Updated October 21, 2026. Quick answer: Michigan’s Office of Retirement Services describes two disability retirements for public school employees, duty disability for an injury or illness at work and nonduty disability for one outside work. Both require an application within one year of termination, with a possible 24-month extension for nonduty. The page says the pension is calculated the same as a regular service retirement.
What this section covers
The Michigan Office of Retirement Services publishes a Disability Benefits page for the Public School Employees’ Retirement System. It opens by saying the plan protects members who become disabled while an active employee, and that “You may qualify for one of two types of disability retirement benefits depending on where you incur your injury or illness.” This page covers both types and the application steps the page lists.
For the wider choices facing a member of this system, see Michigan MPSERS retirement decisions.
Who it applies to
The page separates the two benefits. For work-related disability it says “Your duty disability protection begins your first day on the job.” For the other type it says “Your nonduty disability protection begins when you’re vested with the equivalent of 10 years of full-time public school employment.”
The page also separates plans for the regular pension test: “If you’re a Basic Plan member (generally those hired before Jan. 1, 1990), you qualify for a regular age and service pension at age 55 with 30 years of service (YOS) or age 60 with 10 YOS.” “If you’re in the Member Investment Plan (MIP), you need to be at least 46 years old with 30 YOS or at least age 60 with 10 YOS to retire with a regular age and service pension.”
The rules, one by one
Each row is a sentence from the Disability Benefits page, in its own words. Some rows show part of a sentence, so read the full page for the rest.
| Rule | What the page says |
|---|---|
| Duty disability: what it is | “You incur a total and permanently disabling injury or illness at work.” |
| Duty disability: filing | “You file an application with the Michigan Office of Retirement Services (ORS) within one year of the date of your termination from public school employment. There is no extension for filing.” |
| Duty disability: workers’ compensation | “You must be receiving weekly” workers’ compensation “benefits when you apply to be eligible for a duty disability benefit.” |
| Nonduty disability: what it is | “You incur a total and permanently disabling injury or illness outside of work.” |
| Nonduty disability: vesting | vested with “the equivalent of 10 years of full-time public school employment.” |
| Nonduty disability: late filing | “This filing deadline can be extended an additional 24 months if ORS determines that you have extenuating circumstances for not filing within one year.” |
| Medical certification | “An independent medical advisor certifies that you were totally and permanently disabled at the time you last worked at a Michigan public school.” |
| Not eligible for a regular pension | “You’re not able to retire with a regular age and service pension.” |
| Your termination date | “effective Sept. 4, 2012, your termination date for retirement system purposes is the date two years after your employer last reported service credit for you, even if you’re still on an approved leave of absence with your employer.” |
| How the pension is calculated | “A nonduty disability retirement benefit is calculated the same as a” regular service retirement. |
| Minimum credit for duty disability | “We always credit at least 10 YOS to calculate a duty disability pension, even if you haven’t worked for the public school system that long.” |
| Annual check | “every year before age 60 you’ll receive an” Annual Disability Certification “form that you must complete and return to ORS.” |
The figures the page prints
The page defines the medical terms in running text: “Totally disabled means you’re unable to perform the duties of your position, or a similar position for which you’re qualified by reason of training, experience, or both.” “Permanently disabled means the disability is likely to last your lifetime.”
It gives a service-credit rule of thumb: “In general, you earn 1 YOS when you work 1,020 hours in a school fiscal year.”
For work after a disability retirement the page says “As a disability retiree, you can be employed with the approval of the retirement system, and you can earn up to the difference between your final average compensation and your annual pension without your pension being reduced.”
What to do and where to look
The page lists the first step: “Your first step to apply for a disability pension is to contact ORS and request a disability retirement packet.” It then says “Once completed, you must send the forms to Disability Determination Services (DDS).”
On timing after approval it says “If you don’t terminate employment within 30 days of your disability retirement determination, you may have to reapply.” “You’ll receive your first pension payment four to six weeks after ORS receives all required information from you and your employer.”
If DDS decides the condition does not meet the medical requirements, the page says “you’ll receive a denial letter from ORS.” “This letter will advise you of your appeal rights and the deadline for filing an appeal.”
Related reading: what happens when long-term disability ends at 65, survivor benefits from a government pension and public pension retirement decisions.
Edition
This page reads Michigan Office of Retirement Services, Disability Benefits (Public School Employees’ Retirement System), the current page the Michigan Office of Retirement Services served on 2026-10-21. Check the edition and your own tier or plan on your own member account; the official text controls over this summary.
Common mistakes
- Waiting past the deadline. The page says “Be sure to apply for a disability benefit within 12 months of terminating employment.”
- Applying for a condition that began after leaving. The page says “Any application for disability retirement, regardless of when it is filed, must be for a condition that you incurred before your termination from public school employment.”
- Going back to work without approval. The page says “As a disability retiree, you can be employed with the approval of the retirement system”
Related: Michigan MPSERS retirement decisions, what happens when long-term disability ends at 65, survivor benefits from a government pension, and public pension retirement decisions.
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Answer againSources
- Michigan Office of Retirement Services, Disability Benefits (Public School Employees’ Retirement System): www.michigan.gov
- Related official page (not quoted): Michigan Office of Retirement Services, Public School Employees’ Retirement System: www.michigan.gov
Read from the Michigan Office of Retirement Services pages linked above on October 21, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a pension system or a qualified professional is the right place to confirm anything consequential.