United States of America

Railroad Retirement Board

Form G-177 (4-04)

General Conditions Under Which a Person is 

Entitled to a Railroad Retirement Employee Annuity

Age 

Requirement

The age requirement for an age and service annuity depends on your years of creditable

railroad service. You must file an application to receive a railroad retirement annuity. When

all eligibility requirements are met, your age and service annuity can begin as explained in

Chart 1. Chart 2 explains Full Retirement Age.

Full

Retirement

Age

for Annuities

Based on

Less Than

30 years of

Service

The term Full Retirement Age means the age at which an employee with less than 30 years

of railroad service can receive a full annuity (not reduced for early retirement).

If you have less than 30 years of railroad service, this applies to you. Full Retirement Age for

your Tier 1 age reduction is age 65 if you were born before January 2, 1938. The Full

Retirement Age for persons born after January 1, 1938, will gradually increase over a 20-year

period to age 67, as illustrated in the following chart. Full Retirement Age for your Tier 2 age

reduction will remain at age 65 if you had any creditable railroad service before August 12,

1983. Otherwise, the Full Retirement Age for your Tier 2 age reduction will gradually

increase in the same manner as the Full Retirement Age for your Tier 1 age reduction.

CHART 1 - DETERMINING YOUR AGE AND SERVICE ANNUITY BEGINNING DATE

Your Tier 2 will: If you have 

at least:

not have an age reduction.

You can

retire:

360 months of

railroad service,

the first full

month you are

age 60.

Your Tier 1 will have an age reduction if:

Note: Full Retirement Age also affects Tier 1 component work deductions as described in Chart 3,

regardless of your total years of railroad service.

1

you first met the age or service requirements in a 

month after June 1984 and before January 2002; and, 

you have an annuity beginning date before 

January 1, 2002; and, 

you retired before attaining age 62.

all of the following apply:

have an age reduction if

you retire before attaining

age 65.

120 - 359 months

of railroad service,

with service 

before 8/12/1983,

the first full

month you are

age 62.

you retire before attaining your Full Retirement Age.

have an age reduction if

you retire before attaining

your Full Retirement Age.

120 - 359 months

of railroad service,

without service

before 8/12/1983,

the first full

month you are

age 62.

you retire before attaining your Full Retirement Age.

have an age reduction if

you retire before attaining

your Full Retirement Age.

60 - 119 months

of railroad service,

after 1995,

the first full

month you are

age 62.

you retire before attaining your Full Retirement Age.

Note: You must have an SSA insured status (40 quarters

of coverage based on combine railroad and SSA earnings)

to receive a Tier 1 component.

O

O

O

CHART 2 - DETERMINING YOUR FULL RETIREMENT AGE

If you were born: then your Full 

Retirement Age is:

then your Full

Retirement Age is: If you were born:

Before 1-2-1938

1-2-1938 thru 1-1-1939

1-2-1939 thru 1-1-1940

1-2-1940 thru 1-1-1941

1-2-1941 thru 1-1-1942

1-2-1942 thru 1-1-1943

1-2-1943 thru 1-1-1955

65

65 and 2 months

65 and 4 months

65 and 6 months

65 and 8 months

65 and 10 months

66

1-2-1955 thru 1-1-1956

1-2-1956 thru 1-1-1957

1-2-1957 thru 1-1-1958

1-2-1958 thru 1-1-1959

1-2-1959 thru 1-1-1960

1-2-1960 and later

66 and 2 months

66 and 4 months

66 and 6 months

66 and 8 months

66 and 10 months

67
General Conditions Under Which a Person is Entitled to 

a Railroad Retirement Employee Annuity (con’t).

Annuity

Based on

Occupational

Disability

at any age, if you have at least 240 months of creditable railroad service; or,

at age 60, if you have 120-239 months of creditable railroad service. Note: If you

have less than 120 months of creditable railroad service, you cannot receive an

annuity based on occupational disability.

You may qualify for an employee occupational disability annuity if you are permanently

disabled for work in your Regular Railroad Occupation and you have a Current

Connection with the railroad industry. The earliest date the occupational disability can

begin depends on your railroad service. You are eligible:

You must file an application to receive a railroad retirement occupational disability

annuity. Under the law, a disability annuity cannot begin earlier than the first day of the

sixth full month following the month in which disability onset occurs.

Substantial

Gainful

Activity

To qualify for a total and permanent disability annuity, you must stop all Substantial

Gainful Activity. Substantial Gainful Activity is the performance of significant duties,

which are usually done for pay or profit, over a reasonable period of time. Significant

duties are activities that are useful in a job, or operation of a business, and that have

economic value.

Annuity

Based on

Total

Disability

are Permanently Disabled for all possible types of work. (Employees are considered

to be Permanently Disabled if they qualify for a Disability Freeze under SSA rules

and the impairment is expected to last at least 12 months or result in death. (See

Booklet RB-1D, Employee Disability Benefits for an explanation of a Disability Freeze.

The Disability Freeze cannot be deemed.); and,

have stopped any Substantial Gainful Activity; and,

meet the railroad service requirement. You must either:

You must file an application to receive a railroad retirement total and permanent disability

annuity. Under the law, a disability annuity cannot begin earlier than the first day of the

sixth full month following the month in which disability onset occurs.

You may be eligible for a Tier 1 component based on total disability at any age if you:

If you have at least 120 months of creditable railroad service, both your Tier 1 and Tier 2

components can begin on your annuity beginning date. If you have less than 120 months

of creditable railroad service, your Tier 1 can begin on your annuity beginning date, but

your Tier 2 component cannot begin until the first full month you are age 62.

have at least 120 months of creditable railroad service; or,

have at least 60 months of creditable railroad service after 1995.

Regular

Railroad 

Occupation in more months than you worked in any other occupation, in or outside of the railroad

industry, during the last 5 years in which you were employed (the 5 years do not have

to be consecutive); or,

in at least one-half of all the months worked in the last 15 consecutive years.

Your Regular Railroad Occupation is the one in which you worked:

1.

2.

1.

2.

1.

2.

3.

a.

b.

2
3

Stop Railroad

Employment

In order to receive your employee railroad retirement age and service or disability

annuity, you must stop all railroad work for pay (no longer carried on the payroll). For

an age and service annuity, you must also relinquish rights to railroad employment.

Also note that, after the annuity is awarded, payment cannot be made for any month in

which you return to work for a railroad employer.

General Conditions Under Which a Person is Entitled to 

a Railroad Retirement Employee Annuity (con’t).

Deemed

Current

Connection

If you do not have a regular current connection, you may have a Deemed Current

Connection for only a supplemental annuity or for future survivor benefits if you:

Supplemental

Annuity

be at least age 65 with at least 300 months (25 years) of railroad service, or be at

least age 60 with at least 360 months (30 years) of railroad service; and,

have at least 1 month of railroad service before October 1, 1981; and,

have a Current Connection or Deemed Current Connection with the railroad industry

(as explained below); and,

be receiving your employee railroad retirement annuity.

Some retired railroad employees may be eligible to receive a supplemental annuity of

$23 through $43 from the RRB. This is in addition to your regular age and service or

disability annuity.

The amount of your supplemental annuity is reduced if you receive monthly pension

payments, or lump-sum pension payments, from your former railroad employer, which

are based in whole or in part on contributions from that railroad employer. Your own

contributions to your pension account do not cause a reduction.

To be eligible for the supplemental annuity, you must:

1.

2.

3.

4.

Regular

Current 

Connection

you worked for a railroad in at least 12 of the 30 consecutive months immediately

before the month in which your annuity begins; or,

you worked in the railroad industry in at least 12 months in any earlier period of 30

consecutive months and you did not work in any significant nonrailroad 

employment between the end of that 30-month period and the month in which your

annuity begins.

You must have a Current Connection with the railroad industry to qualify for an 

occupational disability annuity, a supplemental annuity or for future survivor benefits.

You have a regular current connection with the railroad industry if you meet either of

the following conditions:

However, work for certain government agencies will not break your current connection.

Also, self-employment or employment after your employee annuity beginning date will

not break your current connection.

1.

2.

have at least 25 years of railroad service; and,

stopped working in the railroad industry involuntarily and without fault for a nonmedical reason on or after October 1, 1975; and,

did not decline an offer to remain in or return to railroad employment in the same

class or craft as your most recent railroad service (regardless of the number of

miles you would have had to move to accept such job).

1.

2.

3.
CHART 3 - DETERMINING THE AMOUNT OF YOUR WORK DEDUCTION

For a year in which You may lose up to $1 in Tier 1 components for every: The reduction:

If you would like more information, please contact the nearest RRB field office. Request Booklet RB-1

Age and Service Employee Annuities or Booklet RB-1D Employee Disability Benefits before you come

in to file for your annuity. These booklets are available at www.rrb.gov.

General Conditions Under Which a Person is Entitled to 

a Railroad Retirement Employee Annuity (con’t).

Tier 1

Deductions 

for

NonRailroad

Earnings

Any earnings can have an effect on disability annuities.

If your annuity is based on age and service and you are receiving social security benefits,

your Tier 1 component is not reduced for your nonrailroad earnings. If you are not

receiving social security benefits, the Annual Earnings Exempt Amount is the amount of

nonrailroad earnings you can have in a year without losing part of your Tier 1 component and/or the Tier 1 component of your spouse. There are separate Annual Earnings

Exempt Amounts for persons at Full Retirement Age and those under Full Retirement

Age.

Use Chart 2, to determine your Full Retirement Age and then refer to Chart 3 below and

Form G-77a, How Work Affects Your Railroad Retirement Benefits.

Tier 2

Deductions

for Last

PreRetirement

NonRailroad

Earnings

Your Last Pre-Retirement Nonrailroad Employer is defined as any nonrailroad individual,

company or institution for whom you are working on the date your employee annuity

begins or for whom you stopped working in order to receive an employee age and service

or disability annuity. (For more information, see Form G-177L General Information

about Continuing in or Returning to Nonrailroad Employment after Retirement under the

Railroad Retirement Act.)

Any earnings can have an effect on disability annuities. For age and service annuities,

any earnings after the date your annuity begins from your Last Pre-Retirement

Nonrailroad Employer, at any age, may cause a work deduction to your supplemental

annuity, your Tier 2 component and the Tier 2 component of your spouse.

The deduction is $1 for every $2 earned (subject to the maximum deduction of 50% of

the employee and spouse Tier 2 components and 50% of any supplemental annuity).

you attain Full

Retirement Age,

is removed effective the

month in which you attain

Full Retirement Age.

applies for the full year.

is removed effective the

month in which you attain

Full Retirement Age.

you are under your Full

Retirement Age for the

entire year,

you work outside the 

U.S. for 45 or more

hours per month,

$3.00 of earnings over the Annual Earnings Exempt

Amount for your age group. However, your earnings are

only counted for months before the month in which you

attain Full Retirement Age.

$2.00 of earnings over the Annual Earnings Exempt

Amount for your age group.

$2.00 of earnings. There is no Annual Earnings Exempt

Amount for work outside the U.S. However, your earnings

are only counted for months before the month in which

you attain Full Retirement Age.

4 Form G-177 (04-04)