Social Security Benefits for Federal Workers (En español)

The federal government has special retirement programs for its employees. How these programs affect your Social Security benefit amount depends on when you worked for the federal government.

If you worked for the federal government before January 1, 1984, you did not pay Social Security taxes on your earnings, and your Social Security record will not show those earnings. The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS)—not Social Security—provides retirement benefits to these federal workers.

If you were hired by the federal government on January 1, 1984, or later, you are under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), which replaced CSRS. You pay Social Security taxes on your earnings and may be eligible for Social Security benefits by earning Social Security credits.

If you chose to stay in CSRS after 1983, you are not eligible for Social Security based on your federal earnings. However, you are covered under the Medicare program you paid Medicare taxes on your federal earnings.

Before December 2023, your CSRS pension could have:

  • Reduced your Social Security benefit amount on your own record if you had less than 30 years of substantial earnings Social Security. You were affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP).
  • Reduced or eliminated your benefit as a spouse or surviving spouse due to the Government Pension Offset (GPO).

The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023, signed into law on January 5, 2025, ended WEP and GPO as of January 2024. December 2023 is the last month that WEP and GPO applies.