
PORS - Active Members
Disability Retirement
Who
May Apply
How to Apply
Processing the Claim
Effective
Date
Annuity Payments
Returning to Employment
Who May Apply
You may apply for disability retirement if you become permanently disabled
before you leave covered employment and you:
- are under age 55; and
- have five or more years of earned
service credit toward retirement (see
Correlated Systems if you have
service in more than one retirement system).
The five-year service requirement is
waived if you can substantiate that your disability is the result of an
on-the-job injury.
For retirement purposes, you are
considered occupationally disabled if you become physically or mentally
incapable of performing the regular duties of your job, your
disability is likely to be permanent, and you should be retired. Becoming disabled does not
automatically qualify you for disability retirement; you must file an
application and go through the review process.
You may arrange with your employer to
make your Retirement Systems contributions through the employer if
your disability requires you to be placed in an employer-approved leave
status while receiving Workers Compensation benefits. Doing so will ensure that you will continue to earn Retirement
Systems service credit during your Workers' Compensation leave period.
Be sure to apply for disability benefits
while you are still in service of a covered employer. Since many
Workers' Compensation claims are often settled after covered employment
has ended, do not wait until your Worker's Compensation claim is
finalized to apply for disability benefits.
If your disability claim is denied, the
continuance of paying contributions and earning Retirement Systems
service credit may be important to your long-term retirement plans.
Retired members who work for a covered employer are not eligible to apply
for disability benefits.
How to Apply
If you meet the disability filing criteria, go to the
Forms
section of our Web site or
contact the Retirement Systems for a disability retirement packet. When
you file your disability retirement claim, please include as much
evidence as possible to support your claim.
You should file your application for
disability retirement as soon as you become disabled. You must apply
prior to leaving covered employment or you will not be eligible to
participate in the disability retirement program.
If you do not receive
notification of the Retirement Systems' receipt of your application within 10 days after you
submit it, please
contact
the Retirement Systems.
If you are eligible for service retirement
when you become disabled, you may apply for service retirement while
awaiting determination of your disability claim; however, you will
receive only one type of payment (service or disability) if your
disability claim is approved.
Processing the Claim
Your medical records will be obtained from your health care providers
and evaluated to determine the severity and limiting effects of your
physical or mental impairment. The final determination is made by the
Retirement Systems. If your claim is denied, you will have an
opportunity to appeal that denial.
Please allow a minimum of three months after all
required documentation has been received from you, your employer, and
your health care providers for your disability application to be
processed. If you have not received the Retirement Systems' decision within three months,
please
contact the Retirement Systems.
Effective Date
If your disability retirement claim is approved, the effective date for
annuity benefits will be the 30th day after your application is received
by the Retirement Systems or the day after your last day on your
employers payroll, whichever is later.
A disability annuity, once approved, may
be discontinued if:
-
you regain a certain earning capacity;
or
-
medical evidence indicates that you
are no longer disabled; or
-
the Retirement Systems has scheduled a
continuing disability review and does not approve continuing
disability retirement payments.
Periodic medical reexaminations may be
required up to age 55. If the Retirement Systems determines that your
disability benefits should cease because of an improvement in your
medical condition, your retirement benefits will stop the month of your
scheduled review or the month of the Retirement Systems decision,
whichever is later.
Annuity Payments
A disability applicant may select the same payment plans as a service
retiree.
Because the Retirement Systems does not
determine your disability based on the criteria for a disability that is
total and permanent, your disability benefits are considered to be a
normal distribution from your retirement account. For tax information,
contact the
Internal Revenue Service, the
SC Department of Revenue if you live in South Carolina, and/or your
personal tax advisor.
Disability benefits paid under PORS are
based on approval for an occupational or job-related disability. Per
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidelines, all such benefits are reported
as normal distributions with a distribution code of 7 on IRS Form 1099-R.
If you also receive benefits from the
Social Security Administration that are based on total and permanent
disability, such benefits are reported to you with a distribution code of
3 on IRS Form 1099-R. If you are considered to be totally and permanently
disabled, benefits paid by the Retirement Systems may be eligible for
additional tax credits. Please have your tax advisor refer to the
instructions for completing IRS Schedule R in preparing your income tax
return.
Returning to Employment
While Receiving a Disability Retirement Annuity
If you are under age 55 and receiving a PORS disability annuity, you
should report earnings from any gainful (public or
private) employment to the Retirement Systems annually because there is an
earnings limitation for all employment which is applied on a calendar-year
basis. You may earn the difference between your adjusted average final
compensation (AFC) at retirement
and your disability retirement annuity without affecting your retirement
benefits (see example below). At age 55 there is no earnings limitation
for service or disability retirees.
Example
| AFC at retirement
(adjusted for inflation) |
$35,000 |
| Annual disability
retirement annuity |
-
$14,950 |
Disability retiree can
earn difference
(for the calendar year) |
$20,050 |
Your AFC may be adjusted each
year for inflation for earnings limitation purposes only. This increase
generally matches the percentage increase of the Consumer Price Index
(CPI). These adjustments affect the amount you can earn while
receiving a disability retirement annuity; however, they do not affect the
amount of your benefit. You will receive a letter each January advising
you on how much you can earn and requesting confirmation of your prior year
earnings. You will have to repay any benefits that you received to which
you were not entitled.
If you earn more than the
difference between your
adjusted AFC and your disability annuity amount, your monthly annuity will be reduced or possibly canceled.
If you return to work with an employer covered by the Retirement Systems
and your salary is equal to or greater than your adjusted AFC, your
disability retirement annuity ceases and you must become an active member
of the Retirement Systems.
Retired members who work for a covered
employer will make tax-deferred employee contributions for the duration of
their covered employment and are eligible for an increased group life
insurance benefit equal to one year’s annual salary.