Federal Employee Retirement Checklist (FERS + TSP)

2+ Years Out

TSP Contributions — Max Before You Leave

• Employee elective deferral limit (2026): $24,500. If you're not at the max, calculate how many pay periods remain and adjust now.¹
• Catch-up at 50+: $8,000 additional (total $32,500). Mandatory Roth for catch-up if your prior-year FICA wages exceeded $145,000 (SECURE 2.0 § 603, effective 2026).¹
• Super catch-up at ages 60–63: $11,250 additional (total $35,750). If you turn 60, 61, 62, or 63 in 2026, this applies to you — not a typo, not just for 2025.¹
• FERS automatic 1% + matching up to 5%: Confirm you're contributing at least 5% to capture the full agency match. Leaving anything on the table this close to retirement is a permanent loss.
• Review Roth vs. Traditional TSP — the contribution mix you set now affects the tax flexibility of your TSP balance for the first decade of retirement.

Know Your Retirement Eligibility

• Immediate voluntary retirement rules:
  • MRA (Minimum Retirement Age) + 30 years of service
  • Age 60 + 20 years of service
  • Age 62 + 5 years of service
  • Special provisions: LEO/FF/ATC can retire at 50 with 20 years
• Your MRA depends on birth year: 55 (born before 1948) → 56 (born 1953–1964) → 57 (born 1970+). See the full table in our FERS Pension Calculation guide.
• MRA+10: You can retire at MRA with 10–29 years of service, but your annuity is permanently reduced 5% per year under age 62 — unless you defer. Understand this before locking in a date.
• OPM retirement processing backlog: As of April 2026, OPM has ~55,000 pending retirement applications. Budget 4–6 months from separation to receiving your finalized annuity (interim pay starts sooner — see below).²

Pension Estimate — Get a Preliminary Number

• Request a preliminary retirement estimate from your agency HR Benefits office. Most agencies have an online portal (e.g., EBIS, Employee Personal Page, NFC, FPPS).
• Verify your Service Computation Date (SCD) — a single wrong entry in your personnel record can reduce your pension significantly. Address discrepancies now, not during the 90-day crunch.
• Understand the High-3 average salary concept: your annuity uses your highest 3 consecutive years of base pay, not your final salary. If you're on pace for a big raise in the next 2 years, wait. See FERS Pension Calculation for the full formula.
• Check unused sick leave balance: under FERS, sick leave converts to service credit at a rate of 2,087 hours = 1 year. A full year of sick leave adds 1% (or 1.1% if retiring at 62+) to your annuity multiplier permanently.

FEHB Eligibility Check

• To carry FEHB (Federal Employees Health Benefits) into retirement you must be enrolled in FEHB continuously for the 5 years immediately before retirement (or since your first opportunity to enroll).³
• If you're within 5 years and not enrolled, enroll now. The 5-year clock runs to your actual retirement date.
• See FEHB in Retirement for the Medicare Part B coordination decision, which will become relevant at 65.

TSP Fund Allocation for Approaching Retirement

• The standard glide path moves toward more conservative allocations as retirement nears — but the G Fund is not equivalent to cash. It earns the weighted-average yield of long-dated Treasuries without price risk, making it a genuine fixed-income alternative unique to TSP.
• If you plan to leave money in TSP through retirement, the G Fund may play a role that no IRA equivalent can replicate. Read TSP Fund Allocation before auto-defaulting to the L Income fund.

1 Year Out

Get Your Official Pension Estimate

• Request a formal retirement estimate from HR. This should include your FERS basic annuity, FERS supplement eligibility (if retiring before 62), and projected SBP cost options.
• Confirm your deposit/redeposit service: if you have periods of federal service for which FICA taxes were withheld but no FERS deductions, you may need to make a deposit to count that service. The deadline to make deposits is before your retirement is finalized.

Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) — Decide Early, It's Irrevocable

• The SBP election (Full, Partial, or None) is one of the most consequential — and irreversible — decisions at retirement. You make it once. There is no do-over except under specific court order or death of the beneficiary.
• Full election: costs 10% of your annuity; provides your surviving spouse 50% of your annuity for life + continued FEHB eligibility after your death.
• Electing "None": saves 10%, but your spouse loses FEHB access when you die — often the most underappreciated consequence.
• Work through the break-even math before the final paperwork. Our FERS Survivor Annuity guide has a break-even calculator and full cost-structure breakdown.

TSP Stay vs. Rollover — Build Your Strategy

• The TSP vs. IRA rollover decision is almost never all-or-nothing. A partial rollover — keeping G Fund money in TSP while rolling traditional TSP to an IRA for Roth conversion flexibility — often beats either extreme.
• The Rule of 55 gives penalty-free access to TSP if you separate at age 55 or older (50 for LEO/FF/ATC). Rolling out of TSP before 59½ forfeits this. An IRA does not have a Rule of 55.
• Since January 28, 2026, TSP now permits in-plan Roth conversions of traditional TSP balances — a feature that previously required rolling to an IRA. Factor this into your rollover calculus.
• Read our detailed analysis: TSP Stay vs. Rollover: The Complete Decision Guide.

FERS Supplement Planning

• If you're retiring before age 62 and meet the eligibility requirements (MRA+30, or age 60+20, or special provisions), you qualify for the FERS Supplement — a bridge payment that approximates the SS benefit you earned through federal service, paid until age 62.
• The supplement has a 2026 earnings test: if you earn over $24,480 in wages from employment after retirement, your supplement is reduced $1 for every $2 of excess earnings.⁴
• Importantly: TSP withdrawals don't count as earnings under the supplement earnings test. See FERS Supplement guide.

Roth Conversion Window Planning

• The period between retirement and Social Security/RMD onset is often the most favorable window for Roth conversions: income drops, marginal rate may temporarily be 12–22%, and you have time to let converted balances compound tax-free.
• The same window affects IRMAA (Medicare income surcharges starting at 65): high-income years in your early 60s directly raise your Part B/D premiums at 65–66 due to the 2-year lookback. Plan conversions with that in mind.
• See FERS + TSP + Social Security Coordination for the full sequencing analysis.

TSP Beneficiary Designation — File TSP-3

• TSP beneficiary designations are separate from your FERS survivor annuity election and your will. TSP assets pass outside probate per the TSP-3 form on file — not according to your will.
• If you haven't filed a TSP-3 (or haven't updated it after a marriage, divorce, or death), TSP defaults to a statutory order of precedence that may not reflect your wishes.
• Log into My Account at tsp.gov and verify the form is current. Do this now, not during the 90-day crunch.

6 Months Out

Submit Your OPM Retirement Application: 60–90 Days Ahead

• OPM strongly recommends submitting your retirement application at least 60–90 days before your retirement date. Given the current ~55,000-application backlog (April 2026), submitting earlier reduces interim pay exposure time.²
• Use the Online Retirement Application (ORA) at OPM.gov if your HR system supports it — digital applications average 34 days processing vs. 95 days for paper.²
• Once OPM receives and processes your application, interim pay begins — typically 60–80% of your estimated annuity within about 8 days of OPM processing your file. Budget for the gap.²

Choose Your Retirement Date Strategically

• End of the month: FERS annuity starts the first of the following month. Retiring March 31 means your first annuity check covers April. Retiring March 15 means no annuity for the last half of March.
• End of a pay period: Annual leave is paid as a lump sum at separation. Retiring at the end of a pay period maximizes the leave payout (no partial-pay-period haircut) and simplifies payroll processing.
• December 31: Retiring December 31 makes you eligible for the first annual FERS COLA on the following January 1, assuming you're age 62+ or on a disability/survivor annuity. (Under 62 with no special provision: no FERS COLA until age 62, with some exceptions.)
• Consult the official OPM "best dates to retire" guidance, which lists the specific pay period end dates for each year.

FEGLI Life Insurance Decision

• You can carry Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) into retirement if you've been enrolled for the 5 years before retirement (same rule as FEHB).
• Post-retirement FEGLI premiums increase dramatically with age. Review your Basic + Option A/B/C coverage now and decide what to keep vs. drop. This decision is made at retirement; some options cannot be re-enrolled.

Set Up TSP Withdrawal Method

• You don't have to decide how to withdraw from TSP at retirement — you can leave the money in TSP and decide later. But if you want installment payments or a partial rollover to start, plan the mechanics now.
• TSP distribution options as of post-2019 modernization: lump sum (full or partial), installment payments (dollar amount or life expectancy), TSP life annuity (purchased through MetLife, irrevocable), or any combination.⁵
• TSP life annuity is irrevocable — once purchased, no changes, no lump-sum access. Read TSP Withdrawal Options before committing.

At Retirement

Finalize SBP — One More Time

• The SBP election appears on your retirement application. Confirm before you sign. A partial election requires a specific dollar amount or percentage, not a checkbox. Your spouse must consent in writing if you elect reduced or no coverage.

FEHB Confirmation

• Confirm your FEHB plan is marked "continued into retirement" on your retirement paperwork. Your HR office does this; verify before your last day. Lapses in FEHB during transition are common and difficult to reverse.

Final Pay Stub Review

• Your final pay stub should show all leave payouts and verify final retirement deductions. Keep it — OPM may ask for it during processing.

FERS Supplement Start

• The FERS supplement is not automatic — OPM must include it in your annuity calculation. Verify it appears in your retirement application output if you're eligible. See FERS Supplement eligibility rules.

First Year Post-Retirement

Interim Pay → Full Annuity Transition

• Expect 4–6 months on interim pay (60–80% of your estimated annuity) before receiving retroactive payment and shifting to your full finalized annuity amount.²
• Track OPM processing via the ORA portal (digital applicants) or by calling 1-888-767-6738. OPM will send a letter when your case is assigned to a specialist.
• Budget conservatively during the interim pay period. Annuity amounts can change when OPM finalizes the calculation — retroactive payments correct any underpayment, but the timing is unpredictable.

First-Year Federal Tax Planning

• Your FERS annuity is taxable federal income (the employee contribution portion may be partially excluded under the Simplified Method, but contributions were after-tax for most FERS employees).
• Submit a new W-4P (withholding form for pensions) to OPM. The default withholding is often set to Single/0, which may over-withhold or under-withhold depending on your income stack.
• Account for the FERS supplement in your withholding — it's taxable income in the year paid, and it disappears at 62. Your effective tax rate changes when the supplement ends.
• If you're taking TSP distributions in year 1, add them to your withholding calculation or make quarterly estimated payments to avoid underpayment penalties.

FERS Supplement Earnings Test — Watch Carefully

• If you take any employment income after retirement, track your earnings against the 2026 earnings test limit of $24,480.⁴ Part-time consulting, a second job, or contract work counts.
• TSP withdrawals, pension income, and investment income do not count. Only wages from employment.

TSP First Withdrawals

• If you're separated at 55+ (50+ for LEO/FF/ATC) and have kept your balance in TSP, you have penalty-free access via the Rule of 55. This is not available if you rolled to an IRA.
• Roth TSP withdrawals: no RMDs (SECURE 2.0 § 325, effective 2024). Roth TSP is not subject to the lifetime RMD rules that still apply to Roth 401(k)s in some plans. Your Roth TSP balance can compound indefinitely without forced distributions.⁶
• Traditional TSP RMDs begin at age 73 (if born 1951–1959) or 75 (if born 1960+).⁶

Ages 62–65+

At Age 62: FERS Supplement Ends

• The FERS supplement automatically stops when you turn 62, regardless of whether you're taking Social Security. Budget for this income reduction 6–12 months before your 62nd birthday.
• This is often the optimal time to evaluate your Social Security claiming strategy in light of your revised income. See FERS + TSP + Social Security Coordination.

Social Security Claiming Decision

• Most federal employees can claim as early as age 62 (at a permanent reduction) or as late as age 70 (earning 8% per year in delayed credits beyond FRA). Full Retirement Age (FRA) is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or later.
• The break-even for delaying from 62 to 70 is roughly age 82–83 — if you have reason to expect a long life and have sufficient income from pension + TSP withdrawals to bridge, delay is usually mathematically favorable.
• WEP and GPO are repealed as of January 2025 (Social Security Fairness Act). If you previously calculated a WEP reduction on your Social Security estimate, recalculate — you're now entitled to your full SS benefit.⁷

Medicare at 65: Part B Decision

• You must actively enroll in Medicare Part A (free for most) during your Initial Enrollment Period (IEP: 3 months before, month of, and 3 months after your 65th birthday).
• Part B requires a decision: add it alongside FEHB (redundant but comprehensive), or delay it (risky — late enrollment penalty if you're not covered by employer group insurance). As a federal retiree, FEHB qualifies as creditable coverage only while you're enrolled.
• IRMAA (Medicare income surcharge) uses a 2-year lookback. Your 2025 income determines your 2027 Part B premium. High Roth conversion years in your early 60s will show up in your Medicare bill at 65. Plan accordingly.
• 2026 IRMAA thresholds: $109,000 (single) / $218,000 (MFJ) for the first surcharge tier.⁸ See FEHB in Retirement for the full IRMAA tier table and TSP/Roth planning implications.

RMD Planning: Ages 73/75

• Traditional TSP (and rolled-over traditional IRA) balances are subject to Required Minimum Distributions:
  • RMD age 73 if you were born 1951–1959
  • RMD age 75 if you were born 1960 or later (SECURE 2.0 § 107)⁶
• Roth TSP: no RMDs (SECURE 2.0 § 325). Roth IRA: also no RMDs during the owner's lifetime.
• If you're still employed by the federal government at RMD age and not a 5% owner, your still-employed exception applies to that employer's plan only (TSP in this case). Verify with your agency HR.
• RMDs from large TSP balances can stack significantly on top of pension + Social Security, creating tax-bracket surges. Work through the projections 3–5 years before RMD onset — this is where a specialist is most valuable.