Federal retirement
FERS survivor benefit: cost, reduction, and how to elect it
How much does the FERS survivor benefit cost, and what does a spouse receive?
Under FERS, a full survivor annuity reduces the retiree's annuity by 10% and pays the surviving spouse 50% of the unreduced annuity. A partial survivor annuity reduces it by 5% and pays 25%. Electing no survivor annuity means no reduction, no spouse annuity, and FEHB coverage generally ends. Source: OPM survivor benefits, as of October 19, 2026.
The short version
- Per OPM, a full FERS survivor annuity reduces the retiree's annuity by 10% and pays a surviving spouse 50% of the unreduced annuity; a partial survivor annuity reduces it by 5% and pays 25%.
- A FERS survivor annuity election is generally irrevocable after a limited window following retirement.
- A surviving spouse must be receiving a survivor annuity to continue FEHB health coverage after the retiree's death.
- Declining or reducing the survivor annuity requires the spouse's notarized consent.
- If your spouse dies before you do, the survivor reduction stops and your annuity is restored to the full unreduced amount going forward.
What the FERS survivor benefit costs and what your spouse receives
If you are married when you retire under FERS, OPM treats the maximum survivor annuity as the default. You can elect a smaller one, or none, only with your spouse's consent. The table summarizes OPM's published options for a current spouse. Source: OPM survivor benefits, as of October 19, 2026.
| Election | Reduction to your annuity | Annuity your spouse receives after your death | Effect on FEHB for your spouse |
|---|---|---|---|
| No survivor annuity | No reduction | No survivor annuity is paid | Per OPM, health benefits cease. A surviving spouse generally cannot continue FEHB through this route. |
| Partial survivor annuity | 5% | 25% of your unreduced annuity | A survivor annuity is payable, so your spouse may continue FEHB if other FEHB requirements are met. |
| Full (maximum) survivor annuity | 10% | 50% of your unreduced annuity | A survivor annuity is payable, so your spouse may continue FEHB if the other FEHB requirements are met. |
Worked example: what the reduction looks like in dollars
Hypothetical illustration for education only, as of October 19, 2026. It is not a client result, a projection, or an estimate for any real person. Assume a federal employee with a $95,000 High-3 average salary and 30 years of creditable FERS service who retires under age 62 on an immediate annuity at the 1.0% multiplier. The unreduced annuity is $95,000 x 30 x 1.0% = approximately $28,500 per year. For the steps behind that figure, see how the FERS pension is calculated.
The reduction and survivor percentages below are the ones OPM publishes in its survivor benefits guidance and its FERS computation guidance.
- No survivor annuity: the annuity stays at approximately $28,500 per year and no survivor annuity is paid to a spouse.
- Partial survivor annuity: a 5% reduction is approximately $1,425 per year, leaving approximately $27,075 per year while both spouses are living. A spouse would receive 25% of the unreduced annuity, approximately $7,125 per year.
- Full survivor annuity: a 10% reduction is approximately $2,850 per year, leaving approximately $25,650 per year while both spouses are living. A spouse would receive 50% of the unreduced annuity, approximately $14,250 per year.
- This illustration does not account for cost-of-living adjustments, taxes, FEHB premiums, or any other benefit. Actual figures depend on your own service record, retirement date, and OPM's computation.
Why this is not just a life insurance calculation
The common framing is that you compare the cost of the survivor reduction against the cost of a life insurance policy that would replace the same income. That comparison is worth running, but it misses the thing that most often decides the question.
Your spouse cannot continue FEHB coverage after your death unless they are receiving a survivor annuity. Life insurance does not solve that. For a spouse who is not yet Medicare-eligible, or who has meaningful health needs, losing FEHB is frequently a larger financial event than losing the annuity income.
What the reduction actually costs you
Electing a survivor annuity reduces your monthly payment while your spouse is living. If your spouse dies before you do, the reduction stops: once OPM is notified, your annuity is restored to the full unreduced amount going forward. The same restoration generally applies if the marriage ends in divorce, unless a court order requires that a former spouse's survivor annuity continue.
What you do not get back is the reduction already withheld during the years you were both alive. So the cost of electing is narrower than the version people usually argue against. You are not paying for decades against an event that may never happen; you are paying for as long as there is someone the coverage protects.
That is worth knowing before you decline, because the instinct to decline is often built on the assumption that the reduction is permanent regardless of what happens. It is not.
How to weigh it against your own situation
The analysis turns on a small number of specifics:
- Your spouse's age and health, and their own Medicare eligibility timeline
- What other income your spouse would have: their own pension, Social Security, portfolio withdrawals
- Whether existing life insurance is permanent or term, and when the term ends
- The gap between your household's spending and what your spouse would receive without the survivor annuity
- Whether a reduced (partial) election covers the gap at lower cost than the full election
The partial election people overlook
The choice is not only full survivor annuity or none. A partial election costs less, reduces your annuity less, and still preserves FEHB eligibility.
For households where the spouse has substantial income of their own but still needs the health coverage, the partial election is frequently the efficient answer. It is also the option people are least likely to know exists.
Questions
Follow-ups we get asked.
Per OPM, a full survivor annuity reduces the retiree's annuity by 10% and pays the spouse 50% of the unreduced annuity. A partial survivor annuity reduces it by 5% and pays 25%. In the hypothetical illustration on this page ($95,000 High-3, 30 years of service, 1.0% multiplier), that is approximately $2,850 per year for a full election and $1,425 per year for a partial election while both spouses are living. Your own figures depend on your service record and OPM's computation. Source: OPM survivor benefits guidance, as of October 19, 2026.
Only within a limited window after retirement, and in narrow circumstances such as a change in marital status. Treat the election as permanent when you make it, because in practice it usually is.
Only while you are living. If you are enrolled in a Self Plus One or Self and Family plan, your spouse generally stays covered whether or not you elect a survivor annuity. After your death, a surviving spouse can continue FEHB only if they are receiving a survivor annuity, so declining it means their coverage ends. This is the most consequential detail in the decision and the one most often missed.
Yes. Electing less than the maximum survivor annuity requires your spouse's notarized consent, which exists precisely because the decision affects them more than it affects you.
The survivor reduction stops. Notify OPM of the death, and your annuity is restored to the full unreduced rate going forward. The reduction already withheld is not refunded. Restoration generally also applies if the marriage ends in divorce, unless a court order requires that a former spouse's survivor annuity continue.
Keep reading
- How to calculate your FERS pensionHow do I calculate my FERS retirement pension?
- What to do with your TSP when you retireShould I keep my TSP or roll it over when I retire?
- FERS Supplement: How It Is Calculated, Who Gets It and When It EndsWhat is the FERS supplement?
- Roth conversions for federal retireesShould federal retirees do Roth conversions?
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This article is general educational information, current as of October 21, 2026. It is not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice, and it does not take into account any individual's circumstances. Tax and benefit rules change; verify current rules against official sources before acting. TradeWinds does not provide tax or legal advice.