. 

. 

Do not use this pamphlet, or form SF 3107, FERS 

Application for Immediate Retirement, if you are 

applying for a deferred annuity. A deferred annuity 

begins more than 30 days after the date of final 

separation. If you want to apply for a deferred 

annuity, you should request an RI 92-19, FERS 

Application for Deferred or Postponed Retirement. 

You can get this application form by calling us at 

1-888-767-6738 (TTY: 1-800-878-5707), emailing us 

at retire@opm.gov or by writing to us at: 

U.S. Office of Personnel Management 

Federal Employees Retirement System 

P.O. Box 45


Boyers, PA 16017-0045.


We provide retirement information on the Internet. 

You will find retirement brochures, forms, and other 

information at: 

http://www.opm.gov/retire/

You may also communicate with us using email at: 

retire@opm.gov
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NSN 7540-01-385-7440


3113-103


Table of Contents 

Page 

Introduction 1

Eligibility 2

Continuing Health Benefits and


Life Insurance Coverage


into Retirement 6

Continuing Long Term Care Insurance


Coverage Into Retirement 8

Applying for Benefits 9

Payments 11

Survivor Benefits 13

i 
1 

Introduction

Thank you for your service to our nation as a Federal 

civil servant. As you contemplate your retirement 

options, you should be proud of the noble tradition 

you have upheld, and the important role you will 

continue to play in our Nation’s civil affairs. 

“This pamphlet, along with form SF 3107, FERS 

Application for Immediate Retirement, is for you if you 

are currently a Federal employee covered by the 

Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), and 

you want to apply for retirement with an immediate 

annuity (annuity beginning within 30 days after the 

date of final separation from Federal service). This 

includes individuals who transferred to FERS from the 

Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and who are 

eligible to have part of their annuity computed under 

CSRS rules. 

This pamphlet will give you basic information on 

continuing health benefits and life insurance into 

your retirement, eligibility requirements for an 

immediate annuity, when you can expect to receive 

retirement payments, and information on benefits for 

your survivors. 

We have done our best to make this information 

concise and easy to understand. We are confident 

you will find this guide very helpful.” 
*Minimum Retirement Age. (See page 3). 

2 

Eligibility

Age and Service Requirements

The following chart outlines the requirements for an 

immediate annuity under the Federal Employees 

Retirement System (FERS). 

Type of

Retirement

Minimum

Age

Minimum

Service

Special

Requirements

Optional

62 5 None

60 20 None

MRA* 30 None

MRA* 10 None (Note: Annuity 

is reduced by 5% for 

each year the employee is under age 62.)

Any age 25 You must retire under 

special provisions for 

air traffic controllers, 

law enforcement or 

50 20 firefighter personnel.

Any age 25 The Office of Personnel 

Management must 

have determined that 

your agency is 

undergoing a major

reorganization,

reduction-in-force, or 

transfer of function. 

50 20

Discontinued 

Service

Any age 25 Your separation must 

be involuntary and not 

for misconduct or

delinquency.

50 20

Disability Any age 18 months You must be disabled 

for useful and efficient 

service in both your 

current position and 

any other vacant 

position at the same 

grade or pay level for 

which you are qualified. Other requirements must also be

met.
3 

Minimum Retirement Age (MRA)

The Minimum Retirement Age depends on your year 

of birth. To determine your MRA, refer to the following 

table. 

If your year of birth is... Your MRA is...

Before 1948 55 years

1948 55 years, 2 months

1949 55 years, 4 months

1950 55 years, 6 months

1951 55 years, 8 months

1952 55 years, 10 months

1953 to 1964 56 years

1965 56 years, 2 months

1966 56 years, 4 months

1967 56 years, 6 months

1968 56 years, 8 months

1969 56 years, 10 months

After 1969 57 years

Age Reduction

If you have 10 or more years of service and are 

retiring at the Minimum Retirement Age, your annuity 

will be reduced for each month that you are under 

age 62. The reduction is 5 percent per year (5/12 of a 

percent per month). However, your annuity will not be 

reduced if you completed at least 30 years of service, 

or if you completed at least 20 years of service and 

your annuity begins when you reach age 60. 

You can reduce or eliminate this age reduction by 

postponing the beginning date of your annuity. 
4 

Postponing the Beginning Date of 

Annuity to Reduce or Avoid the Age 

Reduction 

You can reduce or eliminate the age reduction if you 

choose to have your annuity begin at a date later 

than your Minimum Retirement Age (MRA). You can 

choose any beginning date between your MRA and 

2 days before your 62nd birthday. However, you 

cannot begin your annuity while you are reemployed. 

Your agency retirement counselor can provide you 

with the annuity rates with and without the age 

reduction. If you decide to postpone the beginning 

date of your annuity, do not complete form SF 3107, 

FERS Application for Immediate Retirement. Call the 

Office of Personnel Management at 1-888-767-6738 

(TTY: 1-800-878-5707) or email us at retire@opm.gov, 

60 days before the date you want your annuity to 

begin and request an RI 92-19, FERS Application for 

Deferred or Postponed Retirement. If you prefer to 

write, the address is: 

U.S. Office of Personnel Management


Federal Employees Retirement System


P.O. Box 45


Boyers, PA 16017-0045.


If you choose to postpone the 

beginning date of your annuity, you 

should be aware of the following 

Life Insurance

You cannot continue your life insurance coverage 

unless you are receiving an annuity. Therefore, if 

you postpone the beginning date of your annuity, 

your life insurance enrollment will terminate. When 

your annuity begins, the life insurance coverage you 

had when you separated from your employment will 

resume. 
5 

Health Insurance

If you postpone the beginning date of your annuity, 

you will be eligible to temporarily continue your 

health benefits coverage for 18 months from the date 

of separation from your employing agency; however, 

you must contact your agency within 60 days and 

pay the total premium, plus a 2% administrative 

charge. When your annuity payments begin, you 

will again have the opportunity to enroll in a health 

benefits plan under the regular Federal Employees 

Health Benefits Program, and the Office of Personnel 

Management (OPM) will pay the Government share 

of the premium. 

Long Term Care Insurance

If you already have Long Term Care Insurance 

Coverage when you separate for retirement, but 

postpone the commencing date of your annuity, 

your coverage will continue as long as you continue 

to pay premiums. If you are not enrolled in the Long 

Term Care Insurance Program when you separate for 

retirement, you can apply for enrollment anytime after 

your separation, even if you postpone the 

commencing date of your annuity. 

COLA’s

If you delay your annuity beginning date, your 

annuity rate will not include any cost-of-living 

adjustments (COLA’s) that occur before you begin 

to receive the annuity. Once your annuity begins, 

you will be entitled to COLA’s on any portion of your 

annuity which was computed under Civil Service 

Retirement System (CSRS) rules. However, you 

will not receive COLA’s on the Federal Employees 

Retirement System (FERS) part of your benefit until 

you are 62. 

Survivor Benefits

If you defer receipt of your annuity and die before you 

begin to receive it, your spouse can still receive FERS 

survivor benefits. 
6 

Continuing Health Benefits and 

Life Insurance Coverage into 

Retirement 

If you wish to continue your Federal Employees 

Health Benefits (FEHB) and/or Federal Employees 

Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) coverage as a retiree, 

you must meet the following basic requirements. 

You must be retiring on an immediate annuity and 

you must have been enrolled in the program for 

the five years of Federal service immediately 

preceding your retirement, or if less than five years, 

since your earliest opportunity to enroll. FEHB 

coverage as a family member counts toward the 

five-year requirement. Uniform Services Health 

Benefits Program coverage (TRICARE/CHAMPUS) 

also counts provided you are an FEHB enrollee when 

you retire. 

If you are eligible to continue your FEHB coverage, 

your agency will automatically transfer your enrollment to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). 

You do not need to do anything unless you want to 

make some change in your coverage. 

If your annuity begins immediately after your separation from Federal employment, your health benefits 

and life insurance coverage will continue upon your 

retirement, if you meet the eligibility requirements. 

However, if you are postponing the beginning date 

of your annuity to reduce or avoid the age reduction, 

your life insurance enrollment and coverage will be 

suspended when you separate from Federal 

employment. When your annuity actually begins, 

you will be given the opportunity to elect which life 

insurance coverage you want to resume. 

You will be eligible to temporarily continue your 

health benefits coverage for 18 months from the date 

of separation from your employing agency, but you 

must pay both the employee and Government shares 

of the premium, plus a 2% administrative charge. 

When your annuity payments begin, you will have 

the opportunity to enroll in a health benefits plan 

under the regular Federal Employees Health Benefits 

Program and at that point OPM will pay the 

Government share of the premium. 
7 

The pamphlet, RI 76-21, FEGLI Federal Employees 

Group Life Insurance Program, has more information 

about eligibility to continue your FEGLI coverage as 

a retiree and the cost of coverage. If you are eligible 

to continue your FEGLI basic coverage, you must 

complete an SF 2818, Continuation of Life Insurance 

Coverage As an Annuitant or Compensationer. Any 

optional FEGLI coverage you have and are eligible 

to retain as a retiree will automatically be continued 

unless you make some change. Our experience has 

been that many people cancel all or a portion of their 

life insurance coverage at retirement due to its cost. 

Therefore, you should let the Office of Personnel 

Management (OPM) know at retirement if you do 

not want to continue a portion of your life insurance 

coverage. You may also want to file an SF 2823, 

FEGLI Designation of Beneficiary form. (The designation of beneficiary form for your FERS retirement 

contributions and any lump sum of accrued annuity 

is SF 3102.) 

Based on the documentation your employing agency 

is required to submit with your retirement application, 

OPM will determine whether you are eligible to 

continue your health and life insurance coverage 

as a retiree. However, if you have any questions 

about your eligibility, ask your employing office for 

assistance before you retire. 
8 

Continuing Long Term Care 

Insurance Coverage into 

Retirement 

If you are currently enrolled in the Federal Long 

Term Care Insurance Program (FLTCIP), you will 

automatically continue your coverage into retirement, 

as long as you continue to pay applicable premiums. 

There is no “five-year rule” like there is with the health 

(FEHB) and life insurance (FEGLI) programs. If you 

are currently paying FLTCIP premiums by agency 

payroll deduction, you must arrange to pay 

premiums another way, either by deductions from 

your annuity, through automatic bank debit or paying 

the contractor directly. Please call our insurance 

company at 1-800-LTC-FEDS (1-800-582-3337) to 

make these arrangements. If you are not currently 

enrolled in the FLTCIP, you may still be eligible to 

enroll. However, you must demonstrate that you are 

insurable by answering questions about your state of 

health. Call our insurance company at the above 

number for details. 

Your Spouse’s Eligibility to Apply for 

Long Term Care Insurance Coverage 

If you are married, your spouse is eligible to apply for 

coverage in the Federal Long Term Care Insurance 

Program (FLTCIP) during your lifetime. After you die, 

your spouse will be eligible to apply for long term 

care insurance only if you have elected a survivor 

annuity. If your spouse isn’t already enrolled in the 

FLTCIP, you may wish to consider electing a survivor 

annuity to preserve his/her options or suggest that 

your spouse apply for FLTCIP coverage during your 

lifetime. If your spouse is already enrolled in the 

FLTCIP, his/her enrollment will continue after you die 

as long as he/she continues to pay the applicable 

premiums. 
9

Applying for Benefits

Form to Use

Use form SF 3107, FERS Application for Immediate 

Retirement, to apply for immediate retirement. You 

can obtain the form from your employing agency. 

Submitting the Application

Submit the completed application to your employing 

agency. Give your agency at least 60 days notice 

before the date you intend to retire. Your agency 

will then complete the Schedule D, Agency Checklist 

of Immediate Retirement Procedures, and the 

SF 3107-1, Certified Summary of Federal Service, 

which are included in the SF 3107, FERS Application 

for Immediate Retirement. 

Your agency will complete the SF 3107-1, Certified 

Summary of Federal Service, and forward it to you 

for your review and signature. You should review it 

carefully before signing it. Any errors, omissions, 

or discrepancies will delay the processing of your 

application, and may result in incomplete credit for 

service in the initial computation of your annuity. 

If you are applying for disability retirement, ask your 

employing agency for a copy of the forms package 

SF 3112, Documentation in Support of Disability 

Retirement Application. 

Your agency will forward the application to OPM. 

What to do if your Address Changes Before 

Processing is Complete 

If your address changes after your application has 

been forwarded to the Office of Personnel Management, you can either telephone us or write to us to 

report your new address. Please refer to your claim 

number in any correspondence. You can phone us 

at 1-888-767-6738 (TTY: 1-800-878-5707). If you 

prefer to write to us, you should report your new 

address to: 
10 

U.S. Office of Personnel Management


ATTN: Change of Address


P.O. Box 440


Boyers, PA 16017-0440.


In addition, notify your old post office of your forwarding address. 

What Happens After You File Your Retirement 

Application 

Your employing office will close out your records, 

using the Agency Checklist to assure that all 

necessary steps are taken. When this process (which 

includes paying you any unpaid compensation, such 

as for unpaid annual leave) has been completed, the 

agency will forward your application and records to 

the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). You 

should receive a notice from your former employing 

agency when your application and records have 

been forwarded to OPM. In most cases, the agency 

should forward the retirement package to OPM so it 

is received within 30 days after your separation. Until 

OPM has received the application and supporting 

documents, OPM does not know that you have 

retired. 

Note: Applications for disability retirement are 

processed differently. Your agency normally will 

forward your application, evidence supporting your 

claim of disability and preliminary records to OPM for 

a disability determination based on a review of both 

medical and non-medical evidence. 

After it receives your application, OPM will assign 

your claim number, which will begin with the letters 

“CSA.” This number will be very important to you as 

a retiree because you will need to refer to it any time 

you contact OPM in connection with your annuity. 

When we finish processing your application, we will 

send you a booklet explaining your benefits. We will 

also send you a pamphlet called Information for FERS 

Annuitants, RI 90-8, which contains information you 

will need after you retire, including how to contact 

OPM to make various changes (tax withholding, 

address, health benefits, etc.), the effect of other 

benefits (Social Security, Office of Workers’ 

Compensation Program [OWCP]) on your Federal 
11 

Employees Retirement System (FERS) benefit, the 

effect of reemployment on your FERS benefit and 

benefits payable upon your death. 

11

Payments

Beginning Date of Annuity

The beginning date of most annuities is the first day 

of the month after separation. However, disability 

annuities and annuities based on military reserve 

technician provisions begin the day after pay stops 

and all other requirements for title to annuity are met. 

Annuities based on involuntary separations begin on 

the day after separation. 

Payment and Accrual of Annuity

All annuities are payable in monthly installments on 

the first business day of the month following the one 

for which the annuity has accrued. For example, 

payments for the month of June will be paid in your 

check dated July 1. 

How to Have Annuity Payments Sent 

to a Bank or Financial Institution 

Public Law 104-134 requires that most Federal 

payments be paid by Direct Deposit through 

Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) into a savings or 

checking account at a financial institution. However, 

if receiving your payment electronically would cause 

you a financial hardship, or a hardship because 

you have a disability, or because of a geographic, 

language or literacy barrier, you may invoke your 

legal right to a waiver of the Direct Deposit requirement, and continue to receive your payment by 

check. 
12 

With Direct Deposit, you avoid the bother of traveling 

to a bank or other financial institution to cash or 

deposit your check. You may earn a few days extra 

interest each month, and save travel costs and time. 

Both you and the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) are saved the worry that checks will be lost 

in the mail and with Direct Deposit, we can trace 

payments if they are missing. It also assures that 

payments are deposited and available for your use, 

even when you are away from home. 

When you elect Direct Deposit, you will continue to 

receive other information at your mailing address. 

Complete Section H of SF 3107, FERS Application 

for Immediate Retirement, to have your payments 

sent to a financial institution or to request a waiver 

of the Direct Deposit requirement. If you want to 

change to this option or change accounts after 

your payments begin, call us at 1-888-767-6738 

(TTY: 1-800-878-5707). If you prefer, you can send 

form SF 1199A, Direct Deposit Sign-Up Form, to 

OPM. You can obtain the form where you bank. 

Both you and your bank need to complete the form. 

Include your claim number on the form. It’s important 

to leave your old account open until you have verified 

that a payment has been deposited in your new one. 

Federal Income Tax Withholding

If we do not receive a W-4 form from you indicating 

the rate at which (or a specific dollar amount) you 

want federal income tax withheld, tax will be withheld 

from your annuity at the rate for a married person 

with 3 exemptions. If you want to have the tax withheld at the rate currently being withheld from your 

salary, attach a copy of the W-4 form on file with your 

employing agency to your application for retirement. 

If you do not want federal income tax withheld from 

your annuity payments, indicate this in Section H of 

SF 3107, Application for Immediate Retirement. 
13 

Survivor Benefits

Married Applicants

The maximum survivor benefit available is 50% of 

your unreduced annuity. Your annuity is reduced 

by 10% to provide this benefit. If you are married 

when your annuity begins, it will be computed with 

a reduction to provide maximum survivor benefits 

for your spouse upon your death. 

You can elect to provide a partial survivor benefit 

(25% of your unreduced annuity, with a 5% reduction 

in your annuity) or no survivor benefit; however, you 

must get your spouse’s consent to elect either of 

these options. In either of these situations, SF 3107-2, 

Spouse’s Consent to Survivor Election, which is part 

of form SF 3107, FERS Application for Immediate 

Retirement, must be completed by your spouse and 

forwarded to the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) along with your application for retirement. 

If your spouse is covered under your Federal 

Employees Health Benefits plan and you do not 

elect survivor benefits for your spouse, your spouse 

will not be eligible to continue this health benefits 

coverage after your death. He/she will also not be 

eligible to enroll in the Federal Long Term Care 

Insurance Program after your death. 

Waiving the Spousal Consent Requirement

OPM may waive the spousal consent requirement if 

you show that your spouse’s whereabouts cannot 

be determined. A request for waiver on this basis 

must be accompanied by: 

r a judicial determination that your spouse’s

whereabouts cannot be determined; or

r affidavits by you and two other persons, at least 

one of whom is not related to you, attesting to 

the inability to locate the current spouse and 

stating the efforts made to locate the spouse. 

You must also give documentary evidence, such 

as tax returns filed separately, or newspaper 

stories, about the spouse’s disappearance.
14 

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) may 

also waive the spousal consent requirement if you 

present a judicial determination regarding the current 

spouse that would warrant waiver of the consent 

requirement based on exceptional circumstances. 

(Injury or illness of the retiring employee is not justification for waiving the spousal consent requirement.) 

Electing a Survivor Annuity for a Former 

Spouse 

To elect a survivor annuity for a former spouse, you 

must have been married to the person for a total of at 

least 9 months. A former spouse who remarries 

before reaching age 55 is not eligible for a former 

spouse survivor annuity. 

You may elect to provide a survivor annuity for more 

than one former spouse. The total of the survivor 

annuities must equal either 25% or 50% of your 

unreduced annuity. Also, if you are married, you 

must have your spouse’s consent to choose this 

option, because any benefit elected for a former 

spouse limits what can be elected for your current 

spouse. The maximum combined survivor benefits 

that can be elected for your current and former 

spouse(s) is 50% of your benefit. 

Electing a Survivor Annuity for a Current 

Spouse When a Court Order Gives a Survivor 

Annuity to a Former Spouse 

If a court order has given a survivor annuity to a 

former spouse, you still may make your election 

concerning a survivor annuity for your current spouse 

as if there were no court-ordered former spouse 

annuity. By electing survivor benefits for your current 

spouse at retirement, you can protect your spouse’s 

rights in case your former spouse loses entitlement 

in the future (because of remarriage before age 55, 

death, or under the terms of the court order). Another 

option that you should consider is outlined on page 

16 under “Electing an Insurable Interest Annuity for 

a Current Spouse When a Court Order Gives a 

Survivor Annuity to a Former Spouse.” The following 

paragraphs explain in more detail how your election 

at the time of retirement can affect your current 

spouse’s future rights if the court has given a survivor 

annuity to a former spouse. 
15 

If a court order gives a survivor annuity to a former 

spouse, your annuity will be reduced to provide it. 

If you elect a survivor annuity for your current spouse 

(or another former spouse), your annuity will be 

reduced no more than it would be to provide a survivor annuity equal to 50% of your unreduced annuity. 

Your current spouse will be eligible for any portion 

of the benefit not ordered for the former spouse. 

If you die before your current and former spouses, 

the total amount of the survivor annuities paid cannot 

exceed 50% of your annuity and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must honor the terms of the 

court order before it can honor your election. The 

former spouse having the court-ordered survivor 

benefit would receive an annuity according to the 

terms of the court order. If the court order gives the 

entire survivor annuity to the former spouse, your 

widow(er) would receive no survivor annuity until 

the former spouse loses entitlement. Then your 

widow(er) would receive a survivor annuity according 

to your election. If the court order gives less than the 

entire survivor annuity to the former spouse, your 

widow(er) would receive an annuity no greater than 

the difference between the court-ordered survivor 

annuity and 50% of your annuity. However, if the 

former spouse loses entitlement to the survivor 

annuity (through remarriage before age 55, death, or 

under the terms of the court order), your widow(er) 

would then receive the survivor annuity you elected. 

For example, if there is a court-ordered former 

spouse survivor annuity that equals 40% of your 

annuity, you elect a maximum survivor annuity for 

your current spouse, and you die before the former 

spouse’s entitlement to a survivor annuity ends, the 

former spouse would receive a survivor annuity equal 

to 40% of your annuity and your widow(er) would 

receive a survivor annuity equal to 10% of your 

annuity. However, if the former spouse later loses 

entitlement to the survivor annuity, your widow(er) 

would then receive a survivor annuity equal to 50% 

of your annuity. 
16 

Electing an Insurable Interest Annuity for a 

Current Spouse When a Court Order Gives a 

Survivor Annuity to a Former Spouse 

If a former spouse’s court-ordered survivor annuity 

will prevent your current spouse from receiving a 

survivor annuity that is sufficient to meet his or her 

anticipated needs, you may want to elect an 

insurable interest annuity for your spouse. You must 

provide documentation that you are in good health in 

order to choose this benefit. The amount of the 

benefit and the amount of the reduction in your 

annuity to provide it are explained below in “Electing 

an Insurable Interest Survivor Benefit for an Individual 

Other Than Your Spouse.” 

If you elect an insurable interest survivor annuity for 

your current spouse, your current spouse must sign 

form SF 3107-2, Spouse’s Consent to Survivor Election, which is part of SF 3107, FERS Application for 

Immediate Retirement, consenting to receive the 

insurable interest annuity instead of a regular survivor 

annuity. (Choose item b. in Part 1 of the SF 3107-2). 

If you elect an insurable interest survivor annuity for 

your current spouse and your former spouse loses 

entitlement before you die, you may request that the 

reduction in your annuity to provide the insurable 

interest annuity be converted to the regular survivor 

annuity reduction. Your current spouse would then 

be entitled to the regular survivor annuity. If your 

former spouse loses entitlement after you die, your 

widow(er) can substitute the regular survivor annuity 

for the insurable interest survivor annuity. 

If for any reason the Office of Personnel Management 

(OPM) cannot allow your insurable interest election 

for your current spouse, your current spouse will be 

considered elected for the maximum regular survivor 

annuity. 

Electing an Insurable Interest Survivor Benefit 

for an Individual Other than Your Spouse 

You can elect to provide a survivor benefit for an 

individual who may reasonably expect to derive 

financial benefit from your continued life (such as a 

close relative). You must provide documentation that 

you are in good health in order to choose this type of 

annuity. 
17 

If you choose this type of annuity, the amount of the 

reduction in your annuity will depend upon the 

difference between your age and the age of the 

person named as the survivor annuitant, as shown 

in the table below. The survivor’s rate will be 55% of 

your reduced annuity. 

Age of the Person Named in Relation to 

that of Retiring Employee

Reduction in 

Annuity of 

Retiring 

Employee

Older, same age, or less than 5 years

younger 

10%

5 but less than 10 years younger 15%

10 but less than 15 years younger 20% 

15 but less than 20 years younger 25%

20 but less than 25 years younger 30%

25 but less than 30 years younger 35%

30 or more years younger 40%

You can elect this insurable interest survivor annuity 

in addition to a regular survivor annuity for a current 

or former spouse. 

Termination of Survivor Elections

Survivor elections terminate upon the death of the 

person elected, divorce of the annuitant from the 

elected spouse, remarriage of a former spouse 

before age 55 [unless the parties were married for 

30 years or more], or subject to the terms of a court 

order acceptable for processing. You must notify us 

when one of these events occurs. Please note that, 

in accordance with the law, both a survivor annuity 

election made at retirement and a pre-divorce 

survivor annuity election terminate upon death or 

divorce and the annuitant must make a new 

election (reelection) within 2 years after the terminating event to provide a survivor annuity for a spouse 

acquired after retirement or for a former spouse. 

Continuing a survivor reduction, by itself, is not 

effective to reelect a survivor annuity for a spouse 

married after retirement or for a former spouse. 
18 

Insurable Interest

The reduction in your annuity to provide an insurable 

interest annuity ends if the person you name to 

receive the insurable interest annuity dies or if the 

person you name is your current spouse and you 

change your election because a former spouse has 

lost entitlement to a survivor annuity. The reduction 

also ends if, after you retire, you marry the insurable 

interest beneficiary and elect to provide a spousal 

survivor annuity for that person. If you marry 

someone other than the insurable interest beneficiary 

after you retire and elect to provide a survivor annuity 

for your spouse, you may elect to cancel the 

insurable interest reduction at that time. 

Changing the Survivor Election After 

Retirement 

If it is within 30 days of your first regular 

annuity payment 

You may change your election if, not later than 30 

days after the date of your first regular monthly 

payment, you file a new election in writing. You 

should write to: 

U.S. Office of Personnel Management


Federal Employees Retirement System


P.O. Box 45


Boyers, PA 16017-0045.


Your first regular monthly payment is the first annuity 

payment made on a recurring basis (other than an 

estimated payment or an adjustment payment) after 

the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has 

computed the regular rate of annuity payable under 

FERS. 

When the 30-day period following the date of your 

first regular monthly payment has passed, you 

cannot change your election, except under the 

circumstances explained in the following paragraphs. 
19 

If it is more than 30 days from the date of your 

first regular monthly payment, but less than 

18-months from the beginning date of your 

annuity 

If you are married at retirement, you may change 

your decision not to provide a survivor annuity, or you 

may increase the survivor annuity amount. You must 

request the change in writing no later than 18 months 

after the beginning date of your annuity. 

In addition, you must pay a deposit representing the 

difference between the reduction for the new survivor 

election and the original survivor election, plus a percentage of your annual annuity. This percentage is 

24.5% of your annual annuity (at retirement) if you are 

changing from no survivor benefit to a full survivor 

benefit, and 12.25% if you are changing from no 

survivor benefit to a partial benefit or from a partial 

benefit to a full benefit. Interest on the deposit must 

also be paid. 

Electing Survivor Benefits for a Spouse 

Acquired After Retirement 

If you get married after retirement, you can elect a 

reduced annuity to provide a survivor annuity for 

your spouse, if you contact the Office of Personnel 

Management (OPM) to request the benefit within two 

years of the date of the marriage. You may elect 

either a full survivor annuity (50% of your unreduced 

annuity) or a partial survivor annuity (25% of your 

unreduced annuity). If you remarry the same person 

you were married to at retirement and that person 

consented to either no survivor annuity or a partial 

survivor annuity, you cannot elect a survivor annuity 

greater than the amount provided in your original 

election. 

There will be two reductions in your annuity if you 

elect to provide the survivor benefit. One will be 

the reduction to provide the survivor benefit. The 

amount of the reduction depends on whether you 

have elected to provide a full survivor annuity (10% 

reduction) or a partial survivor annuity (5% reduction). 

The reduction to provide the survivor benefit will be 

eliminated if your marriage ends. 
20

The other reduction in your annuity is a permanent 

actuarial reduction to pay the survivor benefit deposit. 

The deposit equals the difference between the new 

annuity rate and the annuity paid to you for each 

month since retirement, plus 6% interest. The reduction is determined by dividing the amount of the 

deposit by an actuarial factor for your age on the date 

your annuity is reduced to provide the survivor benefit. The actuarial reduction will not be eliminated from 

your annuity if your marriage ends. 
SF 3113 

Previous edition is not usable 

United States Office 

of 

Personnel Management 

1900 E Street, NW 

Washington, DC 20415 

www.opm.gov/Forms