Whether you’re 22 or 52, you should be planning for retirement. Your NYSLRS retirement benefits will be based on your tier, years of service and final average earnings. For most members, age is also an important factor in your NYSLRS benefits and it’s a factor for Social Security and retirement savings strategies as well. So, as you plan for retirement, consider these age milestones.
Age Milestones
Under 50: It’s never too early to start saving for retirement. Even modest savings can add up over time as investment returns grow and interest compounds.
50: The Age 50 and Over Catch-Up provision allows you to save more pre-tax dollars in a retirement account starting in the calendar year in which you turn 50.
55: The earliest age most NYSLRS members can begin collecting a service retirement benefit. (This does not apply to members in special retirement plans.) Your pension may be permanently reduced if you retire before your full retirement age.
59½: The age you can start withdrawing money from a tax-deferred retirement savings plan, such as an IRA, without facing a potential federal tax penalty. (The penalty does not apply to New York State Deferred Compensation Plan savings if you are retired or have left public service.)
62: Full retirement age for your NYSLRS benefit if you are in Tier 2, 3, 4 and 5 or PFRS Tier 6. Earliest age you can begin collecting a Social Security pension, but the benefit would be reduced. For more information about Social Security, read When to Start Receiving Retirement Benefits.
63: Full retirement age for your NYSLRS benefit if you are in ERS Tier 6.
65: Age most people are eligible for Medicare benefits.
66: Full retirement age for Social Security if you were born from 1943 through 1954. Add two months for each year from 1955 through 1959.
67: Full retirement age for Social Security if you were born in 1960 or later.
70: If you do not take your Social Security benefit, your benefit will increase each year until you reach age 70. Delaying Social Security after 70 will not increase your benefit.
73: Generally, if you have tax-deferred retirement savings and are no longer working, you must begin withdrawing some of this money when you reach a certain age. Under a recent change in federal law, you must start taking “minimum required distributions” at age 73. The minimum age had been 72, and the change does not affect those who turned 72 before the end of 2022. This age milestone will increase to 75 in 2033. Required minimum distributions do not apply to your NYSLRS retirement benefits.
One Last Number: Having a rough idea of your life expectancy is essential to retirement planning.
I plan to retire with 6.5 – 8 years of service. I am tier 6.
Will my accumulated sick time count for anything?
You may receive service credit for unused, unpaid sick leave at retirement if your employer has chosen to offer this benefit. Most eligible ERS Tier 6 members can receive credit for up to 100 days (.38 years or approximately 4.5 months).
For more information about the sick leave benefit and preparing for retirement, visit our Preparing and Applying for Retirement webpage.
If I’m in Tier 4, work 30 full years, and am age 57, can I retire and begin collecting my pension without penalties?
Members in regular retirement plans can retire with full benefits at the age specified by their plan—or choose to retire as early as age 55 with a reduction for early retirement. However, benefit reductions do not apply to ERS Tier 2, 3 or 4 members who retire between 55 and 62 with 30 or more years of service credit.
Most members can use Retirement Online to estimate their pensions.
A Retirement Online estimate is based on the most up-to-date information we have on file for you. You can enter different retirement dates to see how those choices would affect your benefit, which could help you determine the right time to retire. When you’re done, you can print your pension estimate or save it for future reference.
would like to finish
How far ahead should I start my retirement process? 1 year? 6 months?
Thank you
We recommend visiting our Preparing and Applying for Retirement page for important topics to consider and actions to take as you prepare for retirement. You’ll also learn about applying for retirement in Retirement Online and what you’ll need to submit, what to expect after applying and things to be aware of during retirement.
For a member in Tier 6, is it possible to a) stop working at age 55 with 28 years of credited service and b) delay collecting a pension until age 63 to avoid the associated early retirement penalties? I understand that final average earnings obviously won’t grow upon leaving employment, but I wasn’t sure if there were any other issues or callouts with that overall approach. Thank you.
Yes, you could choose to leave public service at 55 and delay applying for your pension until 63 to avoid an early retirement reduction. However, leaving the public payroll before you are eligible to retire may affect your eligibility for certain death benefits and health benefits. You may wish to speak to your health benefits administrator to find out how going off payroll would affect any post-retirement health benefits you may be entitled to.
If you are considering leaving public payroll before you retire, we suggest you email our customer service representatives using the secure email form on our website to ask how it would affect your NYSLRS benefits. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
No. Once you retire you are locked in at that reduced benefit for life. Example, for me I’m in tier 4. If I retire at age 55 I’d be losing 27% of my retirement benefit for life. It decreases each year up to 62 for me. Even leaving at 61 with 29 years service credit I would lose 6% for life.
Chris
For Tier 4 members whose full retirement age is 62. Would the pension benefit increase if one was to postpone retiring from 62 to 65?
Your pension benefit depends on your retirement plan and how many years of service you have.
If you are in the “Article 15” retirement plan, you can find general information about Tier 4 benefits in our ERS Tier 3 and 4 Milestones blog post.
For account-specific information, most members can estimate their pension in Retirement Online. Your estimate will be based on the most up-to-date account information we have on file for you, and you can enter different retirement dates to see how they would affect your benefit.
If my wife recently retired and all forms for the Domestic Relations Order were sent in when would I be eligible to receive my share of her retirement. I’m currently still working. Do I have to apply for retirement before I’ll get my share of her retirement?
If NYSLRS receives all required documents before the member’s retirement, payments to an ex-spouse will begin as of the member’s retirement date, unless otherwise specified in the domestic relations order (DRO).
You do not need to apply for retirement to begin receiving your share of your ex-wife’s retirement benefits.
Does it make a difference in the base used to calculate my pension if I get funds for my vacation days or use my vacation days before retirement?. I want to maximize my benefit to the extent possible.
Depending on when you joined the Retirement System, all or part of a lump sum payment for accumulated vacation could be used in calculating your Final Average Earnings. For more information, you can find your retirement plan publication to learn how your retirement benefit will be calculated.
For account-specific information about how this may apply in your specific situation, you can message our customer service representatives using the secure contact form on our website. Filling out the secure form allows us to safely contact you about your personal account information.
How is accrued sick leave calculated toward retirement health insurance?
NYSLRS doesn’t administer health insurance programs for its retirees. For questions about post-retirement coverage, please contact your employer’s human resources (personnel) office.
how do i calculate my lretirement day..//is it calculated from the date of membership? for example my statement says date of membership is may 27 1994…and my reirement is for 30 years…does that mean ! can retire on may 27 2024?
Your retirement date is up to you. Most vested members in regular retirement plans can retire at age 55, but they may face pension reductions if they retire before their full retirement age (62 or 63, depending on their tier). Tier 2, 3 and 4 ERS members can retire at 55 without a pension reduction if they have at least 30 years of service.
Most members can use our online pension calculator to estimate what your benefit would be at different retirement dates and ages. Sign in to your Retirement Online account and click the “Estimate my Pension” button to get started.
For help with Retirement Online or determining your retirement eligibility, please call our customer service representatives at 866-805-0990. Press 2, then follow the prompts. You can also message them using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
How does service credit get calculated after 30 years? Does it stop at 37.5 years for calculating your pension benefit?
Most full-time workers earn a year of service credit for working 260 workdays a year. Your service credit is prorated if you work part time.
Your retirement benefit calculation depends on your tier and retirement plan. For information about your benefit calculation, look up your retirement plan publication.
For account-specific information, you can call our customer service representatives at 866-805-0990, press 2, then follow the prompts. You can also message them using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
Who can Icontact to see if my recallculation for retirement is complete or if it can change. I don’t know if my sick leave ot lump sum vacation was used in the amount I am recieving now.
To find out if your pension is being recalculated, please our call center agents at 866-805-0990, press 2, then follow the prompts. You can also message them using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
ARE OUR PENSIONS INVESTED IN SIGNATURE BANK, NY?
As of 12/31/2022, the New York State Common Retirement Fund held shares valued at approximately $37 million in Signature Bank and Silicon Valley Bank, a number that is relatively small in comparison to the Fund’s overall value of $242.3 billion (as of 12/31/22). The Fund’s investment staff continue to monitor the situation very closely.
You can find information about the New York State Common Retirement Fund, including the Fund’s investment policies, on Office of the Comptroller’s website.
Hi I’m 56 with about 23 years in ny system and planning on moving in the next couple years out of state is there a seminar I can go to or make a appointment to speak to someone to help me with all the paperwork which I prefer to see someone in person
Appointments for pre-retirement consultations are available by phone or in-person at our offices located in Albany, Buffalo, Hauppauge, New York City, Rochester and Syracuse. To schedule one, please call 866-805-0990.
Does military service credit count towards the 30 year milestone. Example if I have 29 years of retirement credit in Tier 4 working for my civilian employer and 2 years of military credit and retire at age 55 would I receive 61.5% of FAS or would there be a penalty?
Military service credit can be used to reach retirement milestones such as vesting and qualifying for a better retirement benefit calculation.
If someone retires with 30.4 years of service credit in tier 4 does it stay at 30.4 years for the pension or does it get rounded down to 30 years or if it was 30.6 years rounded up?
If someone retires with 30.4 years of service credit in tier 4 is the pension calculated using 30.4 years or is it rounded down to 30.0 years?
If you retire having earned 30.4 years of service credit, then 30.4 years will be used in calculating your pension. You can use the pension calculator on our website to project how much your pension would be with 30.4 years of service.
Schedule of retirement payment
If your benefit is paid by direct deposit, you will have access to it on the last business day of each month. If your benefit is paid by check, we will mail it on the second-to-last business day of each month.
For specific pension payment dates, check out our Pension Payment Calendar page.
I would still use this form if I was a member of the NYSLRS at the time of this employment and not looking to purchase it back only looking to get credit for it? Also when does the time I am purchasing for military service show up on my Total Service, is it after all of the arrears are paid?
If you’re looking to receive credit for time when you were a member of NYSLRS, the way you apply may depend on the status of that membership. The NYSLRS social media team cannot access your account information. We recommend emailing our customer service representatives using our secure email form. One of our representatives will review your account and answer your questions about getting credit for a previous membership as well as your questions about purchasing military service credit. Filling out the secure form allows us to safely contact you about your personal account information.
I was reviewing my employment summary and noticed that one of my public employments is not listed. What form do I need to fill out in order for this to be researched and added to my employment summary?
To request credit for previous public employment, please complete and submit a Request to Purchase Service Credit (RS5042). Or, send a letter that includes specific details about the period of employment for which you are seeking credit.
Mail either of these to:
NYSLRS
110 State Street
Albany, NY 12244-0001
For detailed information on receiving credit for all of your public service, please check your plan booklet on our Publications page. You can also read our publication, Service Credit for Tiers 2 through 6 (VO1854).
While you don’t get hit with the federal penalty at age 55, do you have to pay NYS income taxes if you make a withdrawal from Deferred Comp?
If you have questions about the New York State Deferred Compensation Program, you can call 1-800-422-8463 or send an email to participant.service@nysdcp.com.
You used to be able to take up to 20 thousand a year up to age 59 with no ny tax but was changed
Okay……thank you very much.
Where can I see my GROSS pension amount?
If you need the total amount you received for calendar year 2017 in order to prepare your tax return, that information will be on your 1099-R tax form, which we mail out by January 31 each year.
Your Retiree Annual Statement, which will be mailed near the end of February, will also provide you with your calendar year 2017 totals.
In the meantime, you can sign in to your Retirement Online account to view a breakdown of your current monthly payment.