Updated October 30, 2026. Quick answer: For a member of the Wyoming Retirement System (WRS) Public Employee Pension Plan placed in Tier 2 (the handbook places members hired on or after September 1, 2012 there, and also a member who takes a refund and is rehired), the WRS handbook sets unreduced retirement at age 65 once vested, or earlier under the Rule of 85, where age plus years of service equal 85 or more. Tier 1 members reach it at age 60. The handbook says a member is eligible to elect a monthly benefit at retirement age after 48 months of service.
Tier 1 and Tier 2
“Members hired on or after September 1, 2012, and placed in Tier 2 and later redeposit funds from employment they had while in Tier 1, will remain in Tier 2.”
Vesting
“After obtaining 48 months of service, a member is eligible to elect a monthly benefit at retirement age.”
Normal retirement
“Under Tier 1, they reach age 60 and are vested”. “Under Tier 2, they reach age 65 and are vested”, or “Under either tier, they meet the requirements of the Rule of 85, which means their age plus years of service in WRS equal 85 or more.” “The Rule of 85 no longer applies once a member reaches retirement age (60 for Tier 1 or age 65 for Tier 2).”
Early retirement and the reduction
Early retirement is open as follows: “Under Tier 1, age 50 and are vested”; “Under Tier 2, age 55 and are vested”; or “Under either tier, 25 years of service at any age.” “the full retirement benefit is permanently reduced by 5 percent for each year they are below age 60 for Tier 1, age 65 for Tier 2 with partial years prorated monthly (unless they have met the rule of 85).”
What the pension is based on
“Tier 1 entitles a member to 2.125 percent of their highest average salary for their first 15 years of service, plus 2.25 percent of their highest average salary for each year over 15 years.” “Tier 2 entitles a member to 2 percent of their highest average salary for each year of service.” “The highest average salary under Tier 1 is calculated by averaging the highest 36 months of continuous acceptable salary. Under Tier 2, it is calculated by averaging the highest 60 months of continuous acceptable salary.”
A worked example with invented numbers
Take an invented Tier 2 member with 20 years of service who retires at 57, eight years before 65, without meeting the Rule of 85 (57 plus 20 is 77). That is 20 years at 2%, or 40% (computed) of a final average salary of $60,000 (invented, for the computation), which comes to $24,000 a year (computed). The reduction is 8 years below age 65 at 5% each, which is 40% (computed). The pension after the reduction is $14,400 a year (computed).
What the documents do not say
The eligibility information is in the Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook (updated October 2025); no statute text was archived. Vesting is printed as 48 months of service in the handbook prose, and the handbook is silent on whether Tier 2 differs, so this page states only what the handbook says. The Tier 1 and Tier 2 split is quoted only through the redeposit sentence, because the first-contribution definition is in a table. Law enforcement, State Patrol, Warden and Criminal Investigator, judicial, paid fire, volunteer and Air Guard plans, the pre-1981 money purchase calculation, disability and survivor benefits and the 457 plan are not covered.
Common mistakes
- Using Tier 1’s age 60 for a Tier 2 member. Tier 2 reaches unreduced retirement at 65 or under the Rule of 85.
- Expecting the Rule of 85 to keep helping after the retirement age. The handbook says it no longer applies once a member reaches 60 (Tier 1) or 65 (Tier 2).
- Retiring early without checking the cut. The handbook reduces the full benefit permanently by 5 percent for each year below the retirement age unless the Rule of 85 is met.
Related: Wyoming WRS retirement decisions, the Wyoming WRS COLA for 2027, how public pension decisions work, and whether Wyoming taxes pensions.
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Answer againSources
- Wyoming Retirement System, WRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook: retirement.wyo.gov
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS Tax Topic 410, Pensions and annuities: www.irs.gov
- Related official page (not quoted): IRS Tax Topic 411, Pensions: the General Rule and the Simplified Method: www.irs.gov
Read from the primary documents linked above on October 30, 2026. General information, not tax advice. Your own facts decide the outcome, and a preparer or the IRS itself is the right place to confirm anything consequential.