The Four Ways to Retire Under FERS
Your FERS annuity is a simple formula — high-3 salary × years of service × multiplier — but which multiplier you get, and whether a penalty applies, depends entirely on which eligibility path you retire under. MRA + 30 (minimum retirement age with 30 years) pays an unreduced annuity at the 1.0% multiplier and is the path most career postal employees target. Age 60 + 20 is also unreduced at 1.0%. Age 62 with 20+ years unlocks the enhanced 1.1% multiplier — a permanent 10% raise on your annuity for waiting. And MRA + 10 lets you leave with as few as ten years, but costs 5% per year you’re under 62. The MRA is 57 for anyone born in 1970 or later.
What the Numbers Look Like
A carrier retiring at MRA with 30 years and a $70,000 high-3 gets 30 × 1.0% × $70,000 = $21,000 a year, or $1,750 a month. The same career taken to 62 with 30 years earns the 1.1% multiplier: $23,100 — $2,100 more per year, forever, for those extra years. Now the cautionary case: leaving at 57 with 20 years under MRA+10 triggers a 25% penalty (5% × five years under 62), cutting a $14,000 annuity to $10,500. The comparison table above runs all of these for your own numbers side by side — that’s usually where the “one more year” conversation gets real.
Getting Your Inputs Right
Your high-3 is the average of your highest-paid 36 consecutive months — usually your last three years, and it includes night differential and Sunday premium in basic-pay crafts where those are part of basic pay, but not overtime. Your years of service can be bigger than you think: unused sick leave converts to service credit at retirement (our sick leave credit guide shows the math), and prior military time can count if you buy it back — see the military buyback guide. The survivor benefit election matters too: a full 50% survivor annuity costs a 10% reduction to yours, the 25% option costs 5%, and declining it entirely requires your spouse’s notarized consent.
Beyond the Annuity
FERS is one leg of a three-legged stool. Retire before 62 on an unreduced annuity and you may also draw the FERS Special Retirement Supplement until Social Security kicks in — estimate it with our Social Security calculator. Your TSP balance is the third leg. For the complete picture, start with our full FERS retirement guide; if you’re facing an early-out offer, read the VERA guide first, and if health forces the decision, the FERS disability retirement guide covers that path. Always verify your service computation date and high-3 with HR before setting a date — this calculator is for planning, not adjudication.