Life Events and Your Retirement and Insurance Benefits (for Annuitants)

Information About Students and Other Survivor Annuitants  

A student annuitant is a child of a deceased Federal employee who is between the ages of 18 and 22 and who is a full-time student. The following events terminate students' and children's annuities. If any of the events listed on pages 6 and 7 occurs, someone needs to call us right away. We will explain what should be done. If we pay benefits after one of these events, we will have to collect the overpayment.

1. A student reaches age 22. If the 22nd birthday falls between September 1 and the following June 30, benefits can continue until the end of the month preceding the one in which full-time schooling stops or through June 30, whichever comes first.
   
   
2. A student
   • stops going to school full-time,
   • enters the military service on active duty,
   • enters any of the military service academies, or
   • transfers to a school we do not recognize as an approved educational institution.
3. Any person who is receiving a child's annuity marries.
   
   
4. A disabled child who is receiving a child's annuity after age 18 is able to support himself or significantly improves in terms of the disabling condition.
   
   
5. A child who is receiving an annuity dies.

The following events affect the amount of children's annuities:

1. For FERS only:
   
   
   • Any change in a child's entitlement to Social Security benefits (if there are any children receiving FERS survivor annuity) affects the amount of the FERS benefit.
     
     
2. The death of a widow, widower, or former spouse (regardless of whether the deceased was receiving a survivor annuity) may affect the amount payable to the children.

The following events terminate the annuities of widows, widowers, and former spouses:

1. The survivor annuitant dies.
   
   
2. The survivor annuitant marries before reaching age 55.
   
   
3. A former spouse who is receiving a survivor annuity because of a court order is no longer entitled because the court order requires termination of the annuity.

Other Publications

The booklets listed below offer more detailed information about their respective topics than is possible here. If you wish to request one or more of these booklets, you may call us as described on page 1 or email retire@opm.gov.

RI 38-126
Revised July 1998
Prior editions are not usable.