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Ready to Retire

​​​Approaching retirement can bring up a lot of questions. KPPA gives you the tools to prepare for this important stage of life and offers our staff's experience and knowledge to help along the way. For comprehensive information, please refer to our Retiree Handbook.

Partial Lump Sum Option (PLSO)

House Bill 506 (2023 Regular Session) established a PLSO, with and without survivor rights, as a payment option. Effective​​ January 1, 2024, members may choose this payment opt​ion, which includes a one-time lump-sum payment and a monthly payment. Learn more​.

 Things to Consider

  • If you will be eligible for Social Security at the time of retirement, you may want to contact your local Social Security Administration office at least 90 days before the anticipated retirement date. Social Security benefits and requirements differ from those of KPPA.

  • If you will be eligible for Medicare at retirement, it is advisable to contact the Social Security office even earlier. Medicare-eligible retirees must present a copy of their Medicare card if they are applying for Medicare-eligible insurance coverage.

  • If you are considering a service purchase, you should allow several months to obtain any documentation of the service. In almost every case, the service must be purchased prior to termination and while a contributing member.

  • If you have service credit in another state-administered retirement system within the state of Kentucky, you may retire independently from each system or have your contributions and total service credit in KPPA combined for the purpose of determining eligibility, health insurance, and calculation of benefits. Be mindful that other retirement systems may have different filing guidelines than KPPA if you wish to retire reciprocally. 

  • In order for insurance to be effective during the first month of retirement, all insurance forms and required documents must be filed with KPPA the month before the first monthly benefit is issued.

  • School Board Employees: If you are retiring with an effective retirement date of June 1, your effective date of termination must be no later than May 31. If your contract requires you to work beyond that date you must either terminate prior to the conclusion of your contract or change your retirement date to July 1. Either scenario may have an impact on your final compensation. If you have questions regarding this issue please contact our office to speak with a benefits counselor.

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