The Federal Employees Retirement System annuity supplement (SRS) is an important benefit for FERS participants planning to retire before age 62.

The supplement bridges the time between the onset of retirement and the age you qualify for Social Security retirement. Those who are eligible will not only receive their basic annuity but also an additional payment that represents the amount of Social Security benefit they earned while working as a FERS employee.

Are You Eligible?

To be entitled to immediate and unreduced coverage, you must retire:

• at age 60 with 20 years of service,
• at your minimum retirement age (MRA) with 30 years of service,
• at your MRA, if involuntarily retiring (for example, during a RIF), or
• at your MRA, if retiring under the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority.

The SRS is a fixed amount that’s determined on the day you retire. It ends when you reach age 62 and become eligible for a Social Security benefit, and it is not increased by any cost-of-living adjustments. This is true whether or not you apply for a Social Security benefit at that time.

How Is Your SRS Calculated?

OPM has developed a simple formula you can use to get a good idea of what the dollar amount will be:

• Take your Social Security benefit estimate provided by the Social Security Administration.
• Multiply it by your total years of FERS service.
• Round it to the nearest whole number and divide the product by 40.

Because the SRS benefit is at no cost to the employee, losing it might not be a big blow; however, who wants to pass up the opportunity to get something for nothing?

Keep in mind, approximately half of all FERS employees are entitled to this benefit when they retire. To learn more about your SRS eligibility, plus other information to help you make a decision, download the latest issue of our free magazine.