U.S. Office of Personnel Management - Ensuring the Federal Government has an effective civilian workforce

The Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) Program is the Federal Government’s group life insurance program, covering over 4 million Federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members.

Almost everyone needs life insurance; how much is for you to decide. To get help on how much you need, see page 5 of the FEGLI Program Booklet for Federal Employees or the FEGLI Program Booklet for U.S. Postal Service Employees.

FEGLI provides group term life insurance. It consists of Basic life insurance coverage and three types of Optional insurance.

Basic
In most cases, when you were a new employee you were automatically covered by Basic life insurance and your payroll office deducted premiums from your paycheck unless you waived the coverage.

Optional
There are three types of Optional insurance. You must have Basic insurance in order to elect any of the options. Unlike Basic, enrollment in Optional insurance is not automatic - you must take action to elect the options.  If you didn’t elect Optional coverage as a new employee, your opportunities to do so later are limited: during an Open Season, by providing medical information, or by experiencing a life event

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