Expert's View

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If you work for the federal government, are married, and die while still on the payroll, your surviving spouse will be entitled to certain benefits. The same is true if you have dependent children who are unmarried, under age 18 (22 if attending school), or disabled before age 18.

These benefits were increased at the start of this year by an inflation adjustment.

Survivor Annuity: Federal Employees Retirement System
If you had at least 18 months of civilian service under FERS when you passed away, your surviving spouse would receive a lump sum payment (in 2023, $37,055), plus a lump sum equal to the greater of 50 percent of your annual base pay or 50 percent of your high-3, plus any Social Security benefit to which your survivor would be entitled.

If you had 10 or more years of service, your surviving spouse would also receive a survivor annuity equal to 50 percent of what your basic annuity would have been if the standard FERS formula was used, but without any age-based reduction if you were under age 62 when you died.

Survivor Annuity: Civil Service Retirement System
If you were employed under CSRS, your survivor spouse would receive an annuity that is 55 percent of the higher of 1) an annuity based on your high-3 average salary and years of service, including any unused sick leave or 2) a guaranteed minimum, which is the lesser of 40 percent of your high-3 or your regular annuity computed as if you had reached age 60.

The standard CSRS formula is used to compute an annuity based on your high-3 and years of service.

The guaranteed minimum is based on the formula used to compute disability annuities. That benefit will usually exceed the earned benefit after 22 years of service or were age 60 or older when you died. If that’s the case, the survivor annuity will be computed using the standard formula.

Note: In both systems, there is a special benefit for public safety officers that is payable to the survivors of officers who die as the direct and proximate result of a personal, traumatic injury involving external force and sustained in the line of duty. That benefit varies according to the date of death or disability and is offset by any death gratuity payment.

Children’s Benefits
The children’s rate where one parent is still alive is currently $586 per month for each eligible child or $1,756 per month divided by the number of children (if there are four or more). If there is no surviving parent, the rate is $703 per child or $2,108 divided by the number of children (if four or more).

Note: The benefits paid to the children of deceased CSRS Offset or FERS employees or retirees are reduced by the amount of any Social Security benefit they receive based on their parent’s CSRS Offset or FERS service.

January Raise Finalized, Will Range from 4.37 to 5.15 Percent

Upcoming COLA for Retirees to Be Largest in Four Decades

New Year Brings Changes in Key Figures for TSP

Retiring from a Federal Career: Prepare to Wait

The Process of Retiring: Last-Minute Changes

The Process of Retiring: Check Your Agency’s Work

Looking Forward to a Lump-sum Payment for Unused Annual Leave

The Government Pension Offset and Social Security

askFW: Calculating a Federal Annuity – FERS and CSRS

askFW: Federal Annuity Calculation for LEOs and Firefighters

2023 Federal Employees Handbook