For most members, qualifying service is synonymous with Total Service Credit: the sum of your TRS membership service, transferred service, credited optional service, and Chapter 126 credit (for eligible Tier I and II members).

For Tier I members, there’s a difference between Qualifying Service and Total Service Credit: Outside teaching service would count as qualifying service when determining eligibility for vesting and eligibility for a 30-Year “Demand” Retirement. Outside teaching service would not count toward eligibility for a Plan A or B service retirement benefit, but it would count when determining the amount of a Plan A or B service retirement allowance.

In general, service with a public employer in New York State or New York City may be eligible for prior service credit in TRS.

If you are a Tier III, IV, or VI member, you may be able to request a Cost Letter online in the secure section of our website (if you have verified service credit available to purchase). You may instead submit a paper Cost Letter Request Form (code SB64) to claim service. TRS will verify the service with your former employer and notify you of the cost. (Prior service with the New York City Department of Education (DOE) does not need to be claimed because the DOE sends TRS regular work history updates for most titles. We will contact you separately about prior DOE service you have available for crediting.)

If you are a Tier I or II member, you may request credit for prior service by contacting our Member Services Center at 1 (888) 8-NYC-TRS and requesting a personalized Record of Prior Service form (code SB146).

TRS must receive any claim for prior service credit before your retirement date. However, claiming and purchasing prior service credit sooner rather than later would prevent additional interest from accruing and increasing the cost.

Please note that, if you are in the process of transferring your membership to TRS, you should not request prior service credit until the transfer is complete.

Yes. If you are a Tier III, IV, or VI member who has optional service credit available to purchase at the time you separate from service, you may become eligible for vesting by purchasing credit for this service.

Yes. However, you must pay for any deficits. Therefore, if you choose to stop your payroll deductions for a membership service deficit, you must pay the entire remaining balance in a lump sum. If you choose to stop your payroll deductions for optional service credit, you may pay the remaining balance or a portion of it with a lump-sum payment or other payment options.

The cost varies depending on your tier and the type of service credit you are purchasing. In certain cases, service credit may not require purchase.

If you are a Tier III or IV member, the cost to purchase service credit reflects the Qualified Pension Plan (QPP) contributions that you would have made had the service been performed as a TRS member. If you are covered under the basic retirement plan, your QPP contribution rate is generally 3%; if you are covered under the Age 55 Retirement Program, your contribution rate is generally 4.85%.

If you are a Tier VI member, the cost to purchase service credit is 6% of the salary you earned during the time the service was performed.

For most service credit purchases, 5% annual interest is applied to the cost; this represents the interest that would have accrued on your contributions had you been contributing at the time the service was performed. Interest is generally calculated from the date(s) your service was performed to the date your payment is due.

Note: For Tier I and II members, there may be no cost for optional service credit. However, this depends on the type of service (e.g., for Tier I members, there is a cost for outside teaching service, determined through actuarial calculations).

Optional service credit is any service credit you have the option to claim or purchase. In all cases, your service must be verified by TRS, and your request for the service credit must be made before your effective retirement date. Creditable service includes the following:
Prior Service: Creditable service you performed with a New York City and/or New York State public employer before joining TRS that was not transferred to TRS with your membership. (For Tier I members, service performed outside of New York City is not creditable as prior service. See outside teaching service below.)
Amann Service: Creditable service, such as substitute teaching or per diem service, that you performed with a New York City or New York State public employer during a leave of absence from your TRS-eligible position or after separating from service. (For Tier I members, service performed outside of New York City is not creditable as Amann service.)
Military Service: Creditable U.S. military duty you performed before joining TRS or during a leave of absence from your TRS-eligible position.
Outside Teaching Service (Tier I only): Creditable teaching and/or pedagogical supervisory service performed on a regular per-annum basis in a school or college not maintained by the City of New York.
Leaves of Absence Without Pay: Periods that may be creditable under limited circumstances.

For all tiers, credit may be granted for a leave associated with public employment in another New York State or New York City position, or for a leave associated with certain military service. Tier I members may also be eligible to receive credit for leaves associated with restoration of health and certain study leaves. In all cases, before TRS can grant credit for a leave, the member's employer must recommend that service credit be granted.

Yes. However, you must pay for any membership service deficits. Therefore, if you choose to stop your payroll deductions, you must pay the entire remaining balance in a lump sum. To stop your payroll deductions, submit a Payment Plan Change Request Form (code SB29) to TRS; we will then send you an updated Cost Letter.

If you are purchasing optional service credit, you may either request to stop the payroll deductions and the entire purchase or you may choose to pay the remaining balance with a different payment option, such as a lump-sum payment. To stop the entire purchase, submit a Request to Terminate Purchase of Optional Service Credit form (code SB32) to TRS. To continue the purchase with a different payment option, submit a Payment Plan Change Request Form to TRS; we will then send you an updated Cost Letter.

A member may have additional or modified service credit that may not be represented in the ABS. In most cases, the modified service was calculated manually and was updated in our system after the ABS was printed. Members should consider their Total Service Letter official verification of their service credit.

Cost Letters for optional service credit (e.g., prior service credit) reflect all creditable service that TRS is aware of and has been able to verify. If you believe you have additional service that is creditable, you must provide TRS with official documentation of this additional service. If TRS determines that this service is creditable and a recalculation is necessary, the amount of your prior service will be modified, and you will be sent a new Cost Letter.