Frequently Asked Questions
No. Except in rare cases determined by your agency, you are not expected to work.
Yes. You will continue to accrue retirement benefits during the deferred resignation period. Should you elect to retire (either early retirement or normal retirement) before your final resignation date, your retirement election will override the deferred resignation.
Your agency will review any such requests on a case-by-case basis and may extend a waiver to accommodate reasonable requests.
The federal workforce is expected to undergo significant near-term changes. As a result of these changes (or for other reasons), you may wish to depart the federal government on terms that provide you with sufficient time and economic security to plan for your future—and have a nice vacation.
Deferred resignation is available to all full-time federal employees except for military personnel of the armed forces, employees of the U.S. Postal Service, those in positions related to immigration enforcement and national security, and those in other positions specifically excluded by your employing agency.
Visit the OPM website where you can review the email and find instructions for submitting your acceptance of the deferred resignation offer.
Nothing. You have no obligation to respond to the email. Accepting deferred resignation is in your sole discretion and is completely voluntary.
If you missed the February 6, 2025 deadline due to approved absence for some or all of the period from January 27, 2025 to February 6, 2025, you are entitled to request an extension. Employing agencies may grant reasonable extensions.
Deferred resignation will generally not be available to those who resign after February 6, 2025. Certain exceptions might be made for employees who were on approved absence for some or all of the period from January 28, 2025 to February 6, 2025.
Employees have the right to request a rescission of their resignation at any time and the employing agency will need to review such recission requests. As noted in the deferred resignation letter, it is the objective of the program to move quickly to consolidate and/or reassign roles and in many cases place employees on administrative leave which would likely serve as a valid reason to deny recission requests.
Yes, you may unilaterally accelerate your final resignation date for any reason.
The terms of the deferred resignation letter do not allow for an extension of the final resignation date. There is a narrow possible exception for employees with impending retirement dates. Consult your agency's human resources team for more information.
Nothing in the resignation letter prevents you from seeking outside work during the deferred resignation period. You should ask your agency's human resources team about what restrictions, if any, exist for employees who have resigned but remain employed (including on administrative leave) by their employing agency.
Deferred resignation does not affect your ability to apply to work for the federal government in the future.
You will receive an email confirming receipt with additional information on next steps. Given the volume of emails, this confirmation email may take up to 72 hours. You should retain the record of your resignation email.