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Have All New Employees Sign This Form

Have all new hires sign and date a Florida Retirement System (FRS) - Certification Form. This form could protect your agency from having to repay any retirement benefits paid to a retiree whom you employ in violation of the reemployment-after-retirement provisions.
 
By signing this form, the new employee is certifying that they have/have not retired from any State of Florida-administered retirement plan or have/have not concluded participation in the DROP. Keep the signed form, along with the instruction page, in the employee’s personnel file. Do not send it to the FRS unless you are asked to do so.
 
For clarification of the rules and laws regarding reemployed retirees, contact an EY financial planner (for Investment Plan members) or the Division of Retirement (for Pension Plan members).
First-Time, Regular Employees
An employee who is hired in a regularly established FRS-covered position, and has never completed an FRS choice period, is eligible to participate in the Investment Plan or Pension Plan, unless they are a:
 
  • Participant in the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP)
    Terminated DROP members can roll over their DROP accumulation into the Investment Plan.
  • Participant in the Mandatory State University System Optional Retirement Program (SUSORP)
    Faculty, including clinical faculty, in a college at a state university that has a faculty practice plan are mandatory participants of the SUSORP.
  • Participant in the Teachers’ Retirement System
    This plan is closed to new members.
  • Participant in the State and County Officers’ and Employees’ Retirement System
    This plan is closed to new members.
  • Retiree of the Pension Plan who is initially reemployed with an FRS employer on or after July 1, 2010.
  • Retiree of the Investment Plan, SUSORP, Senior Management Service Optional Annuity Program (SMSOAP), or State Community College System Optional Retirement Program (SCCSORP) who is initially reemployed with an FRS employer on or after July 1, 2017 in a position which is covered by the SUSORP or SCCSORP plan.

 
Rehired Members
Terminated Investment Plan members who are later rehired will return to the Investment Plan. Rehired members who previously participated in the Pension Plan will return to the Pension Plan as long as they have not started receiving a monthly retirement benefit.
 
Investment Plan members who take a distribution or rollover from the Investment Plan (excluding a de minimis distribution or a Required Minimum Distribution will be considered retired. (For more information, refer to Benefit Payouts.) Once retired, members lose any non-vested Investment Plan or prior Pension Plan service and benefit.
 
The Division of Retirement is responsible for determining retirement membership eligibility and whether a member is eligible for continued FRS membership. Refer to the Division’s Pension Plan Employer Handbook for information about employee eligibility and retirement contribution file reporting requirements and format.
 
Retirees Reemployed Prior to July 1, 2010
Retired members who were rehired in an FRS-covered position prior to July 1, 2010 are considered “reemployed retirees” and are subject to the rules and laws governing such members. These reemployed retirees were treated like first-time, regular employees and were given a new election period. However, reemployed retirees are not entitled to certain benefits under the FRS, including Special Risk Class membership, disability benefits, and the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP).
 
Investment Plan Retirees Employed on or After July 1, 2017
Effective July 1, 2017, retirees of the Investment Plan, State University System Optional Retirement Program (SUSORP), Senior Management Service Optional Annuity Program (SMSOAP), and State Community College System Optional Retirement Program (SCCSORP) are eligible for renewed membership. They must be employed in an FRS-covered position on or after July 1, 2017 to gain renewed membership. However, these renewed members are not eligible to participate in the Pension Plan or DROP, receive disability benefits, or use the 2nd Election to change to the Pension Plan.
 
It is important to note that this provision does not provide renewed membership retroactively for the period of July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2017.
 
Determining Membership Class
To determine an employee’s membership class, refer to the Division’s Pension Plan Employer Handbook for information.
 
Eligibility Review
An employee’s enrollment in the Investment Plan is subject to eligibility review at any time. If the enrollment is determined to be ineligible, the election and any associated benefit transfers, retirement contributions, and any earnings on these funds will be reversed. The employee will receive a letter explaining the reason for the reversal. The following are a few examples of reasons an employee’s enrollment may be reversed:
 
  • Employee terminated prior to receipt of election form.
  • Employee did not earn service credit in the month the election form was received.
  • Employee is in a position not eligible for membership in the FRS.
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