Field Guide
Every field, without the wall of text.
This page is still the full reference guide, but it now defaults to the short version first. Skim the summary, jump to the section you need, and open only the entries you actually care about.
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Read the short summary first.
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Expand only the fields you need.
Act
Return to the calculator with the right number.
Jump by section below or search by field name, benefit, tax rule, or acronym.
Setup
Calculator-level choices that shape the household, tax jurisdiction, and comparison mode.
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Scenario name A label for this scenario used in navigation and exports. It has no effect on any calculation — pick anything that helps you distinguish this scenario from others you create.
What it means
This is the label attached to the scenario in navigation, comparisons, and exports. It never changes the math.
Good default
Use a date, milestone, or plain-language description such as "Retire 2028" or "MRA + 10 with partial survivor" so you can recognize it later.
Why it matters
Clear names make it easier to compare scenarios and keep exported reports straight when you are testing multiple retirement dates.
Filing state The state where you'll file income taxes in retirement. This drives FERSCalc's state tax calculation — the model applies 2025 bracket rules and the state's treatment of FERS pension, TSP distributions, and Social Security for your selected jurisdiction. Local city, county, and municipal income taxes are not modeled. If you plan to relocate after retiring, choose the state you'll live in, not where you work now.
What it means
This drives FERSCalc’s state income-tax rules for pension income, TSP withdrawals, Social Security, and brackets in retirement.
How to choose it
Pick the state you expect to live in after retirement, not necessarily the state where you work today. A move can change after-tax cash flow materially.
What is excluded
Local city, county, and municipal income taxes are intentionally not modeled. Use FERSCalc for state-level rules, then layer local taxes in separately if they apply.
Add spouse / partner
What it unlocks
Turning this on adds Person B’s own timeline, balances, and income sources, and switches the tax model to a joint household view.
Who it is for
Use it whether your spouse or partner is federal or not. Person B can be modeled as a non-federal household member with their own retirement resources.
Why it matters
Survivor analysis, joint tax brackets, household Social Security timing, and combined cash flow all depend on the second person being present.
Compare two retirement dates Creates a parallel Scenario B that mirrors all your inputs but uses a different retirement date. The Results Compare tab then shows a break-even analysis of retiring earlier vs. later. All other inputs — salary, TSP, Social Security — stay identical between the two scenarios.
What it does
Creates a Scenario B that copies all inputs except Person A’s retirement date so you can isolate timing effects cleanly.
Best use case
Run this when you are deciding between two plausible retirement dates, such as MRA versus age 60 or one year of extra service versus leaving sooner.
Why it matters
This is often the fastest way to see the break-even tradeoff between more working income now and a different pension path later.
Scenario B retirement date Person A's retirement date in Scenario B. Everything else is identical to Scenario A. The comparison shows which date results in more cumulative household income over time, and at what point the curves cross — the break-even year.
What it means
This is Person A’s retirement date for the alternate comparison scenario. Every other input remains aligned with Scenario A.
How to use it
Try dates that meaningfully change eligibility, service credit, or High-3 timing rather than dates that are only a few days apart.
Why it matters
The comparison view then shows cumulative income, checkpoint deltas, and break-even timing for the two retirement choices.
Identity & Timeline
Dates and coverage settings that determine eligibility, service credit, and the pension formula.
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Date of birth Used to calculate your Minimum Retirement Age (MRA), your age at retirement, and whether you qualify for the 1.1% pension multiplier (age 62 with 20+ years of service). Required for any projection. Enter it exactly as it appears on your government ID.
What it drives
Birth date determines your Minimum Retirement Age, your age at retirement, and whether the 1.1% multiplier applies at 62 with at least 20 years.
How precise to be
Enter the exact date, not just the year. Several rules change at specific birthdays rather than at the start of a calendar year.
Why it matters
Without it, FERSCalc cannot classify your retirement type or apply age-based pension, supplement, and Social Security timing logic.
Federal service start The first day of your federal civilian service — your official Service Computation Date (SCD). Used with your retirement date to calculate total years of creditable service for the pension formula. Find it on your most recent SF-50 (box 31, Service Comp. Date). This should be your federal civilian SCD, not a military entry date or private-sector start date.
What it means
This is your federal civilian Service Computation Date, which combines with the retirement date to produce creditable service years for the pension.
Where to find it
Use the official SCD from your SF-50, not a military entry date, private-sector date, or the start date at your current agency unless they are the same.
Watch for
If military deposit time is already credited in the SCD, use that adjusted date. If you only plan to buy it back later, the projection can show the upside but may overstate today’s official pension.
Target retirement date The date you plan to separate from federal service. FERSCalc computes eligibility (immediate unreduced, MRA+10, deferred, or not vested) the moment all three timeline fields are filled in. Use this to explore how a few extra months of service changes your pension or eligibility type.
What it drives
This is the main separation date that determines service length, eligibility type, pension start timing, and whether SRS is available.
Best use
Use it to test meaningful thresholds such as reaching 20 years, crossing age 60 or 62, or moving from MRA+10 to an unreduced pension.
Why it matters
Small changes here can create step-change results because the rules are threshold-based, not perfectly smooth.
FERS coverage Determines which FERS pension formula and contribution tier apply to you. Most employees are auto-detected from their service start date. Select 6C manually if you're in law enforcement, firefighting, air traffic control, or another special-category position — this unlocks earlier retirement eligibility and a higher pension multiplier.
What it means
This determines the contribution tier and, for special-category employees, whether earlier retirement eligibility and higher multipliers apply.
Default behavior
Standard FERS tiers are inferred from service start date. You only need to step in manually when you are under 6C or another special category.
Why it matters
Special-category coverage can materially change retirement age, pension formula, and paycheck-side contribution assumptions.
Salary & High-3
Inputs that affect pension size, working-pay comparisons, and LES-based calibration.
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Current annual salary Your current annual base pay. Used only in the paycheck comparison — it shows how your take-home changes at retirement relative to what you earn now. Not used in the pension formula. Leave it blank if you only care about projected retirement income.
What it does
This supports the working-versus-retirement paycheck comparison. It does not feed the pension formula or retirement-side income engine.
When to enter it
Add it when you care about the Paycheck Bridge or the continuing-work baseline. Leave it blank if you only want retirement projections.
What number to use
Use current gross annual pay before deductions. For most GS employees, this is the salary shown on the LES or SF-50.
High-3 average salary The average of your highest 3 consecutive years of basic pay — the most important number in the FERS pension formula. For GS employees, basic pay is your base rate plus locality pay (OPM includes locality-based comparability payments in basic pay for retirement purposes); it excludes bonuses, overtime, and awards. Find it by averaging the total annual pay figures from your last three annual SF-50s (box 20, Annual Salary), or ask your HR office.
What it drives
High-3 is the pension base. The formula is High-3 multiplied by service years and the applicable pension multiplier.
What counts
Basic pay includes locality pay for retirement purposes, but not bonuses, overtime, awards, or premium pay.
Where to find it
Average the annual salary figures from your last three annual SF-50s or use an HR-provided estimate if you have one.
Biweekly net pay Your actual take-home per pay period from your most recent Leave and Earnings Statement (LES) — after all deductions. Used only in results-side working comparisons: it refines the Paycheck Bridge and the continuing-work baseline checkpoints shown against your retirement projection. You can pair this with the optional LES paycheck calibration inputs if you also want the working-side deduction rows to mirror your statement more closely.
What it does
This gives the working-side comparison a real paycheck anchor by using your actual take-home pay from the latest LES.
Where to find it
Use the net pay line from your current LES. It represents after-deduction take-home for one biweekly pay period.
Why it matters
It makes the Paycheck Bridge and working baseline more intuitive because the comparison starts from what actually lands in your account now.
LES paycheck calibration Optional biweekly deduction lines from your current LES, such as FEGLI, FEHB, FERS retirement, TSP savings, and federal or state withholding. These values calibrate the working side of the Paycheck Bridge only. Blank lines still fall back to modeled amounts, and withholding is not the same thing as true annual tax liability in retirement.
What it does
This optional block lets you enter recognizable deduction lines from the LES so the working-side bridge more closely resembles your actual paycheck.
Best use
It is most useful when you want to explain why take-home changes at retirement, especially because several payroll deductions disappear or shrink.
Important limit
These lines calibrate working-pay presentation only. Retirement taxes still come from the annual projection model, not from paycheck withholding history.
TSP
Balances, pre-retirement contributions, drawdown choices, and Roth conversion settings.
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Traditional TSP balance Your current Traditional TSP account balance. This is the pre-tax portion — contributions came out of your paycheck before taxes, and withdrawals will be taxed as ordinary income. FERSCalc projects growth and drawdowns from this starting balance.
What it means
This is your current pre-tax TSP balance. Withdrawals from it are generally taxable as ordinary income in retirement.
What to enter
Use the current Traditional balance shown on the TSP site or your latest statement, including any agency contributions that sit in the Traditional bucket.
Why it matters
Traditional dollars are the main lever for taxable retirement income, so this balance strongly affects future taxes, guardrails, and RMD exposure.
Roth TSP balance Your current Roth TSP balance. Contributions were made after tax, so qualified withdrawals are tax-free. Optional — leave it at zero if you have no Roth balance. If you have both Traditional and Roth, the withdrawal source setting determines which is drawn first.
What it means
This is the after-tax TSP bucket. Qualified withdrawals are tax-free, which makes Roth useful for income flexibility later.
Good default
Leave it at zero if you do not have Roth TSP. Agency matching still belongs in Traditional unless your agency has explicitly elected otherwise.
Why it matters
Having both Traditional and Roth balances unlocks withdrawal-source decisions and makes threshold-aware drawdowns possible.
First Roth contribution year The calendar year you made your first Roth TSP (or Roth IRA) contribution. The IRS 5-year rule requires the account to be open at least 5 years before earnings can be withdrawn tax-free. If blank, FERSCalc assumes your Roth account is already qualified. Only enter this if you started Roth contributions recently.
What it drives
This helps FERSCalc approximate whether the Roth 5-year qualification rule has been satisfied before Roth earnings are withdrawn.
When to use it
Only enter it when Roth contributions started relatively recently. If you leave it blank, FERSCalc assumes the Roth bucket is already qualified.
Why it matters
Without the 5-year rule being met, Roth earnings can be taxable. The model uses a conservative treatment during that early window.
Employee contribution rate Your TSP contribution as a percentage of basic pay. This is the employee deduction that comes out of your paycheck while you're still working. FERSCalc separately adds the standard federal agency automatic/matching contribution to the Traditional TSP balance for federal employees, so paycheck impact and balance growth are modeled distinctly.
What it means
This is the employee percentage deducted from pay while you are still working. It affects both working take-home and pre-retirement balance growth.
Agency match
FERSCalc separately adds the standard federal automatic and matching contribution to the Traditional balance for federal employees, but never subtracts that employer share from your paycheck.
Why it matters
Contributing below 5% leaves match on the table. Contributing above 5% still grows the account, but not through additional agency matching.
Withdrawal strategy How you'll draw down TSP in retirement. Need-based withdraws a fixed monthly dollar amount. The 4% rule and variable percentage draw proportionally from your balance. Floor/ceiling is variable with a minimum and maximum guardrail. Fixed annuity (Person A only) converts your balance to a steady lifetime payout. Each strategy behaves very differently across a 30-year retirement.
What it drives
This determines the annual withdrawal pattern once retirement starts. It is one of the biggest levers for income shape and balance durability.
How to choose
Choose based on whether you want fixed income, variable income, guardrails, or an annuity-style payout. Each option produces a different tradeoff.
Options at a glance
Need-based monthly target
Withdraws a fixed monthly amount, inflation-adjusted over time. Predictable, but the account can deplete if draws outpace returns.
4% rule
Starts at 4% of the year-one balance, then inflation-adjusts the dollar amount each year. Stable income, anchored to the opening balance.
Variable percentage
Withdraws a fixed percent of the current balance each year. Income moves with portfolio performance and remaining balance.
Floor / ceiling
Uses a variable draw with guardrails so income stays within a configured range instead of swinging freely.
Fixed annuity
Converts the balance to a modeled lifetime payout for Person A. The TSP balance goes to zero because it is treated as annuitized.
Annual withdrawal rate Only used with the variable percentage strategy. This is the percent of the current TSP balance withdrawn each year, so a 5% setting withdraws 5% of whatever balance remains at that point in time. Higher values increase near-term income but reduce long-term balance durability.
When it appears
This field is only used for the Variable percentage strategy.
How it works
A 5% setting means 5% of the current remaining balance is withdrawn that year, not 5% of the original retirement balance.
Why it matters
Higher rates lift near-term income but make the balance decline faster when returns are modest or negative.
Withdrawal source Which account to draw from first — Traditional (taxable) or Roth (tax-free). Traditional first maximizes tax-deferred growth in your Roth account. Roth first preserves Traditional for required minimum distributions. Threshold-aware mode uses a year-by-year guardrail heuristic: it draws Traditional up to a federal bracket or IRMAA ceiling, then switches to Roth for the rest.
When it matters
This only matters when you have both Traditional and Roth TSP balances available to draw from.
What it drives
It changes the split between taxable and tax-free withdrawals year by year, which can materially affect taxes, IRMAA, and ending balances.
Options at a glance
Traditional first
Uses taxable dollars first and leaves Roth in place longer for tax-free compounding.
Roth first
Uses tax-free dollars first to preserve Traditional for later, which can help when you want lower taxable income early in retirement.
Threshold-aware
Uses Traditional up to a bracket or IRMAA ceiling, then switches to Roth. This is a year-by-year guardrail heuristic, not a full optimizer.
Guardrail rule Only active with threshold-aware withdrawal source. Sets the ceiling that triggers the switch from Traditional to Roth. Federal bracket ceiling stops Traditional draws at the next bracket boundary. IRMAA ceiling aims to avoid higher Medicare premium tiers. Lower of both uses whichever threshold is hit first each year.
When it matters
This only applies when the withdrawal source is Threshold-aware.
What it drives
It defines which published threshold causes the model to stop using Traditional withdrawals and switch to Roth for the rest of the year.
Options at a glance
Federal bracket ceiling
Stops Traditional draws at the next federal bracket boundary so more of the draw stays within the current marginal rate.
IRMAA ceiling
Uses the next Medicare premium threshold as the ceiling to reduce the chance of triggering a higher IRMAA tier.
Lower of both
Uses whichever ceiling is hit first in a given year for the most conservative threshold-protection approach.
Roth conversion strategy Choose how Traditional-to-Roth TSP in-plan conversions should be modeled after retirement. Strategies can use a fixed amount, fill a target tax bracket, stay under an IRMAA tier, convert a percentage each year, or aim to reach zero Traditional balance by the first RMD year. Converted dollars stay inside TSP, increase taxable income for that year, and are not spendable cash.
What it does
This models in-plan conversions from Traditional TSP to Roth TSP after retirement using one of several strategies: fixed amount, fill a target tax bracket, stay under an IRMAA tier, convert a percentage each year, or target zero by the first RMD year.
Tax treatment
Converted dollars count as taxable income in the conversion year and affect federal tax, state tax, MAGI, and IRMAA logic.
Important limit
The conversion is not spendable cash. FERSCalc treats it as a deliberate tax-planning move, not an extra withdrawal.
Annual conversion amount The dollar amount to convert from Traditional TSP to Roth TSP each year in the selected window. FERSCalc caps the conversion at the remaining Traditional balance after any required minimum distribution for that year.
What it means
This is the yearly dollar amount you want moved from Traditional TSP to Roth TSP during active conversion years.
How it is capped
FERSCalc limits the conversion to what remains in Traditional after any required minimum distribution for that year.
Why it matters
This amount directly controls how much taxable income you intentionally add during the conversion window.
Conversion window The first and last calendar years when the selected in-plan Roth conversion strategy should run. Use this to model a controlled multi-year conversion plan rather than assuming conversions continue forever.
What it means
This defines the first and last calendar years when the selected Roth conversion strategy should run.
Why timing matters
The timing affects not only current-year taxes, but also later IRMAA exposure, RMD pressure, and the mix of taxable versus tax-free dollars later on.
Good use
Use it to model a deliberate multi-year conversion plan such as converting through the early retirement window before larger RMDs begin.
Annual conversion percentage Only used with the Percentage strategy. FERSCalc converts this share of the remaining Traditional balance each active year, subject to required minimum distributions and the configured year window.
When it applies
This is only used with the Percentage strategy.
What it means
Each active year, FERSCalc converts this share of the remaining Traditional balance after any required minimum distribution.
Why it matters
It creates a declining conversion pattern that naturally shrinks as the Traditional balance falls.
Target bracket Only used with Fill Tax Bracket. FERSCalc estimates the federal taxable-income room remaining in the selected marginal bracket for that calendar year, then converts up to that ceiling.
When it applies
This is only used with Fill Tax Bracket.
What it means
FERSCalc estimates the taxable-income room left inside the selected federal bracket for that calendar year and converts up to that ceiling.
Tradeoff
This can reduce future RMD pressure, but it intentionally adds taxable income now.
Target IRMAA tier Only used with Stay Under IRMAA. FERSCalc estimates MAGI for the selected year and converts only up to the chosen Medicare IRMAA tier ceiling.
When it applies
This is only used with Stay Under IRMAA.
What it means
FERSCalc estimates MAGI and converts only up to the selected Medicare IRMAA threshold.
Tradeoff
This is more conservative than a pure tax-bracket strategy because it also protects against higher future Medicare Part B premiums.
Monthly withdrawal target / floor For need-based strategy: the fixed monthly amount to withdraw each year. For floor/ceiling strategy: the monthly minimum — the ceiling defaults to 2x the floor. Entered in today's dollars; FERSCalc inflation-adjusts this amount each projection year.
When it appears
This field is used for the need-based strategy and the floor/ceiling strategy.
How it works
For need-based withdrawals, it is the fixed monthly target. For floor/ceiling, it is the minimum monthly income floor used by the guardrail.
Why it matters
It sets the income expectation the TSP must support and materially changes both withdrawal size and balance durability over time.
FEHB
Health premium inputs that show how retiree coverage affects after-premium cash flow.
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Include FEHB premium Whether to include your Federal Employee Health Benefits premium as a deduction from pension income. FEHB continues into retirement for retirees who were continuously enrolled for at least 5 years before retiring. In retirement, premiums are deducted directly from your monthly pension payment. Enable this to see your true after-FEHB net pension.
What it does
Adds the retiree FEHB premium as an ongoing deduction so results show after-premium pension cash flow instead of gross pension only.
Eligibility reminder
Continuing FEHB into retirement generally requires five years of continuous enrollment before retirement, or coverage for all federal service if shorter.
Why it matters
FEHB is one of the most valuable federal retirement benefits, but it is also one of the clearest reasons gross pension and deposited pension are not the same.
Retirement Elections
One-time retirement choices and service-credit adjustments that can affect survivor income and pension size.
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Survivor benefit election An election you make at retirement that determines what income your surviving spouse receives if you die first. Full (50%) costs 10% of your pension and pays your survivor 50% of your unreduced pension for life. Partial (25%) costs 5% and pays 25%. None gives you the highest pension now but leaves no survivor income. This election is permanent and irrevocable after retirement.
What it drives
This election determines how much pension income a surviving spouse keeps if the retiree dies first and how much the retiree’s own pension is reduced to fund that protection.
Why to slow down
This is usually irrevocable after retirement processing. It also interacts with whether a surviving spouse can remain on FEHB.
Options at a glance
Full survivor benefit (50%)
Reduces the retiree pension by 10% and leaves the spouse with 50% of the unreduced annuity for life.
Partial survivor benefit (25%)
Reduces the retiree pension by 5% and leaves the spouse with 25% of the unreduced annuity.
No survivor benefit
Leaves the retiree pension unreduced but provides no spouse pension after death and generally requires spousal consent.
FERS Supplement (SRS) The Special Retirement Supplement is an additional monthly payment from your retirement date until age 62. It approximates the Social Security benefit you earned during your FERS career. If you retire before 62 with an immediate unreduced pension, you may qualify, though federal law applies an earnings test to post-retirement wages; FERSCalc currently assumes no earned income after retirement, so the modeled SRS is not reduced for bridge-job wages or contracting income. Enable this to include the unreduced SRS in your pre-62 cash flow.
What it means
This is the bridge payment that can help eligible retirees cover the gap between retirement and age 62, when Social Security first becomes available.
Who gets it
It generally applies to immediate unreduced retirements before age 62, not to MRA+10 or deferred cases.
Why it matters
It can materially improve early-retirement cash flow, but it stops at 62 and does not receive COLA adjustments the way the pension does. Federal law also applies an earnings test to post-retirement wages; FERSCalc currently assumes no earned income after retirement, so the modeled SRS is not reduced for bridge-job wages or contracting income.
Sick leave balance Unused sick leave hours at retirement are converted into additional service credit for the pension formula at a rate of 2,087 hours = 1 year. This can meaningfully increase your pension — 500 hours adds about 0.24 years. Enter the balance from your current LES. You don't lose sick leave when you retire; it's converted automatically.
What it does
Unused sick leave converts into additional creditable service for the pension formula rather than being lost at retirement.
Where to find it
Use the sick leave hours shown on your LES. Enter hours, not days.
Why it matters
Large balances can add a meaningful service increment and permanently increase the annual pension, even if the increase looks modest in percentage terms.
Ready to run your scenario?
Open the calculator, enter your inputs, and see how your retirement timing, TSP, and Social Security decisions interact in a single projection.