Service Credit
Your service credit is the number of years you work in public service. Your employer reports this time to DRS. Depending on which retirement system you are in, your service credit may be calculated differently. Your time in service does not always equal your service credit. Visit your online account to view your complete service credit history.
We’re often asked to explain what service credit is and how it works. Customers want to know about topics related to service credit, such as portability (also known as reciprocity), dual membership and out-of-state credit. Here’s a rundown along with some links to helpful resources.
Retirement service credit basics
Service credits are the units used to calculate your pension benefit. The different retirement systems and plans have their own rules about how many you need to qualify for retirement; what we refer to as vesting. Most require five years, equal to 60 service credit months. Think of it like a car payment – you need to make 60 payments before you own the car. For retirement, you need to earn 60 service credit months of employment before you qualify for retirement and, you can only earn one service credit per month maximum.
For your vesting requirements, see your plan guide.
You can view your complete service credit history through your online account. It is a good practice to check your service credit every few years to be sure it matches your expectations.
What counts toward service credit?
Along with the credit from your regular monthly compensation, paid holiday hours or accrued leave that is used also counts toward your service credit. You can earn up to 1 service credit per month. The minimum hours you are required to work to earn a service credit vary by plan. See your plan page linked below for details.
These hours will not count toward your service credit unless you are also using paid leave through your employer:
- Disability leave
- Family Medical Leave (FMLA)
- Paid Family Medical Leave (PFML)
The following sections provide information about purchasing lost service credit.
Missing or withdrawn service credit
Sometimes customers notice their service credit doesn’t match their seniority date. Often, the difference is because of missing or withdrawn service credit or a break in service. You may be eligible to purchase some or all of the missing credit. Here is what you need to know about the process.
- View your complete service credit history through your online account. It is a good practice to check your service credit every few years to be sure it matches your expectations.
- Contact DRS for a cost estimate. You will need to contact DRS to request a cost for restoring your credit. We are not able to provide an estimate when you call. Similar to a retirement benefit estimate, this cost must be calculated by DRS and may require information from your employer.
- Prepare in advance. See the list of information you’ll need on hand before you call, in your Plan guide under “Missing and withdrawn service credit.”
Purchasing service credit
You may be eligible for additional service credits if:
- You have previously withdrawn your account and come back to service for a DRS covered employer.
- You have been on authorized leave from your employment to serve in the military and came back to work for that employer.
- You substituted in a school system.
- You have been on authorized leave from an employer and came back to work full time for that employer.
- You are a certificated teacher and taught in another state.
- You have missed work due to an injury on the job.
In many cases, you can purchase the service credit while you are employed. It’s best to contact DRS to get assistance for your unique situation.
Service credit annuity
Purchasing additional service credit increases your monthly retirement benefit for the rest of your life. You can purchase between one and 60 months of service credit in whole months. Purchasing service credit will increase your monthly benefit, but it will not increase the years of service posted on your account. The increase to your benefit is calculated using the same formula as your retirement benefit. This additional service credit is available at the time of your retirement only. Also, you cannot use the additional credit to qualify for vesting or early retirement (it won’t increase your years of service).
Log in to your account and choose “Purchasing Service.” Here you can find the estimated cost and income increase per month you purchase.
View service credit information that applies to your plan
See your plan page for information about service credit calculations, purchasing and more:
Service credit for members of multiple plans (dual membership)
Some customers have asked about dual membership and wonder if there’s reciprocity or portability (an interchange of service credit) between DRS plans and other plans from different Washington state cities and other states. At DRS, there is portability with the First Class City Retirement Systems for Seattle, Spokane and Tacoma.
You’re a dual member if you have service credit in more than one Washington state retirement system, including First Class City Retirement Systems for Seattle, Spokane and Tacoma. We also refer to dual membership as multiple plans. To see if you’re eligible to retire, add up the service credit you earned in each of your member systems. If that combined service makes you eligible to retire from one of your plans, you can choose to retire from all of them. It’s important to know that retiring before full retirement age can result in a permanent reduction of your benefit. Early retirement rules still apply.
If you are in multiple plans, you will receive a separate monthly benefit from each of your systems. Each system calculates the payment amount in its own way, but they all include three factors:
- Service credit years (SCY)
- Multiplier (usually 1% or 2%)
- Highest average monthly earnings (Average Final Compensation [AFC] or Final Average Salary [FAS])
Check out these resources for more information:
- Webinar/Multiple plans
- Podcast – Dual members and reciprocity
- Plan guides
Teachers in Plan 2 or Plan 3: Service credit opportunities
Teachers have portability opportunities with other states where they have earned teaching service credit. TRS Plan 2 and Plan 3 customers can use service credit earned as an out-of-state teacher to qualify for early retirement or increase their monthly benefit. Two programs are available: the Out-of-State Service Credit Program and the Public Education Experience Program. You can participate in either or both.
To be eligible, your out-of-state service must be earned from a public retirement system that covers teachers. You must also be a vested member of TRS Plan 2 or Plan 3 through DRS.
If you’re interested, we encourage you to find out if using your out-of-state service credit could benefit you. These resources can help:
- Try the out-of-state service credit calculator
- View a short video (2 mins.): Using Service Credit Earned While Teaching Outside of Washington State
- Listen to this Fund Your Future with DRS podcast — Teachers: Out-of-State Service Credit
- Review your plan guide — TRS Plan 2 or TRS Plan 3
