Retirement news
DailyFED's retirement section covers news that changes when and how federal employees retire and what retirees are paid: OPM's processing backlog, COLA announcements, FERS and CSRS rule changes, and legislation such as proposals affecting the FERS supplement. Each story links to the guide that explains the rule.
October20262 stories
- 2027 Best Dates to Retire Under FERSChoosing the right retirement date can affect when your FERS annuity begins, how much leave you earn, and whether you receive payment for unused annual leave.
- Tax on Social Security Can Rise With Pension and TSP IncomeYour federal pension and TSP withdrawals can affect the amount of tax on Social Security income you pay in retirement.
September20263 stories
- 2027 Federal Retirement COLA: Forecasts Are Around 3.5%The 2027 federal retirement COLA is currently tracking at about 3.3%, with two of the three months of inflation data now available.
- FERS Part-Time Service: How It Can Reduce Your Federal PensionIf you’ve spent any of your federal career working part-time, your FERS part-time service may affect your pension in a way that’s easy to miss.
- Overtime and FERS: Why Your Extra Hours May Not Boost Your PensionOvertime and FERS don’t necessarily go together the way you might expect.
August20269 stories
- Surviving Spouse Social Security Benefits: The Financial Shock Many Couples Don’t ExpectSurviving spouse Social Security benefits can replace much of the income lost when a spouse dies, but they don’t replace both spouses’ full Social Security checks.
- New Data Sheds Light on OPM Retirement Backlog and Processing TimesWhen we look at the OPM retirement backlog, the number of pending retirement claims has been falling for months, yet the average time required to process each claim has continued to rise.
- VERA Retirement: What Happens to Your Income Before You Reach MRA?A VERA retirement can allow eligible federal employees to leave service years earlier than they otherwise could.
- Could a Job Transfer Change Your FERS Pension Calculation?A federal employee considering a transfer might look at the new salary, commute, and cost of living.
- Federal Retirees: Your TSP Can’t Do This. Your IRA Can.For federal retirees who give to charity, there’s an important difference between your TSP and an IRA that becomes especially relevant after age 70½.
- Retirement Readiness Is About More Than Your FinancesRetirement readiness is usually measured in dollars.
- The OPM Retirement Backlog Is Shrinking. So Why Are Wait Times Getting Longer?The latest OPM retirement backlog report seems contradictory at first glance.
- Should You Delay Retirement? What Federal Employees Need to ConsiderOne of the biggest retirement decisions federal employees face isn’t choosing a TSP fund or deciding when to claim Social Security.
- OPM Annuity Errors: What Federal Retirees Should KnowMost federal retirees assume that once OPM calculates their annuity and starts sending monthly payments, the number is settled.
July20266 stories
- Disability Retirement Used to Be a Coin Flip. Here’s What Changed.If a medical condition has made it impossible to do your job, you may already know that federal disability retirement exists.
- Postponed vs. Deferred Retirement: The Difference That Could Cost a Federal Employee Their Health InsuranceA federal employee recently told his advisor he was ready to leave government service.
- What Social Security Uncertainty Means for Your FERS RetirementSocial Security uncertainty is no longer just a talking point in Washington.
- Why the FERS Annuity Supplement Is Still Worth WatchingThe FERS annuity supplement remains in place today, but questions about its long-term future haven’t gone away.
- OPM Retirement Backlog Falls Again as Agency Ends Paper Retirement ApplicationsThe OPM retirement backlog continued to shrink in June, falling by nearly 4,700 pending retirement claims to its lowest level in more than a year.
- What Federal Retirees Actually Receive Before Their Full Annuity BeginsFiling your retirement application is not the same as receiving your first full pension check.
What we cover here
- OPM processing. The retirement backlog, processing times and interim pay.
- COLAs. The yearly announcement and what it means for CSRS and FERS annuities.
- Rules and legislation. Proposed and enacted changes to FERS, CSRS and the supplement, reported as proposals until they become law.
- Retirement waves. Early-out offers and agency retirement trends.
The rules behind the headlines
News reports what changed. These guides explain how it works, and they are updated when the rules change:
- How FERS retirement works
- The retirement application and OPM processing
- How COLAs are set
- The FERS supplement
Run your own numbers with the FERS pension estimator. Proposals that have not become law do not change the estimator.
When the news affects your plans
A headline about a rule change can raise real questions about your own date or annuity. A Federal Retirement Consultant (FRC®) can talk through what it means for you. Get matched with an FRC, free.
