Will I Avoid Social Security’s Government Pension Offset?

Clients who are receiving a government pension and a Social Security spousal, widow, or widower benefit based on their spouse or ex-spouse’s work history may be impacted by the Government Pension Offset (“GPO”).

To help make the GPO rules easier for clients to understand, we have created the “Will I Avoid Social Security’s Government Pension Offset?” flowchart. It addresses some of the most common issues that arise for a client that might be subject to the GPO, and considers the following:

• Impact of certain key dates
• Required Social Security contribution period to avoid GPO
• GPO calculation
• Impact on Medicare

Updated 11/15/2020