Court-Ordered Benefits for Former Spouses

When Can a Court Require Money to be Withheld from a CSRS or FERS Benefit?

A court order can apportion or divide a Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) benefit as a result of a divorce, legal separation or annulment of marriage.

The court order must expressly direct the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to pay a portion of the monthly CSRS or FERS benefits. The spouse's share must be stated as a fixed amount, a percentage or a fraction of the annuity, or by a formula whose value is readily apparent from the face of the order and information in our files. The amount cannot exceed the amount payable to the retiree after deductions for taxes and insurance.

Payments to a former spouse from a retiree's annuity end with the retiree's death. For the former spouse to receive payments after the retiree's death, the retiree must elect, or the court order must provide for, a survivor annuity.

A court order may provide for all or part of a refund of employee retirement contributions to be paid to the former spouse.

A court order also may block payment of a refund, but only if the order directs OPM not to pay the refund and the order also grants a survivor annuity or a portion of a retiree annuity to a legally separated or former spouse.

Information about sending a court order to OPM and applying for benefits as a former spouse is provided on page 6 of this pamphlet.

What Happens if Military Service is Used for Civilian Retirement Credit, and There is a Court Order Awarding a Former Spouse a Portion of the Retiring Employee's Military Retired Pay?

Receipt of military retired pay often bars credit for the military service for Civil Service Retirement or Federal Employees Retirement unless the retiring employee elects to waive the military retired pay, and have the military service added to civilian service in computing their civilian annuity.

If the employee's military retired pay is subject to a court order awarding a former spouse a portion of the military retired pay, the retiring employee cannot receive credit for the military service for Civil Service Retirement or Federal Employees Retirement without first consenting for us to continue payment to the former spouse, in the amount the military pay center would pay the former spouse if military retired pay continued.

How Can Survivor Benefits be Provided for a Former Spouse?

A monthly survivor annuity may be payable to a former spouse after the death of the employee or annuitant if provided by court order. In addition, a retiring employee may voluntarily elect a fully or partially reduced annuity to provide a former spouse survivor annuity. However, if the employee has remarried, this election may only be made if the current spouse consents to it.

A court-ordered survivor annuity is not available unless the marriage lasted at least 9 months.

A former spouse survivor annuity ends if the former spouse remarries before becoming age 55.

If death occurs as an employee, a court-ordered survivor benefit is payable to a former spouse if the employee completed at least 18 months of creditable civilian service, and dies while under the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) retirement coverage.

• Under CSRS, a survivor annuity is payable.
  
  
• Under FERS, a lump sum death benefit is payable, and a survivor annuity is also payable if the employee has 10 years of creditable service.

If a separated former employee dies before retirement under CSRS, no survivor annuity can be paid to a former spouse, despite the terms of the court order. In certain limited circumstances, under FERS, a survivor annuity for a former spouse may be payable if a separated former employee dies before retirement.

What is the Effect of Court-Ordered Benefits Awarded to a Former Spouse on Survivor Benefits for a Current Spouse?

The maximum possible combined total of all current and former spouse survivor annuities equals 55 percent of the rate of a self-only annuity under the Civil Service Retirement System. The maximum possible annuity is 50 percent under the Federal Employees' Retirement System. A court order awarding a survivor annuity to a former spouse reduces the maximum that can be paid to the spouse married to the annuitant at the time of death. An insurable interest election can be made at retirement to provide a current spouse with additional survivor benefits if the retiree is in good health.

Restrictions on Modification of Survivor Benefits after Retirement

It is very important that provisions intended to award a survivor annuity both reflect the intent of the parties and conform to law and regulations. While orders can be changed before the employee retires or dies, in general they cannot be modified to affect survivor benefits after the employee retires or dies.

Garnishment of Benefits

Garnishment is a legal process under State law for enforcing existing legal obligations. Benefits under the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees' Retirement System can be garnished only for alimony, child support, or in cases of child abuse. The garnishment must conform to all State law requirements for garnishment actions involving private employers, and is subject to the limitations in Title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, section 581.

Health Benefits Coverage

A former spouse who is awarded a portion of a Civil Service Retirement System or Federal Employees' Retirement System annuity or a survivor annuity by a qualifying court order, even though the benefit is not yet payable, may be eligible to enroll for health benefits coverage under the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program under certain conditions. Note that the former spouse is not eligible to retain coverage under the employee's family enrollment.

The former spouse or his or her attorney should review the FEHB information in the Attorneys Handbook described earlier in this pamphlet, and contact the employee's personnel office concerning information about a former spouse health benefits enrollment.

FEHB coverage may also be temporarily continued under the temporary continuation of coverage authority. For information, you or your representative should read Temporary Continuation of Coverage (TCC) under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, RI 79-27.

Life Insurance

Effective October 3, 1994, Public Law 103-336 allows an employee or retiree who is enrolled in the Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) program, to assign insurance to another person, a firm or a trust (an "assignee"). Assigning benefits transfers ownership of FEGLI coverage to the assignee. The individual who makes the assignment no longer has control over the insurance coverage and can no longer designate beneficiaries. Assignment is irrevocable, and applies to Basic, Option A, and Option B insurance.

A court order may require assignment of FEGLI benefits to a former spouse or children - but the individual, not the employing agency or OPM, must execute the proper form. The form for making an assignment is RI 76-10, "Assignment of Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance." It is available from agency personnel offices.

Effective July 22, 1998, Public Law 105-205 requires that provisions of a court decree of divorce, annulment, or legal separation, or the terms of a court order or court-approved property settlement agreement relating to such a court decree be followed instead of the statutory order of precedence for payment of benefits under FEGLI.

For this statutory provision to apply, a certified copy of the court order must be received in the appropriate office on or after July 22, 1998, and before the death of the insured individual. For active employees, the appropriate office is their employing agency. For annuitants, the appropriate office is OPM. For compensationers, during the first 12 months of nonpay status the appropriate office is their employing agency; after separation or the completion of 12 months in nonpay status, the appropriate office is OPM.

Public Law 105-205 also prohibits an insured individual from changing his/her designation of beneficiary, unless the person(s) named in the court order agrees or unless the court order is subsequently modified.

RI 84-1
Revised February 1999
Previous editions are not usable