Federal Employee Death Notification to Agency: What to Report and When
The Agency Is the Starting Point for Every Claim
When a federal employee dies in service, the employing agency's Human Resources office is the first call. Not OPM. Not the TSP. Not MetLife. The agency HR office — sometimes called the Servicing Personnel Office (SPO) — is the only entity that can certify the employee's service record, freeze payroll, and initiate the paperwork that every other benefit channel requires.
Nothing else moves until the agency knows.
Who Should Make the Notification
Any family member, emergency contact, or representative can report the death. The agency doesn't require the notification to come from the legal next of kin — they just need to know the employee has died so they can start processing.
In practice, the notification usually comes from the surviving spouse, an adult child, or the employee's supervisor (if the death occurred at work or if a coworker learned about it first). If a supervisor reports it, HR will still contact the family directly to coordinate the paperwork.
What to Tell the Agency
The initial notification can be a phone call. You'll need:
- The employee's full name and agency/office
- The date of death
- Your name and relationship to the employee
- A phone number where the agency can reach you
That's enough to start the process. The agency will walk you through the next steps and typically mail or hand-deliver a paperwork packet within a few days.
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What the Agency Does After Notification
Once HR processes the death notification, several things happen simultaneously:
Payroll freeze. The agency notifies the payroll office (NFC or DFAS, depending on the agency) to stop salary payments. Any direct deposit that was already in transit for the pay period covering the death date may be reclaimed by Treasury if it includes pay for days after death.
Official Personnel Folder (OPF) pull. HR retrieves the employee's personnel file, which contains beneficiary designations (SF 2823, TSP-3), FEGLI enrollment records, FEHB enrollment, and service computation dates. This file determines who gets paid and what they're entitled to.
SF 2821 preparation. The agency completes Standard Form 2821 (Agency Certification of Insurance Status) to verify the employee's FEGLI coverage tiers and the beneficiary of record. This form goes to OFEGLI along with the FE-6 claim.
Retirement record preparation. For FERS, the agency assembles the Individual Retirement Record on SF 3100; for CSRS, it uses SF 2806. The agency transmits the certified record to OPM's Retirement Operations Center in Boyers, PA.
Paperwork packet to the family. The agency provides the surviving family with the appropriate OPM application — SF 3104 for FERS or SF 2800 for CSRS — along with FE-6 (for FEGLI), SF 1153 (for unpaid compensation), and instructions on contacting TSP and SSA. Some agencies also provide a cover letter summarizing which benefits may apply based on the employee's service length.
The Agency's Role Ends at Certification
A critical point that many survivors misunderstand: the agency doesn't adjudicate or pay any long-term benefits. It certifies the employee's records and forwards paperwork to the agencies that do pay — OPM, OFEGLI, TSP, and payroll. Once the agency transmits the certified package, your relationship shifts to those separate entities.
This means following up with the agency about why your OPM survivor annuity hasn't arrived won't help. The agency sent the file to OPM — the delay is at OPM. Knowing which agency is holding your claim is the difference between productive follow-up and wasted phone calls.
Timing Matters
Report the death to the agency as soon as possible — ideally within the first few days. The agency's certification and transmission steps add time before downstream claims can be processed. OPM's processing benchmark starts after it receives a complete package, so follow up with the agency about its transmission.
The Survivor's Death Benefits & Claims Guide covers the full notification-to-payment sequence across all six claim channels, including what to say on that first call to HR and how to track each agency's processing independently.
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