Filing a Claim for Fers Disability Retirement Benefits

A FERS disability retirement (FDR) claim is one of the most valuable benefits that federal employment can provide. If you are successful on an FDR claim, you may be entitled to receive up to 60% of your “high-3” salary in your first year of eligibility, and 40% of your high-three in each subsequent year until age 62. Your high-3 salary is the average of the salaries in your three highest years of earnings. In addition, upon prevailing on an FDR claim, you will also be entitled to continuing medical insurance and life insurance coverage as if you were an active employee.

If you are a federal employee and you have a medical condition that is impacting your ability to work, you may want to consider applying for FDR benefits. Here are some important factors that you should think about before making your application for benefits.

Are You Eligible to File an Application?

Before applying for a FERS disability retirement benefits claim, you should see if you have enough federal service to be eligible to make an application. You need at least 18 months of creditable civilian service under the Federal Employee Retirement System in order to apply for FDR benefits. In addition, if you have been separated from federal service for more than 12 months, you are generally unable to make an application for FDR benefits.

Do You Have a Performance Deficiency?

To have a viable FDR claim, you typically must demonstrate that your medical condition has caused a performance deficiency that precludes you from performing the essential functions of your federal job. Such a performance deficiency can be in the form of documented poor performance or excessive absences, which your supervisor will have to attest to when filling out a portion of your application. Alternatively, we can work with your treating medical provider to help articulate a nexus between your medical condition and your performance issues in support of your application.

Conversely, no matter what struggles you may be feeling on the job, if you are actively working it is very difficult to show that you are medically unable to perform the essential functions of your federal position. Typically, claimants with viable FDR claims have already stopped working and are taking paid leave or FMLA while they wait for their applications to be processed.

Have You Been Granted a Reasonable Accommodation from Your Agency?

If you have been granted a reasonable accommodation from your agency, you generally will have to continue to attempt to work for your agency with those accommodations. If you are still deficient in your performance, only then can you proceed with making an FDR application.

Is Your Doctor On Board?

The most important evidence that can support an FDR claim is a medical opinion from your treating medical provider corroborating your claim that you are medically unable to perform your federal job and asserting that you will be precluded from performing your job for at least one full year. If you have not talked to your doctor about whether they would support your FDR application, it is imperative that you figure that out before submitting your application.

Do Not Resign!

Generally, with few exceptions, it is in your best interest to not resign from your federal position. Resignation from a federal job allows OPM to draw a negative inference that your inability to work was not caused by your medical condition. If you are permitted to stay on paid or unpaid leave while your disability retirement application is pending, it is highly encouraged that you do so. Otherwise, it is typically in your best interest to convince the employing agency to remove you due to your medical inability to perform the duties of your federal position. Navigating the back and forth with your Agency can be a stressful process. This is one reason why hiring an experienced lawyer on an FDR claim is so important.

As you can see, there are many things to consider before filing a claim for FDR benefits. If you are interested in learning more about your eligibility for FDR benefits, please give my office a call today at 703-558-9311 for a free consultation or fill out our online contact form by clicking here and we will contact you.