As a NYSLRS retiree, you can work and still receive your pension. However, there may be a limit on how much you can earn each year without affecting your NYSLRS pension.
Working While Receiving a Service Retirement Benefit
Generally, an earnings limit of $35,000 applies to NYSLRS retirees who:
- Are under age 65;
- Receive a service retirement benefit (see disability benefit rules below); and
- Return to work for a public employer (including contract or consultant work, if you joined NYSLRS on or after May 31, 1973).
There is no earnings limit if you are self-employed or if you work for:
- The federal government;
- A state or local government in another state; or
- A private employer.
Also, beginning in the calendar year you turn 65, the earnings limit no longer applies.
Update Regarding the Earnings Limit
The earnings limit for retirees employed by school districts or Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) is suspended through June 30, 2025. (April 2024 legislation extended the date from 2024 to 2025.) This earnings limit suspension does not apply to retirees who work for a college, university or charter school.
For most other retirees under the age of 65, the $35,000 limit is in effect and applies to the entire calendar year in 2025.
NYSLRS retirees can return to work part-time for a public employer. However, a retiree must have had a “bona fide” termination of employment. This means the retiree was removed from their employer’s payroll before the effective date of their retirement, and the member and their employer had no expectation of further work after the retirement date. If these conditions are not met, the retiree’s service retirement can be voided and pension payments received will be recovered by NYSLRS.
Note: Special rules apply to elected officials.
Working While Receiving a Disability Retirement Benefit
Almost all earnings for retirees who are working while receiving a disability retirement benefit are limited whether they work for a public or private employer. The limit is specific to each retiree. To find out your earnings limit, please contact us.
How the Earnings Limit Applies
The limit applies to all earnings for the calendar year, including money earned in the calendar year, but paid in a different calendar year (for example earned in December but paid in January).
The limit does not apply to:
- Payments received after you retire from your employer, such as for vacation or sick time you earned when you were still working; and/or
- A retroactive payment for a new union contract, if the earnings are for employment before you retired.
Reporting Your Earnings
It is your responsibility to notify NYSLRS if you earn more than the limit. If you know you are going to exceed the limit, contact us at least a month before you do.
You can message us using the secure contact form, or you can fax a letter to 518-402-2498. Be sure to include the name of your employer, the approximate date you expect to exceed the limit and a daytime phone number in case we have questions.
If You Exceed the Earnings Limit
If you earn more than the limit, you must:
- Pay back NYSLRS for the pension payments you received after the date you reached the limit. If you continue to work, your pension will be suspended for the remainder of the calendar year and resume the following January.
OR - Rejoin NYSLRS, in which case your pension will be suspended until you retire again at some future date. (You’d need to reapply.)
Earnings Limit Waiver
Under Section 211 of the Retirement and Social Security Law, the earnings limit can be waived if your prospective employer gets approval before hiring you. Approval is not automatic; it is based on the employer’s needs and your qualifications. In most cases, the New York State Department of Civil Service would be the approving agency. A Section 211 waiver covers a fixed period, normally up to two years.
For More Information
Before you decide to return to work, please read our publication What If I Work After Retirement? It includes information such as how earnings limits are calculated for retirees receiving a disability retirement benefit, consequences to consider before returning to NYSLRS membership and more. If you have questions, please contact us.
Are there any plans to extend the suspension of the current earnings limit cap after June 2025?
If there are future developments concerning the earnings limit, we will update this blog post, the NYSLRS website and communicate via the monthly NYSLRS Member E-News.
Looks like Senate proposed changes to 2026 executive budget that will extend to June of 2027 for retirees working in schools and to increase the limit from $35,000 to $65,000. This still needs to make it part of the final budget and be voted on, so just proposals at this time, but there is some hope.
The dems will yank it at the last minute like always
I too heard this about a week ago from “someone in the know”, however, I heard the term “60K”, not “65K” — either way, potentially great news. We should be hearing later this week.
Fingers’ crossed!
Searching the NYS Senate and Assembly websites, I found two parallel bills that look like they are attempting similar things. However, the proposed Assembly Bill has a cap of $100,000 while the Senate Bill has a cap of $50,000. Below are the bill numbers and the summary that can be found on the website:
NYS Assembly Bill A5580–Increases the amount of money a public retirement system retiree may earn in a position of public service to $100,000
NYS Senate Bill S5579- Increases the amount of money a public retirement system retiree may earn in a position of public service to $50,000
When the Retirement system withholds my retirement payments due to the $35,000 cap, am I entitled to service credit for the months I am not receiving payments? In my case that’s 7 months a year. With the current tiers being 5 years vested. I would be able to collect another retirement in 9 years. How can the system and the legislation withhold my money and then not allow me working credit towards a new retirement.
Generally, retirees who exceed the earnings limit have two options:
OR
Rejoining NYSLRS may increase your total service credit. However, if you are in Tier 2 through 6 and you earn less than two years of new service credit after you rejoin, your original pension would be reinstated when you retire the second time. Any new service credit and earnings would not affect your pension.
For more information, read our What If I Work After Retirement? publication and our When Retirees Rejoin NYSLRS blog post.
For questions about your particular situation, please message our customer service representatives using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
When the Retirement system withholds my retirement payments due to the $35,000 cap, am I entitled to service credit for the months I am not receiving payments? In my case that’s 7 months a year. With the current tiers being 5 years vested. I would be able to collect another retirement in 9 years. How can the system and the legislation withhold my money and then not allow me working credit towards a new retirement.
Generally, retirees who exceed the earnings limit have two options:
OR
Rejoining NYSLRS may increase your total service credit. However, if you are in Tier 2 through 6 and you earn less than two years of new service credit after you rejoin, your original pension would be reinstated when you retire the second time. Any new service credit and earnings would not affect your pension.
For more information, read our What If I Work After Retirement? publication and our When Retirees Rejoin NYSLRS blog post.
For questions about your particular situation, please message our customer service representatives using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
I recently retired at 66 and eight months. My understanding is there is no income limitation is that correct?
Generally, there is no restriction on earnings for NYSLRS retirees—even if you return to public employment—beginning in the calendar year you turn 65.
For more information, please read our publication What If I Work After Retirement?
For questions about your specific situation, you can message our customer service representatives using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
The 35k cap does not reflect local economy and is outdated. What happened to raising it to 50k? Frankly why is there a cap in the first place?
What happened to the increase to 50k limit. It is not correct to keep such a low limit in this economy.
Guess I’m retiring again can’t help my town when my pension gets cut out in May . Not worth the grief.
How much money can you make while collecting Loss of performance pension? Who do I contact to find that out.
If you retired under a disability retirement benefit, please message our customer service representatives using our secure contact form. Filling out the secure form allows them to safely contact you about your personal account information.
Can you make contributions to a 457 plan, or any other deferred compensation plan, to stay under the cap?
In 2025 earnings from 1/1/25 until the end of the current school year do not count against the cap for school district employees. Is this correct?
That’s correct. Money earned while the limit is suspended for retirees employed by a school district or a Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) does not count toward the limit.
The $35,000 earnings limit is based on gross earnings, before any deductions for taxes or contributions to retirement savings plans such as a 457(b) plan. So, those contributions would not help you stay under the limit.
You are allowed to contribute to a 403b if the district lets you have the account. They go
By other amount after your contributions.
The $35,000 earnings limit would also be based on gross earnings before any deductions for a 403(b) retirement savings plan.
On hold today 2:05 hours dat after day not 1 customer service rep answers or gets on phone!! Absolutely uncalled for!!
We’re sorry for the trouble. Your message is important to us, and we have sent you a private message in response.
very nice post