CSRS and FERS Retiree On Line Services

Posted by RP
September 23, 2006

One big issue that always seems to cause delay and dissension in Federal retiree divorce cases is the simple retrieval of information. One an employee is retired, his or her personnel-type issues are handled from the Office Of Personnel Management (OPM, formerly called the Civil Service Commission) in Boyers, Pennsylvania. Their mailing address is:

Office of Personnel Management

Retirement Operations Center

Post Office Box 45

Boyers PA 16017-0045

They maintain a toll-free call center on 1-888-767-6738

and they answer email inquires at: retire@opm.gov

Many of the simpler questions and verifications needed by retirees and their survivors or former spouse can be better handled on line at OPM’s on line services web site. It’s slightly confusing at first, but these tips should help. This is especially useful for former spouses receiving court ordered annuities who may not know that they already have an account with OPM and can make inquiries and certain changes without going through the former spouse or their attorney.

An authorized user can get access to the on line services site by means of the Claim Number and Pin number. When an employee, former spouse, widow etc. enters into the system they receive a letter that states their claim number and assigns a PIN. If you can’t find such a letter, call the folks at the toll free number and they’ll assign one and mail it to you.

Go to: www.opm.gov/retire to start the actual on line process. It’s not readily apparent where you are to log in on this page, so look here, at the red circle:

This will then bring you to the actual login page:

The first thing needed is a “Claim Number”. This is assigned as one of the first steps of the Retirement Operations center when they receive an employee’s retirement application. A retiree (annuitant) normally has a claim number beginning with an “A: and ending with a zero. A typical annuitant employee has a claim number printed on his or her letter in the form CSA 1111111. The “CS” or other letters are a code used internally, the Claim Number starts with the “A”. Notice the letter A plus the printed digits only add up to 8 characters and when you go to the web site, you’ll find that they ask for a 9 digit number. That’s the zero I mentioned earlier. The retiree with the number shown above would type in: A1111110 and then his or her assigned PIN.

Once you are logged in you’ll see a screen like this, the main menu of services you can access on the web:

Don’t go drifting over to the links on the right side of this page, they will take you out of the on line services system and you’ll have to log back in again.

The details about the different types of accounts and prefixes/suffixes are here:

Using Services Online

How do I log in to Services Online?

When logging in to Services Online, you must enter nine characters for your claim number, with both a prefix and suffix. The following guidelines can be used in most cases. If you still cannot log in, please contact us for your nine digit claim number.

  • If you are a retired employee, the claim number begins with an “A” and ends with a zero - “0.” Therefore, you will enter “A” and the seven numbers and the zero suffix - “0”. For example: A11111110.
  • If you receive an apportionment of a retired employee’s annuity, the claim number begins with an “A” and ends with a “3.” Therefore, you will enter “A” and the seven numbers and the suffix “3”. For example: A11111113.
  • If you are a surviving spouse, the claim number begins with an “F” and ends with a “W.” Therefore, you will enter “F” and the seven numbers and the suffix, “W”. For example: F1111111W.
  • If you are a widower, and have been receiving benefits for many years, your claim number may end with a “X.” Therefore, you will enter “F” and the seven numbers and the suffix, “X”. For example: F1111111X.
  • If you are an insurable interest, the claim number begins with an “F” and ends with a “Y.” Therefore, you will enter “F” and the seven numbers and the suffix, “Y”. For example: F1111111Y.
  • If you are an ex-spouse of a deceased employee, the claim number begins with an “F” and ends with a “Z.” Therefore, you will enter “F” and the seven numbers and the suffix, “Z”. For example: F1111111Z.Your PIN is the random number issued to you by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). For additional information, refer to the information about your Personal Identification Number (PIN) .

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