CSRS Retirement Checklist 2026: Every Step Before You Submit the SF 2801

A CSRS retirement that stalls at OPM almost always traces back to something that should have been resolved months before the SF 2801 was submitted — an unresolved deposit, a missing spousal consent form, a service period that HR can't verify because the paper records were in a different agency's archive. The application itself isn't complicated. The preparation is where legacy employees either save months of processing time or create delays they can't fix after separation.

Here's the checklist, organized by timeline.

12 to 24 Months Before Retirement

Request a service history audit. Contact your agency's HR benefits office and ask for a complete review of your Electronic Official Personnel File (eOPF). You're looking for Form SF 2801-1 (Certified Summary of Federal Service) — the document that lists every period of creditable service, including temporary appointments, military time, and any breaks.

Review the SF 2801-1 line by line. Common problems at this stage:

• Temporary or seasonal service from the 1970s or 1980s that was never recorded
• Military service that shows in your file but lacks a corresponding deposit record
• A break in service that wasn't properly documented (this can affect your CSRS vs. CSRS Offset status)
• Periods of part-time service where the prorated schedule wasn't correctly recorded

Resolve deposits and redeposits. If the audit reveals non-deduction service or a prior refund of contributions, submit SF 2803 (Application to Make Deposit or Redeposit) immediately. OPM's calculation processing can take 6 to 12 months, and you must complete all payments before your separation date. Interest compounds annually on December 31 — every calendar year of delay adds another year of interest.

Make the military service deposit (if applicable). If you served on active duty after 1956 and haven't paid the military deposit, request Form RI 20-97 from the appropriate military finance center and start the process now. The Catch-62 recomputation at age 62 (or at retirement if you are already 62 or older and eligible for Social Security) will permanently reduce your annuity by roughly 2% per year of military service if the deposit isn't paid before retirement.

6 to 12 Months Before Retirement

Get a formal annuity estimate. Your HR benefits specialist can run the computation using your verified service record and current salary data. For CSRS Offset employees, insist on two estimates: one showing your annuity before the age-62 reduction, and one showing it after. The difference is the income drop you need to plan for.

Review your High-3 salary window. Identify the three consecutive years (36 months) that produce your highest average basic pay. For most employees retiring at the end of a career, this is the final three years. If you had any LWOP, demotions, or lateral transfers that reduced your pay, check whether an earlier 36-month window produces a higher average.

Decide on your survivor annuity election. The full survivor annuity provides 55% of your unreduced base to your surviving spouse for life, at a cost of approximately 10% of your annuity. If you plan to elect anything less than the full amount, your spouse must sign a notarized consent form (SF 2801-2). Get this done well in advance — the form cannot have any corrections, white-out, or line-throughs.

Evaluate FEGLI continuation options. Decide whether to continue your federal life insurance into retirement and which reduction option to elect (75%, 50%, or No Reduction). The election is made on Form SF 2818 and is generally irrevocable after 30 days past the annuity commencement date. Compare the post-65 FEGLI premiums against private term life insurance quotes.

3 to 6 Months Before Retirement

Verify your FEHB enrollment. To carry FEHB into retirement, you must have been continuously enrolled in FEHB (or covered as a family member under another enrollee's plan) for the five years immediately preceding retirement — or, if less than five years of service, for your entire period of service. Check that your enrollment hasn't lapsed.

If you're a USPS employee, your coverage will be under PSHB (Postal Service Health Benefits) rather than FEHB. Verify whether you're subject to the Medicare Part B enrollment requirement or qualify for an exemption.

Set up your ORA credentials. Since July 1, 2026, OPM requires nearly all retirement applications to be submitted through the Online Retirement Application (ORA) platform. If you haven't registered, do it now. Verify that your pre-populated payroll data is accurate and test the document upload functionality.

Gather supporting documents for upload. You'll need digital copies (scanned PDFs) of:

• Marriage certificate (if electing survivor benefits)
• Divorce decree and property settlement agreement (if applicable)
• DD Form 214 (if claiming military service)
• Notarized SF 2801-2 (if electing less than full survivor coverage)

The notarized SF 2801-2 must be legible and free of corrections or alterations; follow ORA's file requirements for other supporting documents.

90 Days Before Retirement

Submit your retirement application through ORA. Complete the digital SF 2801 equivalent within OPM's ORA system. Your HR office reviews the submission, certifies your service record, and routes the package to your agency's payroll provider.

ORA-submitted applications are processed by OPM in under 40 days once they arrive. Paper applications average 73 to 87 days. The bottleneck isn't OPM — it's the pre-OPM pipeline, where your HR office and payroll provider can hold the package for 60 to 120 days.

Confirm your retirement date with HR. Your separation date should be the last day of a pay period or the last day of a month. Retiring mid-pay-period creates complications with final pay calculations and leave payouts.

The Month You Retire

Build your cash bridge. OPM does not begin interim payments until your certified package arrives — which averages 111 to 120 days after separation, between HR and payroll processing time. Interim payments run at 60% to 80% of your estimated net annuity, and standard deductions (taxes, FEHB premiums) may not be withheld at the correct rates.

Set aside 3 to 6 months of living expenses in liquid savings before your last day. This is the single most important financial preparation step.

Set up BENEFEDS direct billing. Dental and vision premiums (through BENEFEDS) cannot be deducted from interim payments. Contact BENEFEDS to arrange direct-billing before your separation date. If you miss the direct-billing window, your dental and vision coverage will be cancelled.

Verify your annual leave balance. Unused annual leave is paid as a lump sum at the basic-pay rate in effect at separation, with applicable pay adjustments during the projected leave period, calculated from your separation date forward as if you were still on the payroll. This payment is subject to federal income tax withholding and may push you into a higher tax bracket for the year.

After Separation

Monitor OPM's receipt of your package. After your payroll provider certifies and transmits your case, you should receive a CSA (Civil Service Annuitant) number from OPM. Use this number to set up your Retirement Services Online account, where you can track processing status, update direct deposit, and adjust tax withholding.

File for Social Security (if applicable). CSRS Offset employees who are already 62 or older at retirement and eligible for Social Security should file with SSA promptly — OPM will apply the offset reduction to your CSRS annuity whether or not you're actually receiving Social Security.

The CSRS Retirement Guide expands this checklist into a detailed action plan with fillable worksheets for the High-3 calculation, deposit cost-benefit analysis, survivor election modeling, and the interim pay cash bridge budget.

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