What is dual status and how can it affect federal disability retirement benefits? We currently have a client filing for federal disability retirement benefits and he works as a military reserve technician. Because he is what’s considered “dual status”, the rules are a...
Federal Disability Retirement
What is the FERS Special Retirement Supplement?
Proposed cuts to federal employee benefits and retirement are a common theme of late. One benefit that is in danger of being eliminated is the Special Retirement Supplement (SRS). What is the Special Retirement Supplement (SRS)? If you’re a FERS employee who plans to...
Sometimes the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Gets It Wrong
There are three chances to get an application approved for federal disability retirement. If it is denied at the initial stage at OPM, it moves to the Reconsideration stage at OPM, where you are assigned a different legal administrative assistant than before. Lastly,...
What New Federal Retirees Should Know
Entering retirement can be full of unknowns; how much is your monthly annuity? Are taxes withheld? Will insurance continue? This post looks to answer some of the questions that are common for federal retirees, and more. First Payments For Retirees OPM begins to...
Have a TSP Withdrawal Plan in Place When You’re Ready to Retire
We’re entering the peak season of federal employees filing for retirement. January and February are historically the months where the Office of Personnel Management receives the highest number of retirement claims. Along with filing for retirement, federal employees...
Avoid Over-Payments and Watch Out for Offsets
If you are a federal worker who is eligible for more than one type of disability (i.e. disability retirement, social security disability, workers’ compensation, etc.), pay special attention to benefit interactions and offsets. Sometimes, not knowing these...
Eligibility Requirements for Federal Disability Retirement and Pitfalls
Federal disability retirement has certain requirements you must meet to be eligible. In most cases, that’s simple to do. However, some cases have a bit more gray area. While a couple of the requirements below are cut and dry, others are not. This post will look at...
What are Alternative Ways of Measuring COLAs?
The 2018 Cost of Living Adjustment is set using the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) CPI-W index, however, there are other possibilities for making the adjustment in 2019 and beyond. The BLS may have several ways of measuring COLAs using different measures of...
Do I Need a Lawyer for Federal Disability Retirement?
Question of the Week: Do I Need a Lawyer to File for Federal Disability Retirement? A: This question is a common one. We hear it quite often. And the answer, quite simply, is no. You do not have to hire a lawyer to file for federal disability retirement. However, a...
What is Reassignment and Does it Affect Federal Disability Retirement?
Question of the Week: What is Reassignment and How Can It Affect Federal Disability Retirement? Last week, we looked at accommodation regarding federal disability retirement, and what qualifies as accommodation and what does not. This week we will look at a similar...
What is Accommodation and How Does it Affect Disability Retirement?
Question of the Week: What is Accommodation and How Does It Affect Federal Disability Retirement? A: One of the requirements to qualify for federal disability retirement is your agency must certify it’s unable to accommodate your disabling condition in your present...
What are the Eligibility Requirements of Federal Disability Retirement?
Federal Disability Retirement Federal Disability Retirement is a great benefit for injured and ill federal workers who are having trouble doing their job in at least one area. Maybe that looks like a nurse not being able to stand on his feet for longer than 30 minutes...
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