent of salary, employees hired in 2013 pay 3.1 percent, and employees hired in 2014 or later pay 4.4 percent. CSRS employees pay 7.0 percent.
When can I retire under FERS with a full annuity?
Three standards qualify you for an immediate retirement with 100 percent of your pension. Age 62 with at least 5 years of creditable federal service. Age 60 with at least 20 years. Or your Minimum Retirement Age with at least 30 years.
What is the Minimum Retirement Age?
Your Minimum Retirement Age, or MRA, is between 55 and 57 depending on your birth year. It is the earliest point you can retire under the 30-year standard.
Can I retire at my MRA with fewer than 30 years?
You can retire at your MRA with 10 years of creditable service, but the annuity is reduced. Whether that reduction is worth taking depends on your numbers, which is exactly the kind of thing a review is for.
Do FERS employees get Social Security?
Yes. FERS participants pay the standard 6.2 percent of annual salary into Social Security, and at retirement they receive a standard Social Security benefit that does not reduce their pension.
Why is the FERS annuity smaller than the CSRS annuity?
CSRS retirees are generally paid only through the CSRS annuity, at roughly twice the FERS rate, because most of them never paid into Social Security. FERS was built as a three-part system: a smaller annuity, plus Social Security, plus the Thrift Savings Plan with a government match.
Still have a question? A counselor will answer it against your own record. Request a free review or call 210-660-4040.