Overview
PBGC doesn’t have information about retirement benefits for government employees. This resource lists where current and former government employees can inquire about their retirement benefits.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) is a federal agency that insures pension plans sponsored by private-sector employers for their employees. PBGC’s insurance program does not, however, cover pension plans offered by the federal government, by foreign governments, or by state or local governments. This means PBGC doesn’t have information about military pensions, law enforcement pensions, or other state and local pensions like those for teachers or firefighters. To claim a benefit you earned while working for a government employer, you will need to reach out to the office set up by that government to administer the retirement plan.
Learn more about what plans PBGC covers: PBGC pension insurance: We've got you covered
If you worked for the Federal government as a civilian
Most civilians who worked for the federal government can reach out to the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to claim a pension benefit. You can contact OPM retirement services at 1-888-767-6738.
There are a few federal agencies like the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) that do not use OPM to administer benefits. If you worked for such an agency, you will need to reach out to that agency directly.
Military retirement system
If you served in the military for more than twenty years and earned a military retirement benefit, reach out to the Department of Defense’s Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) at 1-888-332-7411.
Note that military retirement benefits for military members with more than twenty years of service are different from benefits administered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
State and local government retirement plans
The United States is home to hundreds of state and local government retirement plans. There are five different pension plans for New York City employees alone.
To find contact information for your specific retirement plan check any documents you have from your retirement plan for a phone number or search online for the employer’s retirement plan or human resources department. If that doesn’t work, you can reach out to the office of an elected official in the city, county or state for which you worked, and their staff should be able to point you in the right direction.
If you worked for the government of another country
If you earned a pension for working for a foreign government, and you are unable to get into direct contact with the retirement plan in that country, you can reach out to that country’s embassy in the United States. It is common for embassies of various governments to have members of staff who can assist with labor and employment claims.
If you worked for certain major international organizations
Most international organizations are Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), which means that they are private sector organizations and retirement plans for their U.S.-based employees are covered by PBGC (though there could be an exception if the plan is a church plan). Use Plan search to determine if the particular NGO pension plan you are seeking was paying premiums to PBGC.gov and may be insured or trusteed.
That said, retirement plans for certain large international organizations are exempt from federal regulation and are not covered by PBGC’s insurance program. These include retirement plans for employees of the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. If you earned a retirement benefit while working for one of these organizations, you should contact them directly.