Disability
When to Consider Applying for Disability Retirement
You should consider applying for disability retirement only after you have
provided your employing agency with complete documentation of your medical condition
and your agency has exhausted all reasonable attempts to retain you in a productive
capacity, through accommodation or reassignment.
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Eligibility Requirements for CSRS Disability
You must meet all of the following conditions to be eligible for disability
retirement:
- You must have completed at least five years of creditable Federal
civilian service.
- You must, while employed in a position subject to CSRS, have become
disabled, because of disease or injury, for useful and efficient service in
your current position. (Useful and efficient service means fully successful
performance of the critical or essential elements of the position-or the ability
to perform at that level-and satisfactory conduct and attendance.)
- The disability must be expected to last at least one year.
- Your agency must certify that it is unable to accommodate your disabling
medical condition in your present position and that it has considered you
for any vacant position in the same agency, at the same grade or pay level,
and within the same commuting area, for which you are qualified for reassignment.
- You, or your guardian or other interested person, must apply before
your separation from service or within one year of your separation. The application
must be received by OPM within one year from the date of your separation.
This time limit can be waived only in instances involving incompetency.
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Applying for Disability Retirement
To apply for CSRS disability retirement-
- Complete SF 2801, Application for Immediate Retirement, and
- SF 3112, Documentation in Support of Disability Retirement.
If you are still employed or have been separated from your employing
agency for 31 days or less--
Your employing agency may help you complete these forms and if you are still
on the agency payroll, will forward the completed forms to OPM. However,
it is your responsibility to obtain all the information necessary for OPM to
make a decision on your claim. This includes providing all of the required
forms and documentation.
If you are covered by the CSRS Offset Retirement System-
You must document that you applied for Social Security disability benefits
after you separted from your agency. OPM cannot pay you a disability retirement
without this information.
If you have been separated from Federal service for more than 31 days—
Your application for disability retirement must be received by OPM within one
year after the date of your separation. If you have been separated from
Federal service for more than 31 days, your former employing agency may no longer
have your personnel records and may not be able to recover them in time to process
your disability retirement application and submit it to OPM within the one-year
time limit. Therefore, you should submit your application directly to
OPM rather than to your agency. Click
here for address.
- Ask your former supervisor and employing agency to complete SF 3112B,
SF 3112D and SF 3112E and give them to you so you can send them to OPM.
- If you think you will not have the completed package in time to meet
the one-year time limit, send OPM the completed SF 2801 and SF 3112A, along
with the name, address and telephone number of the person(s) you have asked
to complete the remaining forms.
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Periodic Medical Exams to Keep Your Disability Benefit
When we approve your application for disability retirement, we may determine
that based on your medical condition you willperiodically have to provide us
with current medical information in order to continue receiving benefits.
Paying for periodic medical exams
You are responsible for paying for any medical exams that are needed. If you
do not fulfill the request for evidence of continuing disability, it is likely
that your benefit payments could be suspended until your continuing eligibility
is established.
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Changing Your Retirement to Disability Retirement
You can submit an application for disability retirement within one year after
your separation from employment provided you did not elect the alternative form
of annuity with a lump sum payment equal to your retirement contributions. Y
ou and your former employing agency must submit evidence that shows you became
disabled while employed in a position subject to FERS coverage, and you and
your agency must provide evidence that you were unable to perform useful and
efficient service because of disease or injury in the position you retired from.
Your former agency will also have to certify that it could not reasonably
accommodate your condition. Moreover, you must not have declined an offer
of reassignment to a vacant position in the commuting area at the same grade
or pay level and tenure.
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Termination of CSRS Disability Benefit
If you are under age 60, your benefit will stop if:
- You are found to be medically recovered from your disabling condition;
- In any calendar year your income from wages and self-employment is
at least 80 percent of the current rate of basic pay from the position you
retired from (also known as restoration to earning capacity); or
- You are reemployed in the Federal service in a position equivalent
to what you held at retirement (also called “administratively recovered”).
Reinstatement of Disability Benefit if it Stops
- If your disability benefit stopped because you were found recovered
either medically or administratively, your benefit can resume only if the
disability recurs and you do not exceed the 80 percent earnings limitation.
- If your disability stopped because you exceeded the earnings limitation,
your benefit can resume effective the first of the year after you no longer
exceed the 80 percent earnings limit.
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Disability Retirement Computation
You are entitled to an “earned” annuity computed under the CSRS
general formula. However, the law guarantees a minimum annuity to employees
who retire because of disability. The guaranteed minimum applies if you are
under age 60 when you retire and your earned annuity based on your actual service
is less than this minimum.
The guaranteed minimum is the lesser of the following:
- 40 percent of your “high-3 average salary”, or
- the regular annuity obtained after increasing your service by the
time between your retirement and your 60th birthday.
Exception:
The guaranteed minimum does not apply if you are receiving military retired
pay and/or compensation from the Veterans Administration in lieu of all or part
of the military retired pay. However, if your earned annuity plus your
military benefit (or compensation) is less than what it would have been under
the guaranteed minimum, the annuity is increased to bring it up to that level.
Reductions in Disability Annuity
Your basic annual disability annuity will be reduced for:
Survivor Benefits
If you are married, your benefit will be reduced for a survivor benefit, unless
your spouse consented to your election of less than a full survivor annuity.
It will also be reduced if a former spouse survivor benefit is required by
a court order.
Unpaid Service
If you have creditable civilian service performed before October 1, 1982,
during which no retirement deductions were withheld from your salary and for
which you have not paid a deposit, your annuity will be reduced. The annual
reduction is 10 percent of the total deposit due. Nondeduction service performed
on or after October 1, 1982, cannot be used to compute your annuity unless
the deposit is made in full.
Refunded Service
If you had creditable civilian service for which you took a refund, but did
not pay a redeposit, the service cannot be used in the computation of your
annuity.
CSRS Offset
If you had service that was subject to withholding for both the Civil Service
Retirement System (CSRS) and Social Security, you are subject to a reduction
in your annuity if the Social Security Administration (SSA) can pay you a
benefit based on the portion of your Federal service which was under both
systems. This is called “CSRS Offset” service.
Cost of Living Adjustments for CSRS Disability Retirees
Your disability annuity will be increased by cost-of-living (COLA) increases
that occur after you retire. Your first COLA increase will be prorated based
on how long you have been retired when that COLA is granted.
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Entitlement to Other Benefits-Effect on CSRS Disability
Benefit:
Social Security Benefits
If you had service that was subject to withholding for both the Civil Service
Retirement System (CSRS) and Social Security, you are subject to a reduction
in your annuity if the Social Security Administration (SSA) can pay you a benefit
based on the portion of your Federal service which was under both systems.
This is called “CSRS Offset” service.
Receipt of disability benefits from the Office of Personnel Management
and total or partial disability benefits from the U.S. Department of Labor,
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) at the same time
Generally, you must decide which benefit is most advantageous for you and elect
to receive that one. If you decide you want to receive Office of Workers'
Compensation Programs (OWCP) benefits, payments from the Office of Personnel
Management will be suspended. However, if your OWCP benefits stop, you
can ask us to pay your CSRS disability benefit. You can receive an OWCP
“Scheduled Award” and the Office of Personnel Management benefits
at the same time.
Contact us to tell
us if you are awarded workers' compensation benefits and see if you need to
make an election between benefits.
Refer to the Office of Workers'
Compensation Programs (OWCP) site for additional information about workers'
compensation benefits.
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