United States 

Office of Personnel Management The Federal Government’s Human Resources Agency

Benefits Administration Letter 

 

Number: 04-107 Date: December 22, 2004 

Subject: Required Agency Actions for Retirement Coverage Error Corrections

Introduction

The Federal Erroneous Retirement Coverage Correction Act (FERCCA), provides relief 

for employees with a retirement coverage error that existed for 3 years of service or more 

after December 31, 1986. This Benefits Administration Letter (BAL) reviews the types 

of actions that agencies should now be taking on all retirement coverage errors. This 

BAL also outlines the procedures for handling FERCCA errors that provide an election 

and the time limits for processing error corrections. 

Actions Agencies Should Be Taking 

Agency Personnel/Human Resource offices will soon be correcting the full scope of 

retirement coverage errors. However, at this time, agencies should be taking the 

following actions: 

• Administrative corrections. Administrative corrections are corrections of errors 

that lasted less than 6 months (e.g., tentative placement in FERS until a coverage 

determination can be made) and corrections of errors where there is no error in the 

coverage determination but the person must be moved from one type of coverage 

to another. An example of the latter type is to and from law enforcement 

officer/firefighter coverage within a retirement system (correcting retirement code 

1 to 6, or 6 to 1). 

• Correction of erroneous FERS coverage that lasted for less than 3 years of service 

after December 31, 1986. BAL 02-103 provided detailed instructions for making 

these corrections. 

• Correction of other erroneous retirement coverage that lasted for less than 3 years 

of service after December 31, 1986 If the error is not one where the employee is 

Civil Service Federal Employees’ Federal Employees Federal Employees Long Term 

Retirement Group Life Health Benefits Retirement Care Insurance 

System Insurance Program Program System Program 

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in FERS by mistake and can elect to stay in FERS and lasted for less than 3 years 

of service after December 31, 1986, then the error should be corrected. 

• Errors that do not provide an election. BAL 03-104 provided detailed instructions 

for making these corrections. 

• Corrections for individuals who are currently in the wrong retirement system and 

who have been provided with an election opportunity. A future BAL will provide 

detailed instructions on making these corrections. 

• Eligibility determinations for errors not registered with OPM by December 31, 

2003. Refer to BAL 04-108 for detailed instructions on making eligibility 

determinations. 

Time Limits

• FERCCA eligibility determinations must be made and the employee given written 

notification of the decision within 60 days of discovery of a potential FERCCA 

error. 

• After you complete your review and issue a written decision that an individual is 

eligible under FERCCA, you must notify OPM within 30 days of the date of your 

decision. 

• Corrections of errors which do not provide an election must be completed by the 

agency personnel/human resources office within 30 days after the date of 

notification to the employee of the error, or, within 30 days after receipt of notice 

from OPM to correct the error. Agency payroll offices must complete corrective 

actions within 90 days of receipt of the corrections from the personnel/human 

resources office. 

• Retirement coverage corrections must be completed by the agency 

personnel/human resources office within 30 days after receipt of an employee’s 

FERCCA election, or, within 30 days after receipt of notice from OPM of an 

employee’s FERCCA election. Agency payroll offices must complete corrective 

actions within 90 days of receipt of the corrections from the personnel/human 

resources office. 

Administrative Corrections

Agencies continue to be responsible for processing administrative corrections. 

Administrative corrections are corrections where the employee must be moved from one 

type of coverage to another. Examples of this type are coverage errors that lasted less 

than 6 months (such as a new employee placed in FERS and is later determined should be 

in CSRS or CSRS Offset) or ministerial corrections such as to and from law enforcement 

officer/firefighter coverage within a retirement system (e.g. correcting retirement code 1 

to 6, or 6 to 1). In determining if an error lasted for less than 6 months, the controlling 

factor is the length of time in which the error actually existed. Attachment 1, a chart of 

“Common Retirement Plans and Corresponding Codes”, can be used as a reference 

source to help you identify and understand the retirement codes. 

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Erroneous FERS Coverage That Lasted For Less Than 3 Years Of Service After 

December 31, 1986

FERCCA provides for relief of errors that last for at least 3 years of service after 

December 31, 1986. Agencies are responsible for correcting erroneous FERS coverage 

that lasted for less than 3 years. In determining if an error occurred for less than 3 years, 

the controlling factor is the length of time in which the error actually existed. BAL 02-

103 provides detailed instructions for making these corrections. 

Correction Of Other Erroneous Retirement Coverage That Lasted For Less Than 3 

Years Of Service After December 31, 1986

For other errors that lasted for less than 3 years of service after December 31, 1986, you 

must correct the employee’s coverage prospectively as soon as the error is detected. By 

making the correction prospectively, you will stop the error and prevent it from lasting 

over 3 years. 

Errors That Do Not Provide An Election 

The FERCCA legislation and OPM regulations do not give every individual who had a 

retirement coverage error a choice about which retirement system to be under. There are 

five types of retirement coverage errors that do not provide an election. Agencies must 

correct these types of errors following the guidance outlined in BAL 03-104. Corrections 

of errors which do not provide an election must be completed by the agency 

personnel/human resources office within 30 days after the date of notification to the 

employee of the error, or, within 30 days after receipt of notice from OPM to correct the 

error. Agency payroll offices must complete corrective actions within 90 days of receipt 

of the corrections from the personnel/human resources office. The following chart 

summarizes the types of errors that do not trigger an election: 

The employee is in: And the employee belongs 

in: 

Employee’s coverage must 

be corrected to: 

CSRS CSRS Offset CSRS Offset 

CSRS Offset CSRS CSRS 

Social Security Only CSRS CSRS 

Social Security Only CSRS Offset CSRS Offset 

Social Security Only FERS FERS 

Errors That Provide An Election 

There are seven types of retirement coverage errors that provide an election under 

FERCCA. The following chart summarizes the types of errors that provide an election: 

The employee is in: And the employee belongs 

in: 

Employee can elect 

between: 

CSRS FERS CSRS Offset and FERS 

CSRS Offset FERS CSRS Offset and FERS 

CSRS Social Security Only CSRS Offset and Social 

Security Only 

CSRS Offset Social Security Only CSRS Offset and Social 

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Security Only 

FERS CSRS CSRS and FERS 

FERS CSRS Offset CSRS Offset and FERS 

FERS Social Security Only FERS and Social Security 

Only 

The handling of these errors depends on when the error was registered and when the 

eligibility determination was made. 

Employees who were registered with OPM prior to January 1, 2004 

OPM will continue to review claims and make eligibility determinations for 

employees who were registered with OPM in the FERCCA Database prior to 

January 1, 2004. OPM will also prepare election packages and provide counseling 

for those individuals who have been found eligible under FERCCA. Once an 

employee has made an election, OPM will notify the agency to make the 

corrections. 

Employees who were NOT registered with OPM prior to January 1, 2004 

As of January 1, 2004, agencies are required to review the employee's retirement 

coverage records and issue decisions on eligibility for relief under FERCCA. 

Refer to BAL 04-108 for detailed instructions on making eligibility 

determinations. Once you make an eligibility determination and issue a decision 

to the employee, you must notify OPM within 30 days if you find that the person 

is eligible under FERCCA whether they have an election opportunity or not, i.e., a 

choice of coverage. 

Employees who receive their eligibility determinations prior to August 1, 

2004 

OPM will send election packages and provide counseling for these employees. 

Once an employee has made an election, OPM will notify the agency to make the 

corrections. 

Employees who do NOT receive eligibility determinations prior to August 1, 

2004 

The employing agency will be responsible for preparing and issuing election 

packages, counseling, and making the actual corrections. A future BAL will 

provide guidance on preparing election packages and providing counseling to 

employees. 

Actions to be taken after the employee makes an election 

Once an employee has made an election, the agency will be notified to make the 

corrections. A future BAL will provide detailed instructions on making these 

corrections. Retirement coverage corrections must be completed by the agency 

personnel/human resources office within 30 days after receipt of the employee’s 

FERCCA election, or, within 30 days after receipt of notice from OPM of the 

employee’s FERCCA election. Agency payroll offices must complete corrective 

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actions within 90 days of receipt of the corrections from the personnel/human 

resources office. 

FERCCA Eligibility Decisions

As of January 1, 2004, OPM no longer accepts new registrations for the FERCCA 

database. The online FERCCA database has been closed for the past year. However, we 

continued to accept registrations of newly discovered FERCCA errors from the 

headquarters benefits officers. OPM entered them into the database and reviewed the 

retirement coverage records for eligibility under FERCCA. As of January 1, 2004, 

agencies are required to complete the review and issue decisions on eligibility for relief 

under FERCCA. 

Refer to BAL 04-108 for detailed instructions on making eligibility determinations. 

FERCCA eligibility determinations must be made and the employee notified of the 

decision within 60 days of discovery of a potential FERCCA error. After you complete 

your review and issue a written decision, you must notify OPM within 30 days if you find 

that the person is eligible under FERCCA. 

Retiring Employees

If you discover a FERCCA error for an employee who is retiring, you must make the 

FERCCA eligibility decision and notify the employee of that decision prior to separating 

him or her for retirement. 

If the FERCCA error does not provide an election opportunity or if it is a Deemed FERS 

error less than 3 years, the error must be corrected before separation for retirement and 

the employee must be separated under the correct retirement plan. 

If the FERCCA error provides an election opportunity and the employee retired before 

August 1, 2004, you must notify OPM of the error and separate the employee under the 

present retirement plan. You should also annotate the employee’s retirement records and 

supporting documentation to note their entitlement to FERCCA and relief and attach a 

copy of the eligibility letter. After you notify OPM of the FERCCA error, OPM will 

provide the individual with an election package. 

If the FERCCA error provides an election opportunity and the employee will be retiring 

after August 1, 2004, you are responsible for preparing the election package for the 

employee and you should attempt to complete the election package prior to the 

employee’s separation for retirement. If you need assistance in preparing election 

packages, consult your agency’s headquarters Benefits Officer; if necessary, the Benefits 

Officer will consult with their OPM liaison for additional help. If the employee separates 

prior to the completion of their election, separate the employee under their present 

retirement plan and flag the retirement application to notify OPM that correction actions 

are pending. OPM will maintain the retiree in interim pay until the election process is 

completed at your agency and OPM receives the corrected records. You will need to 

alert the employees that there may be delays in processing the retirement. You should not 

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unduly delay sending the retirement package to OPM while you correct retirement 

records. 

FERCCA Responsibility Chart

The following chart outlines the different responsibilities for taking the necessary actions 

on FERCCA claims. 

Action: OPM: Agency: 

Eligibility 

Determinations 

Employees who were registered 

with OPM prior to January 1, 

2004: Reviews FERCCA 

eligibility on errors and sends the 

review documentation to the 

employing agency to issue a 

decision. 

Separated employees, annuitants 

and survivors of deceased 

employees or annuitants who 

registered with OPM before 

January 1, 2004: Reviews 

FERCCA eligibility on errors 

and sends decision letters to 

claimants. 

Makes eligibility determinations on 

errors and sends decision letters to 

employees, separated employees, 

annuitants and survivor of deceased 

employees/annuitants who were not 

registered with OPM before January 1, 

2004. 

Election 

Packages 

Sends Election Packages to 

employees, separated employees, 

annuitants and survivors of 

deceased employees/annuitants 

who receive an eligibility 

determination letter by August 1, 

2004. 

Sends Election Packages to 

employees, separated employees, 

annuitants and survivors of deceased 

employees/annuitants who receive an 

eligibility determination letter on and 

after August 1, 2004. 

Personnel 

Record 

Corrections 

Corrects all Notification of Personnel 

Actions (SF 50 or equivalent) for all 

employees, separated employees, 

annuitants and deceased 

employee/annuitants who elect (or 

their survivor elects) to change their 

retirement coverage for the period(s) 

covered by the election. 

FICA and Tax 

Record 

Corrections 

Prepares Form W-2C’s (correcting 

FICA earnings) and Form 941c’s 

(correcting taxes) for all employees, 

separated employees, annuitants and 

deceased employee/annuitants who 

elect (or their survivor elects) to 

change their retirement coverage for 

the period(s) covered by the election. 

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Payroll Record 

Corrections 

Corrects Individual Retirement 

Records (IRR’s – SF 2806 or SF 

3100) for all separated 

employees, periods of service 

performed by current employees 

with previous agencies, 

annuitants and deceased 

employee/annuitants whose 

retirement coverage changes for 

the period(s) covered by the 

error. 

Corrects Individual Retirement 

Records (IRR’s – SF 2806 or SF 

3100) for all current employees whose 

retirement coverage changes for the 

period(s) covered by the error. 

Out-of-Pocket Expenses (OOP)

OPM will continue to make eligibility decisions and process claims for OOP expenses. 

You can view the OOP guidelines on-line at http://www.opm.gov/benefits/correction/outof-pocket.asp. OOP claims should be sent to: 

US Office of Personnel Management 

OOP Claims, Room 4H28 

1900 E Street, NW 

Washington DC 20415 

You may also contact Ibsen Morales at 202-606-0644 or Ibsen.Morales@opm.gov for 

information on OOP claims. 

Assistance to Agencies

We recognize that FERCCA and other retirement error corrections are very complicated. 

If you need help determining whether an employee is in the correct retirement system or 

assistance in taking corrective actions, contact your headquarters level benefits officer. A 

listing of all benefits officers is available at www.opm.gov/asd/htm/rc.htm. If you are a 

headquarters level benefits officer and need assistance, contact your liaison in the 

Benefits Officers Training and Development Group. 

Raymond J. Kirk, Manager 

Benefits Officers Training & Development Group 

Human Capital Leadership & Merit Systems Accountability 

Attachments: 

Attachment 1 Common Retirement Plans and Corresponding Codes 

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