NYSTRS has provided retirement security to NYS public school educators since 1921. Working in Retirement Your Questions Answered WHEN CAN I WORK AND HAVE UNLIMITED EARNINGS? If you are a NYSTRS service retiree, you can have unlimited earnings in retirement without it impacting your public pension under the following scenarios: STRS • All employment (including public employment) beginning in the calendar year you turn 65. • Private sector employment that does NOT include services to any NYS public employer. (Employment for a business providing services to a NYS NY public employer is considered public employment. These earnings must be reported to NYSTRS and earnings limits may apply.) • Federal employment. • Public employment in another state. • Work as an elected official, inspector of elections, poll or ballot clerk, commissioner of deeds, juror, or notary public – provided you were elected or appointed to an elected position you did not hold prior to retirement. • Consultant work for a NYS public employer only if your NYSTRS date of membership is prior to May 31, 1973 AND the consultant agreement has been reviewed and approved by NYSTRS. WHAT IF I PLAN TO WORK FOR A NYS PUBLIC EMPLOYER? If you plan to work for a NYS public employer while collecting a NYSTRS pension, your earnings are generally limited to $35,000 in 2020 and subsequent years, under Section 212 of the state’s Retirement & Social Security Law. However, there are exceptions. The following summarizes your public employment options. The rules for working in retirement differ based on type of employment, Earning Less Than The Sec. 212 Limit your age and several other This is the most common scenario for NYSTRS retirees. No prior approval is variables. Making sense of it can needed and you can continue to collect your pension as long as your calendar be challenging. year earnings do not exceed $35,000 in 2020 and subsequent years. Please Note: The earnings limit applies even if your public employer is contracting for your services through a private, third-party entity. (See “What if I Plan to Work for a This fact sheet lays out the various Private Company that Provides Consulting Services to a Public Employer?” later employment possibilities in a in this document.) question and answer format. Find the scenario applicable to you for an However, if you are under 65 and work for a NYS public employer, you are required to report your earnings to NYSTRS as soon as you reach the limit within overview of what you need to know. a calendar year — even if you work under a waiver or your public employer contracted with a private, third-party entity to hire you. (See “Do I Have to Report My Earnings to NYSTRS?” for details.) Use the Earnings After Retirement feature in MyNYSTRS to assist you with tracking your earnings throughout the year. If you work for a NYSTRS-participating Education (which oversees City University the last day of your original membership tier. employer, you must provide your NYSTRS of New York), State University of New EmplID to your employer. In addition to York chancellor, SUNY and public If your work for a NYSTRS-participating your own reporting, a NYSTRS-participating community college presidents, the NYS employer continues into a second year, you employer must report your earnings to us on or NYC Civil Service Commission, and must rejoin the System as an active member. a monthly basis. the chief administrator of the unified court system. Please Note: Your employer must Generally, by rejoining the System, you If you are subject to the earnings limit and apply for the waiver. Neither NYSTRS nor can receive an additional retirement benefit exceed it at any time during a calendar any other state retirement system has the after earning two extra years of service year, NYSTRS will suspend your pension authority to grant waivers. credit. (For Tier 3 retirees, five extra years for the remainder of the calendar year of service credit are required.) if you continue working in NYS public Restrictions on working with a waiver: employment. You will also be required to If you rejoin the System and earn five repay NYSTRS your retirement benefit for • Waivers are generally limited to one years or more of additional service credit, each day you exceeded the limit. year and cannot exceed two years. you have the option of having your original retirement benefit recalculated • If you intend to work in a position the NOTEWORTHY: instead of collecting two separate same or similar to the position from benefits. This would require you to repay which you retired, you must wait one • If you intend to return to work the System the benefits you received prior year from your date of retirement immediately after retiring, there must to suspending your pension, plus interest. before beginning employment. be at least one business day between Repayment can be made in a lump sum the date you left payroll as an active or as a permanent reduction in your new • If you return to work for an employer member and the date you returned to retirement benefit. you earned pay from in the two years public employment as a NYSTRS prior to retirement and those earnings retiree. Holidays and weekends do NOT If you qualify for an additional benefit or a were used in the calculation of your count toward this break in service. full recalculation, you will lose any service final average salary (FAS), your credit you may have gained through a • In most cases, if you get a job with calendar year earnings in retirement previous state retirement incentive. an employer that participates in a are limited to the difference between different NYS public retirement your FAS and your calculated If you resume retirement without meeting system, you cannot earn service maximum retirement benefit. If the the service credit requirements necessary credit in the other system while still salary you would have earned had you for an additional benefit or a full receiving your NYSTRS pension. not retired is greater than your FAS, recalculation of your benefit, your original the limit is the difference between that pension will remain unchanged. Earnings Exceeding The Limit salary and your maximum benefit. You also cannot renounce previously WHAT IF I PLAN TO WORK FOR With a Waiver reported earnings to achieve unlimited A PRIVATE COMPANY THAT PROVIDES CONSULTING SER- Under Section 211 of the state’s earnings in retirement. VICES TO A PUBLIC EMPLOYER? Retirement & Social Security Law, you Even though you would be paid by a may exceed the earnings limit if your Without a Waiver third-party firm and would not be a direct public employer obtains a waiver on your If you choose to work in NYS public employee of the public entity, this would behalf from the entity with jurisdiction employment and you want to have still be considered public employment. over the job prior to the start of your unlimited earnings without obtaining a The earnings limit would remain in effect, employment. The employer must waiver, you will need to suspend your if you joined NYSTRS on or after May 31, demonstrate that there is an urgent need NYSTRS retirement benefit once you have 1973. Only those with a membership date for your services or that there are no reached the limit. You can do so by send- prior to May 31, 1973, can exceed the limit available, qualified non-retired persons ing NYSTRS a signed letter requesting a in this situation. to fill the position. benefit suspension. If you return to work Please Note: A consultant working at a for a NYSTRS-participating employer, you school cannot perform a function that Waivers can be granted by the NYS may rejoin the System as an active member otherwise would be performed by a teacher education commissioner, NYC schools in your first year of post-retirement or administrator employed by the district. chancellor, NYC Board of Higher employment. If you retired as a Tier 1-5 member, your new membership date will be 2 (continued) NYSTRS must review and approve all year if you continue working in NYS the salary you would now be receiving consultant agreements prior to public employment. had you continued in service) and your employment. Failure to submit an 2. You will be required to pay back retirement benefit. agreement for approval and/or exceeding NYSTRS your retirement benefit for You must report your gross employment the earnings limit without a waiver could each day you exceeded the limit. jeopardize continued receipt of your pension. earnings to NYSTRS annually. If you earn If you stop working in public service for the more than the limit, your disability benefit DO I HAVE TO REPORT MY remainder of the calendar year, your pension will be reduced to reflect the excess earnings. EARNINGS TO NYSTRS? can be restored. To reactivate your pension, While the calculation of your earnings limit Unless you fall into a category which you will need to provide (in writing to considers income from all forms of allows unlimited earnings (see section of NYSTRS) the date you stopped working employment, it does not include returns on this document titled, “When Can I Work in NYS public employment. investments (stocks, bonds, etc.) or other and Have Unlimited Earnings?”), you disability benefits you are receiving. must report your non-pension earnings to WHAT IF I AM NEARING THE NYSTRS as soon as you reach the limit. EARNINGS LIMIT AND I DON’T Please contact the System prior to returning This is required even if your public WANT MY PENSION SUSPENDED? to gainful employment in the same or employer reports your earnings or you If you anticipate you will exceed the similar position from which you are have a waiver to exceed the earnings limit.