When can I retire?

Teachers' Retirement System

When can I retire?

Eligibility

You are eligible to begin drawing your unreduced defined benefit if you are at least age 65 and have:

at least 10 service credit years; or
five service credit years, including 12 service credit months that were earned after your 44th birthday; or
five service credit years that were earned in TRS Plan 2 before July 1, 1996.

You may retire with a reduced benefit if you are at least age 55 and have:

at least 10 years of service credit (your benefit will be actuarially reduced*); or
30 or more service credit years (your benefit will be reduced by 3 percent per year for each year before age 65).

*Actuarially reduced means benefit payments are reduced based on factors provided by the Office of the State Actuary. These factors are derived from statistics about life expectancy and projections about the plan’s investment earnings. An actuarial reduction is necessary when benefits are scheduled or guaranteed to be paid over a longer period of time than would normally be the case.

See “How does early retirement affect my benefit?”

Forfeiting sick leave to retire earlier

School district employees may forfeit up to 45 days of accumulated sick leave in order to meet early retirement criteria. For example, if you have 45 days of sick leave and are age 55 or older, you may retire with nine years and 10 months of service credit. Cashed out sick leave may not be used for this purpose.

Sick leave cannot be used to meet the age requirement and will not be used to determine the amount of your retirement benefit. If you plan to use sick leave to advance your retirement date, contact DRS before separating from employment.