ERS Georgia Retirement Options: PLOP Is 1 to 36 Months of Benefit

Updated October 2, 2026. Quick answer: An ERS Georgia member picks a payment option at retirement, and in most cases it cannot be changed after the first monthly payment. The Maximum Plan pays the most and leaves no monthly benefit for a beneficiary, Option 2 pays a beneficiary 100% and Option 3 pays 50%. A partial lump sum (PLOP) runs from 1 to 36 times the Maximum Plan monthly benefit and permanently reduces the monthly check. A refund of contributions ends the right to a monthly benefit, even with 10 or more years of service.

Georgia non-certified school employees belong to a separate system with its own rules: Georgia PSERS retirement decisions.

Atlanta city employees belong to a separate city plan with its own rules: Atlanta general employees pension decisions.

Which plan applies

The Employees’ Retirement System of Georgia (ERS) handbook covers three defined benefit plans: “Old Plan (Tier 1), New Plan (Tier 2), GSEPS (Tier 3)”. The plan is set by when a person became a member: “When becoming a Member of ERS, a Member is covered by the benefit plan in effect at the time of membership.”

Most of what follows, including the payment options, the partial lump sum and the refund rules, is described in the handbook without a split by plan. Where a rule belongs to one plan or one hire date, the text below says so.

When a monthly benefit can start

Under the Old Plan, the New Plan and GSEPS, normal retirement is the earlier of “the attainment of age 60 and 10 years of Creditable Service” or “the attainment of 30 years of Creditable Service”.

On early retirement the handbook says “you can commence Early Retirement benefits at any age before your Normal Retirement Age once you have attained 25 years of Creditable Service.” The cut is “reduced by either 7% for each year you are commencing benefits prior to age 60, or 7% for each year under 30 years of Creditable Service you have earned, whichever reduction is less”. “The reduction cannot exceed 35%.”

A member who leaves State employment before 60 keeps a path to a monthly benefit. “If you terminate employment after attaining 10 years of service, but prior to age 60, you will be eligible to start drawing a retirement benefit once you reach age 60.”

A computed example from an assumed $1,000 Maximum Plan Benefit, not an ERS figure: take a member retiring at 58 with 26 years of Creditable Service. Seven percent for each of 2 years before 60 is a computed 14%. Seven percent for each of 4 years under 30 years of service is a computed 28%. The handbook applies whichever is less, so the cut is a computed 14%, or $140.00 a month, leaving a computed $860.00 a month before any survivor option or lump sum. The age, service and 1,000 are assumptions, and ERS’s own estimate sets the real number.

How the monthly figure is built

Every payment option starts from one number. “Formula Salary is the average of the highest 24 consecutive calendar months of Earnable Compensation while an ERS Member.” For the New Plan the handbook gives the formula as “Formula Salary x .02 x Creditable Service = Maximum Plan Benefit”, and for GSEPS as “Formula Salary x .01 x Creditable Service = Maximum Plan Benefit”. For the Old Plan the factor moves with service: “The Benefit Formula Factor is determined by how many years of Creditable Service you have attained.”

A plan limit sits on top of the formula: “The monthly Service or Disability Retirement benefit you receive from ERS cannot exceed 90% of the highest monthly salary you received as a State employee.”

The payment options and what each does for a survivor

The handbook explains the trade directly: “The Maximum Plan Benefit provides the highest monthly benefit available because it does not provide a monthly benefit to a beneficiary after the Member’s death.” The factor tables for Options 2, 3, 5A, 5B and the PLOP sit in an appendix and depend on the member’s age and the beneficiary’s age, so an ERS estimate is the practical way to compare them.

What is locked in at retirement

The election is close to permanent. “In most cases, the payment option cannot be changed after receiving the first monthly benefit payment.” For the single-life versus survivor trade, see single life versus joint and survivor.

The beneficiary is also fixed. For the options with a named survivor the handbook says “Generally, beneficiary(ies) may not be changed after the Member receives the first monthly benefit payment.” Option 5 has a narrower exception: “The beneficiary may not be changed after the Member receives the first monthly payment unless the beneficiary predeceases the Member, or if the beneficiary is a spouse and divorce occurs.” For the Maximum Plan, Option 1 and two versions of Option 4 (period certain and accelerated), the handbook says of changing a beneficiary: “This may be done at any time.”

Life events open limited doors. For a member unmarried at retirement who later marries, the handbook sets this deadline: “If the Member retired under the Maximum Plan, the Member must submit a written election to ERSGA for the new Option within six months of marriage.” After a divorce following retirement: “The Member may keep the Optional Form chosen at retirement.” “The Member may change their benefit payment to the Maximum Plan Benefit amount.”

A computed example from an assumed $2,000 Maximum Plan Benefit, not an ERS figure: the handbook’s Option 3 illustration (member retiring at 65, beneficiary aged 60) applies a factor of .9087, and the handbook notes that the factor depends on the ages. Using that same illustrative .9087 factor on an assumed $2,000 Maximum Plan Benefit, the member’s reduced benefit would be $1,817.40 (2,000 multiplied by .9087), and a 50% survivor benefit would be $908.70 (50% of that).

The partial lump sum option (PLOP)

The PLOP trades monthly income for cash at retirement. The handbook describes the payment as follows: “A one-time lump sum payment of a portion of the Member’s retirement benefit, plus a reduced monthly benefit payable for their lifetime.” On the cost: “The amount of the reduction will be based on the amount of the partial lump sum, the Member’s age at retirement, and the payment option chosen for the remaining monthly benefit.”

The size is bounded. “The Member may choose the lump sum in multiples of $1,000.” “The lump sum cannot be less than 1 times the monthly benefit calculated under the Maximum Plan Option, and not more than 36 times the monthly benefit calculated under the Maximum Plan Option.” Who can use it: “A Partial Lump Sum is only available for a Service Retirement (not Disability Retirement).” “The Member must have at least 30 years of Creditable Service, or be at least age 60 with 10 years of Creditable Service, to receive a Partial Lump Sum.”

The cost of each lump sum is set by a published table. “The following table shows the reduction of the monthly Maximum Plan Benefit for each $1,000 taken as a partial lump sum, determined by a Member’s age at retirement.” “If a Member elects to provide a survivor benefit for a beneficiary, further reductions to the benefit will occur for that purpose.” A survivor is affected too: “Just as the Member’s monthly benefit will be reduced when taking a Partial Lump Sum, the beneficiary’s benefit will also be reduced accordingly.”

A computed example from an assumed $2,000 Maximum Plan Benefit, not an ERS figure: the minimum lump sum is 1 times that figure, a computed $2,000, and the maximum is 36 times, a computed $72,000. Suppose a member retiring at 60 takes 12 times the benefit, $24,000, a multiple of $1,000. The handbook’s table lists a cost of $7.11 per $1,000 in the age 60 column. The monthly reduction is 24 (thousands) multiplied by $7.11, or $170.64, leaving $1,829.36 a month under the Maximum Plan Benefit. A survivor option would reduce that further, and the age placement of the table value should be confirmed against ERS’s own factors.

Whether the monthly reduction or the lump sum is the better trade is a separate calculation; see pension lump sum versus monthly annuity.

Escalating benefit and the supplemental annuity

The escalating option pays “A reduced monthly benefit, payable for the Member’s lifetime, with a guaranteed annual increase of 2 percent.” A separate annuity purchase exists for people with Peach State Reserves savings. The handbook says “An ERS retiree who did not elect a Partial Lump sum Optional Payment (PLOP) and who has at least $25,000 in the Peach State Reserves (PSR) 401(k) and/or 457 Plan may choose to use PSR funds to purchase a Supplemental Guaranteed Lifetime Income (SGLI) monthly benefit by making an irrevocable election with ERS.” That route is closed to anyone who took a PLOP.

Refund of contributions versus leaving them with ERS

A member who leaves State employment can take cash. “When terminating State employment, regardless of age or years of Creditable Service, a Member is immediately entitled to receive a refund of their annuity savings fund account in a lump sum payment.” “Members are always 100% vested in Employee Contributions and any interest earned in their annuity savings fund account.” The handbook lists what follows from a refund. “The member waives all other benefit rights in the ERS plan.” “No other benefits will be payable to the Member or to any beneficiary(ies).” “If a Member has 10 or more years of Creditable Service and is vested and eligible for a monthly benefit, taking a refund cancels the right to receive a monthly benefit in the future.”

Several consequences run beyond the money. “Plan membership is terminated. If the Member is later rehired, they will become a Member under the terms of the plan in effect at the rehire date.” “This is true even if the Member later buys back their refunded Creditable Service.” “If a Member receives such a refund, they forfeit all Creditable Service for the period of employment covered by the refund.”

Leaving the account at ERS has a cost as well. “The Employee Contributions put into the Member’s annuity savings fund account start earning 4% interest (compounded annually) after being in the account for one year.” The handbook adds: “Interest is not posted to any annuity savings fund account belonging to a Member who has terminated employment.” A member who leaves the account at ERS keeps membership rights on return in two cases: “If the Member has at least ten years of Creditable Service, they will retain all of their rights as a Member upon returning to work”, and “If returning to work for an Employer within four years of initial separation from service, the Member will retain all membership rights, regardless of their years of Creditable Service.” The full tradeoff is covered at pension refund versus leaving it.

Buying refunded service back

A refund can be partly undone. The handbook sets two conditions: “Be employed for two additional years”, and “Pay ERS a lump sum equal to the refund amount originally received, plus 4.25% interest (compounded annually from the refund date to the buyback date).” Membership does not return to the original date: “Even if the Member establishes prior Creditable Service by paying back their refund, their membership date will not be adjusted back to the original membership date, and benefits will be based on the benefit plan in effect for new hires at the time of re-employment (currently GSEPS).”

Buying other service credit at retirement

An active member can add service to the benefit. “Active members may also increase their retirement benefit when submitting a retirement application by directly purchasing up to three additional years of Creditable Service.” The price is not just the member’s own contributions: the member must “pay the full cost of the additional service (not just the Employee Contribution amount), as calculated by the Plan’s actuary”. “Air Time cannot be counted toward the 10 years of Creditable Service needed to become Vested in an ERS monthly retirement benefit.” For the dollar question of whether a purchase pays back, use the pension buyback calculator with a cost quote from ERS.

Returning to work after retiring

The handbook limits work for the State after retirement. “A retiree who returns to work for any ERS Employer may be subject to having their ERS benefit suspended upon reaching 1,040 hours during any calendar year.”

There is also a gap right after the retirement date. “If retiring under ERS’s Early Retirement provisions, a Member must not return to work with any State department or agency, even as an independent contractor, during the two months following their retirement date.” “If retiring under any of ERS’s provisions other than Early Retirement, a Member must not return to work with an Employer, even as an independent contractor, during the first month following retirement.”

Post-retirement benefit adjustments

Cost-of-living increases are discretionary. “Post-Retirement Benefit Adjustments are not guaranteed and financial decisions should not be based on the possibility of an increase until a Post-Retirement Benefit Adjustment has been announced.” “Employees who first or again become Members of ERS on or after July 1, 2009 are not entitled to any Post-Retirement Benefit Adjustment after retirement.”

How the monthly benefit is taxed by ERS

ERS describes the tax basis. “Employee Contributions made by a Member are contributed to ERS on an after-tax basis”. “Withholding elections (forms W-4P for federal and G-4P for Georgia state taxes) are completed at retirement.” For the state-level view, see Georgia retirement taxes and does Georgia tax pensions.

What the IRS adds on tax

A refund or lump sum from a public pension is a distribution, so the IRS rules apply on top of ERS Georgia’s own. On withholding, the IRS says that a taxable eligible rollover distribution paid to you “is subject to mandatory income tax withholding (generally at a rate of 20%), even if you intend to roll it over later”, and that if you roll it over yourself “you’ll have to add funds from other sources equal to the amount withheld”. The handbook pages read do not say whether ERS lets a PLOP or a refund be sent directly to another retirement plan, so confirm that with ERS before choosing a payout method. The rollover clock, if the money is paid to you: “you have 60 days from the date you receive it to roll it over to another eligible retirement plan”.

On early distributions the IRS says “the law imposes a 10% additional tax on certain early distributions from certain retirement plans”. Its list of exceptions includes “Distributions made to you after you separated from service with your employer after attainment of age 55” and “Distributions made to a qualified public safety employee from a governmental plan”. Whether an exception fits a particular refund depends on your own plan and facts, so confirm it with a tax preparer before you take one.

What this page could not settle

• The pages read do not state whether a PLOP or a refund can be rolled over directly, or how ERS applies tax withholding to either one; the IRS rules above are the general federal rules.
• The pages read do not state any spousal consent requirement for a refund or a payment option. The only spouse waiver the handbook mentions concerns the 401(k) plan beneficiary.
• The handbook says terminated members with less than 10 years of Creditable Service can request a refund through the online account, and separately says a member is immediately entitled to a refund regardless of years of service. The pages read do not say which route a member with 10 or more years uses.
• The pages read do not state the Option 2, 3, 5A and 5B factors for particular ages in text that can be quoted here, the price of Air Time beyond full cost as calculated by the Plan’s actuary, a deadline for choosing a PLOP, the processing time for a refund, or the amount of any past Post-Retirement Benefit Adjustment.

Common mistakes

• Treating the payment option as changeable. In most cases it cannot be changed after the first monthly payment.
• Taking a refund and expecting a vested monthly benefit to survive. A refund cancels the right to a monthly benefit, even at 10 or more years of service.
• Assuming a refund buyback restores the old plan. A rehired member is placed in the plan for new hires, currently GSEPS.
• Taking a PLOP without noting that it reduces the monthly benefit for life, reduces a beneficiary’s benefit too, and closes the supplemental annuity route.
• Counting on a cost-of-living increase. Adjustments are not guaranteed, and members who joined on or after July 1, 2009 are not entitled to one.

Related on this site: Georgia retirement taxes, does Georgia tax pensions, pension lump sum versus monthly annuity, pension refund versus leaving it and public pension retirement decisions by system.

Sources

• Employees’ Retirement System of Georgia, Pension Handbook: https://www.ers.ga.gov/pod/ers-pension-handbook
• IRS, Topic no. 413, Rollovers from retirement plans (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc413
• IRS, Topic no. 558, Additional tax on early distributions from retirement plans other than IRAs (irs.gov): https://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/tc558

Sources: the primary documents linked above, read on October 2, 2026. General information from each system’s own published materials, not legal, tax or financial advice. Your own member statement and the system’s current rules decide your benefit, and a pension counsellor at the system or a fee-only adviser is the right place to confirm anything consequential.