Do I Get Railroad Retirement Credits for My 17 Months of Military Service?

Welcome to another edition of the Highball Advisors Railroad Retirement Mailbag! I’m John McNamara from Highball Advisors, and today’s question comes from Ernie D. Ernie writes, "I’m retiring this year with less than 30 years of service, but I’ll be at full retirement age. I’m also a retired military veteran. Will I get credit for the 17 months I was called to active duty between 2004 and 2005?"

First of all, Ernie, thank you for your service—it’s greatly appreciated! The answer is yes, you will get those months credited to your railroad retirement. The key thing to remember is that military credit is given when the nation is at war or in a national emergency. If you were called up between 2004 and 2005, that qualifies because we were under a national emergency during the War on Terror. If it had been before that, when there was no national emergency or war, you wouldn’t have received credit for that time.

For more details, check out my video "Does Military Service Count for Railroad Retirement?" which covers these kinds of situations.

Ernie, I hope this helps! Railroaders, feel free to send in your questions, and I’ll create a video response for you. Until next time, stay safe, stay on track, and take care. So long, everyone! Bye.

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