FEHB & FEGLI
Health and life insurance in retirement
Skip ahead: FEGLI Basic cost estimator
Health Insurance (FEHB)
Retire at 50 and you're up to 15 years from Medicare. FEHB bridges that stretch, for you and your family, at the same premium share you pay today, for life. But only if you meet the eligibility requirements below before you separate.
The government keeps paying roughly 72% of the weighted average premium, the same share as while you're working.
A ballpark 2026 Self Plus One share. You pay employee rates, not a COBRA-style markup.
FEHB continues for life. Your premium share is deducted from your monthly annuity.
- You keep full plan choice during Open Season each year, just like active employees. One asymmetry: cancel FEHB in retirement and you can almost never get it back. Moving to TRICARE or a Medicare Advantage plan? Suspend instead of cancel. Suspension keeps your right to return in a future Open Season.
- FEHB premiums in retirement are paid with after-tax dollars. The premium conversion (pre-tax) arrangement for active employees does not apply to annuitants: your premiums are deducted from your annuity after it is taxed.
- At 65 you become eligible for Medicare. Most retirees take premium-free Part A. Part B costs a monthly premium and is optional, but the decision is effectively one-time: enroll late and you pay a permanent penalty of 10% for every 12 months you waited, even with retiree FEHB. Many FEHB plans waive their deductibles and copays for enrollees who carry Part B, and some rebate part of the premium. Compare your plan's Part B perks against the premium when you get there.
Eligibility: The 5-Year Rule
You must be enrolled in FEHB for the 5 consecutive years immediately before your retirement date. Two exceptions: coverage as a family member under a spouse's FEHB enrollment counts toward your 5 years, and TRICARE counts too, as long as you are enrolled in FEHB on the day you retire. Only non-FEHB private insurance breaks the clock. If that's you, get back on FEHB at least 5 years before you separate.
You must also retire on an immediate annuity. Resign before you're eligible and take a deferred pension later, and FEHB is gone for good. No amount of prior enrollment brings it back.
Don't meet the rule? You still have options:
- Coverage continues free for 31 days after it would otherwise end (5 CFR § 890.401).
- Temporary Continuation of Coverage (TCC) lets you keep FEHB for up to 18 months by paying the full premium plus a 2% administrative fee (5 U.S.C. § 8905a).
- You can convert to a private (non-group) policy with no medical exam.
- Enrolled since your first opportunity but short of 5 years? You already meet the requirement. No waiver needed (5 U.S.C. § 8905(b)).
- OPM can waive the rule in limited cases, mainly early-out/buyout retirements.
To leave FEHB to your spouse, you need a survivor annuity
For your spouse to keep FEHB after your death, two things must be true at that time: you elected a survivor annuity (so they receive a monthly benefit), and you carried Self Plus One or Self and Family coverage that included them. No survivor annuity means no continued FEHB for your spouse. Weigh this when you make the irreversible survivor election. About the survivor annuity election →
Life Insurance (FEGLI)
Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance is term life insurance. Like FEHB, it can follow you into retirement, but the rules differ: Basic stays cheap and flat at every age, while the optional add-ons (A, B, C) get expensive fast as you age.
Basic Coverage
Your Basic coverage pays your Basic Insurance Amount (BIA) to your beneficiaries. The pay that counts is your adjusted basic pay, basic plus locality, the same figure your High-3 is built from (5 CFR § 870.204). You must be enrolled for the 5 consecutive years before retirement to carry it forward.
FEGLI Basic Cost Estimator
Your Basic coverage amount and premium, from your pay.
Saved in this browser only, never uploaded.
Enter your salary to see your Basic coverage amount and premium.
Estimate for FEGLI Basic only, using the flat $0.15 biweekly per $1,000 rate. Options A, B, and C are age-banded and not included here. Use OPM's FEGLI calculator for those. Your official coverage and premiums come from OPM and your servicing HR/benefits office.
Basic premiums are a flat rate: they don't rise with age. Basic runs about $0.15 biweekly per $1,000 of coverage ($0.325 a month). That $0.15 is your two-thirds share (the government pays the other third) and it carries into retirement unchanged until your age-65 election. Under the default 75% Reduction, covered next, you pay it until 65 and then Basic is free. The 50% Reduction and No Reduction elections add a separate, much larger premium on top (several times this flat rate for No Reduction) that continues for life. Check OPM's annuitant rate tables before you elect.
The optional coverages (Options A, B, and C) are elected separately and do increase with age in 5-year bands. Estimate those with OPM's official FEGLI calculator.
Your Post-65 Reduction Election (SF 2818)
At retirement you choose how Basic behaves after age 65 on form SF 2818, a one-time, permanent election. Despite the common belief that FEGLI turns free at 65, Basic only becomes free if you elect the 75% Reduction; the other two elections keep coverage higher, and you pay premiums for life.
75% Reduction
After 65, Basic reduces 2% of face value per month for 37.5 months down to 25% of the BIA, where it stays. Once the reduction begins, the coverage is free: no further premiums.
50% Reduction
Basic reduces 1% per month after 65 until it reaches 50% of the BIA. You continue paying a premium for life on the retained coverage.
No Reduction
Basic stays at the full 100% BIA for life. You pay the highest premium and never stop paying.
Optional Coverages
| Option | Coverage | In Retirement |
|---|---|---|
| Option A (Standard) | Additional $10,000 | Can continue; reduces to $2,500 (75% reduction) after 65; then free |
| Option B (Additional) | 1–5x your salary | Can continue (age-banded premiums rise sharply). At 65 you choose: Full Reduction (coverage shrinks 2% per month to zero over about 4 years, and premiums stop) or No Reduction (keep 100% and keep paying). |
| Option C (Family) | $5,000–$25,000 per family member | Can continue (premiums rise with age). Same choice at 65: Full Reduction to zero over about 4 years, or No Reduction with premiums for life. |
Each option carries into retirement only with its own 5 years of enrollment before your date (or coverage since your first opportunity). Many retirees drop Options B and C anyway because the age-based premiums get expensive; whether to keep them depends on your needs and other life insurance coverage.
FEGLI vs. Private Term Life
FEGLI Advantages
- Guaranteed issue: no medical exam or health questions
- Coverage cannot be cancelled by the insurer
- If you elect the 75% Reduction, Basic coverage becomes free once it reduces to the 25% level
Private Term Life Advantages
- Often much cheaper for healthy individuals, especially at younger ages
- Level premiums: rates locked for the term (10, 20, 30 years)
- Coverage amounts are flexible and not tied to your salary