For TRS retirees

Can retired Texas teachers work? TRS employment after retirement rules, in TRS’s own words

If you retired from a Texas public school, or plan to, the Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) sets the rules for working after you retire. TRS calls them employment after retirement (EAR). TRS writes its limits for work with a TRS-covered employer, such as a Texas school district or charter school, and work through a company can count as that work. If you retired on disability, you have limits of your own. This guide sets out the rules in TRS’s and Texas law’s own words, and says where TRS’s documents differ.

TRS documents (September 2025 editions), TRS web pages and Texas law as read in October 2026 · Last reviewed October 20, 2026 · Checked against official sources

Quick answer

TRS’s rules for working after you retire turn on who you work for, when you retired, and whether you retired on service or on disability.

Employers TRS does not cover. TRS’s brochure has two sentences about them, one for service retirees and one for disability retirees. Two other TRS rules bear on them: the third-party entity rule and the earnings cap for disability retirees. Both sentences and both rules are in section 1.
Work through a company. Work for a company that a TRS-covered employer retains to provide personnel can count as work for that employer. TRS’s brochure, its handbook and Texas law word this rule differently (section 2).
Your first months. In your first months of retirement, ask TRS before you take any job. TRS says: “All retirees must observe a one full, calendar-month break in service after their effective retirement date to avoid revoking their retirement.” and “Returning to work for a TRS-covered employer in the month directly following your effective retirement date will revoke your retirement.” TRS writes these rules for work with a TRS-covered employer, and work through a company that such an employer retains to provide personnel can count as that work for a retiree who “performs services for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer” (TRS’s third-party entity rule). (section 3)
Going back to a TRS-covered employer. TRS says: “In general, a TRS retiree who works for a TRS-covered employer during a month will forfeit his or her annuity for that month unless the retiree or the retiree’s employment qualifies for an exception.” The exceptions are substitute work, one-half time or less, full time after a 12-month break and §33.913 tutoring programs, each with conditions. TRS also says: “Service retirees with an effective retirement date on or before Jan. 1, 2021 are not subject to the EAR restrictions.” They still need the one-month break before working for a TRS-covered employer (section 4).
If you retired on disability. TRS says: “Disability retirees may also work an unlimited amount of time for an employer not covered by TRS but may be subject to compensation limits.” For work with a TRS-covered employer they have a yearly day limit, and an earnings cap can reach all their work (section 5).

Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

1. Working for an employer not covered by TRS

The newest full TRS guide to working after retirement we found is its brochure Employment After Retirement: How it Works for You (September 2025). Its first page has two sentences about employers TRS does not cover, one for service retirees and one for disability retirees. Here they are, with the rules elsewhere in TRS’s brochure and handbook, and in Texas law, that bear on them. In your first months of retirement, read section 3 too.

TRS’s brochure (Employment After Retirement: How it Works for You, September 2025) says: “Service retirees may work without limits for an employer not covered by TRS without losing any monthly annuity payments.” That sentence has conditions. TRS defines a TRS-covered employer as “A public, state-supported educational institution in Texas, including school districts, charter schools, education service centers, and institutions of higher education.” Work through a company can count as work for such an employer: TRS says “A third-party entity is an entity retained by a TRS-covered employer to provide personnel to the institution to perform duties or provide services that an employee of the institution would normally perform or provide.” and “If a TRS retiree is employed by a third-party entity and the retiree performs services for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer, the retiree will be considered employed in Texas public education for the purpose of EAR.” TRS’s Benefits Handbook words it as work that “may qualify”: if “you are employed by a third-party entity and perform work for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer at any time after your retirement, that work may qualify as employment for the purposes of EAR if the work would normally be performed by an employee.” Texas law (Government Code §824.601(d)) says: “A retiree who is an employee of a third-party entity is considered to be employed by a Texas public educational institution” for purposes of that subchapter “unless the retiree does not perform duties or provide services on behalf of or for the benefit of the institution.” If you are a TRS disability retiree, your limits are different. TRS says: “Disability retirees may also work an unlimited amount of time for an employer not covered by TRS but may be subject to compensation limits.” For work with a TRS-covered employer, a disability retiree may use only the substitute, one-half time or less and non-profit tutor exceptions (apart from a one-time trial work period), for no more than 90 days in a school year in all, and TRS adds: “Please note: The 12 full, consecutive-calendar-month break in service is not available to disability retirees.” On the trial work period TRS says: “As a disability retiree, you are allowed a one-time only trial work period to determine if you can return to work full time.” “This trial period must be three consecutive months.” “To opt for the trial work period, you must notify TRS by submitting the Employment after Retirement Disability Election form (TRS 118D), found on the TRS website.” “The TRS 118D must be filed with TRS before the end of the trial period for the election to be effective.” “The trial work period cannot be elected in the same school year you retired.” “If you continue to work full time after the trial work period has ended, you will be recovered from disability retirement and returned to active membership.” “You must repay any annuity payments that you received after being restored to active service.” “Any days you work during the three-month trial period do not count against the 90-day limit for a school year.” If you applied for disability retirement after Aug. 31, 2007 and your retirement took effect after that date, TRS limits what you may earn: “The compensation cap is based on your income during a calendar year.” “The limit is the highest salary received in any school year before disability retirement or $40,000, whichever is greater.” “The limit applies to all employment even employment with a non TRS-covered employer.” “This limit does not apply to retirees receiving gross disability retirement benefits of $2,000 or less per year.” “If you’re subject to the cap, you must correctly report your compensation to TRS by May 1 of the calendar year after the compensation was earned.” TRS adds: “If you exceed the amount of compensation allowed, you will forfeit your disability annuity payment and you will be required to pay for the full cost of your TRS-Care coverage, until you are able to report that your compensation is below the established limit.” TRS’s brochure also says: “Do not rely on information provided to you by another retiree, co-worker or even your employer.” Confirm your own situation with TRS before you start: call 800-223-8778, Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central (TRS’s contact page, read October 20, 2026).

Which employers TRS covers. TRS’s definition names school districts, charter schools, education service centers and institutions of higher education after the word “including”, so they are examples, not a closed list. The definitions in Texas law control, and TRS’s brochure says: “TRS laws and rules must remain the final authority.”

2. When work through a company counts as work for a TRS-covered employer

TRS calls a company that a TRS-covered employer retains to provide personnel a “third-party entity”. TRS’s brochure, its Benefits Handbook and Texas law each word the rule in their own way:

Source	Its words
TRS brochure (September 2025)	“A third-party entity is an entity retained by a TRS-covered employer to provide personnel to the institution to perform duties or provide services that an employee of the institution would normally perform or provide.” “If a TRS retiree is employed by a third-party entity and the retiree performs services for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer, the retiree will be considered employed in Texas public education for the purpose of EAR.”
TRS Benefits Handbook (September 2025)	If “you are employed by a third-party entity and perform work for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer at any time after your retirement, that work may qualify as employment for the purposes of EAR if the work would normally be performed by an employee.”
Texas Government Code §824.601(a) and (d)	“In this section, ‘third-party entity’ means an entity retained by a Texas public educational institution to provide personnel to the institution” “that perform duties or provide services that employees of the institution would otherwise perform or provide.” And: “A retiree who is an employee of a third-party entity is considered to be employed by a Texas public educational institution” “unless the retiree does not perform duties or provide services on behalf of or for the benefit of the institution.”

As we read these texts, the statute turns on two things: whether the company is “retained by” a Texas public educational institution to provide personnel, and whether your work is done “on behalf of or for the benefit of” that institution. The brochure says such work “will be considered” employment in Texas public education; the handbook says it “may qualify”. The TRS chapters of Texas law read for this guide do not define “retained by”, “on behalf of” or “for the benefit of”, and TRS’s own rules (Texas Administrative Code, Title 34, chapter 31) were not read for it. No TRS text read for this guide says who reports such work to TRS or how surcharges apply to it.

The 12-month break. TRS’s brochure adds: “Any employment with a third-party entity will also restart a retiree's 12-month break in service required to be eligible for full-time employment without restrictions.” That break is part of the full-time exception in section 4.

Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

3. The one-month break and the June 15 rule for TRS-covered employers

In your first months of retirement, ask TRS before you take any job. TRS says: “All retirees must observe a one full, calendar-month break in service after their effective retirement date to avoid revoking their retirement.” and “Returning to work for a TRS-covered employer in the month directly following your effective retirement date will revoke your retirement.” TRS writes these rules for work with a TRS-covered employer, and work through a company that such an employer retains to provide personnel can count as that work for a retiree who “performs services for or on behalf of a TRS-covered employer” (TRS’s third-party entity rule).

For work with a TRS-covered employer, TRS says: “You must always have a one full, calendar-month break in service before you may return to work for a TRS-covered employer even if the work qualifies for an EAR exception.” TRS adds that “Your effective retirement date with TRS will always be the last calendar day of the month that you retire”. The June 15 rule: TRS says “If you must work into the month of June to complete work required for the school year, you may establish a May 31 retirement date provided you terminate your employment no later than June 15.” “You must also file your retirement application no later than July 31.” If you use it, “you may not return to work from June 15 through July 31; otherwise, you will revoke your retirement.” TRS also says “an early-age retiree may not negotiate with a TRS-covered employer, for any type of employment, before completing the one full, calendar-month break in service.” and that normal-age retirees “may not negotiate with a TRS-covered employer for any type of employment that would not qualify for an EAR exception before” completing that break.

What revoking means. Texas law (Government Code §824.005(b)) says a person who has retired “revokes that retirement if the person becomes employed in any position in a public school during the first month following” that person’s effective date of retirement (or during the first two months, for a retirement date set under the June 15 rule) “and must return any retirement benefits received under the original retirement.” The statute says “public school”; TRS’s guides say “TRS-covered employer”.

An example, as we read TRS’s rules. Your retirement date is always the last day of a month. If it is May 31, June is the month directly after it, so July is the earliest month for work with a TRS-covered employer. With the June 15 rule, TRS’s trifold for service retirees says: “you may not return to employment in Texas public education until Aug. 1.”

If you retired on disability, read section 5 too. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

4. Going back to a TRS-covered employer: the EAR exceptions

This section is about work for a TRS-covered employer, such as a Texas school district, charter school, education service center or college, whether you are hired directly or through a company (section 2). TRS’s EAR page opens: “Are you considering returning to work for a TRS-covered employer after you retire?” The one-month break comes first (section 3).

TRS’s Employment After Retirement (EAR) page says: “EAR limits apply to service retirees who retired after Jan. 1, 2021 and disability retirees (regardless of retirement date) who are working for a TRS-covered employer under the one-half time or less exception.” and “EAR limits can vary depending on when you retired or what kind of job you have, and TRS can help you understand the specific limits or requirements that apply to you.” TRS’s brochure says: “In general, a TRS retiree who works for a TRS-covered employer during a month will forfeit his or her annuity for that month unless the retiree or the retiree’s employment qualifies for an exception.” “Service retirees with an effective retirement date on or before Jan. 1, 2021 are not subject to the EAR restrictions.” (They still need the one full, calendar-month break before working for a TRS-covered employer.) “Disability retirees are subject to the EAR restrictions regardless of their effective retirement date.” For service retirees, the brochure says that if you exceed the limits, “you will first be notified of an EAR violation without loss of annuity.” If you exceed them again, “you will receive a second warning and be required to pay TRS what you earned for the month that you exceeded the EAR limits or the gross amount of your annuity payment for that month, whichever is less.” A third time, “you will forfeit your full monthly annuity for each month that you exceeded the limits.” And “you will only receive a first and second strike once in your retirement. Your strikes do not reset each school year.” “Please note the three strikes warning procedure does not apply to disability retirees.”

TRS’s EAR exceptions for work with a TRS-covered employer, in TRS’s and Texas law’s words
Exception	What TRS and Texas law say
Substitute work	Substitute work: Texas law allows work “as a substitute only with pay not more than the daily rate of substitute pay established by the employer”. TRS’s brochure says: “You may work without any limit on the number of hours and days if:” “the position is not vacant;” “you are not paid more than the daily rate of pay established by the employer;” “and you do not perform any other type of work for a TRS-covered employer in the same calendar month.” It adds: “You may work as a substitute in a vacant position for up to 20 days during a school year” and “that position must not be vacant because you retired from it.” “Working any part of a day, as a substitute, counts as working a full day.”
One-half time or less	One-half time or less: TRS says “This employment type allows you to work up to 92 hours per month.” and “if you work for more than one TRS-covered employer during a month, you are still limited to 92 hours total”; “TRS-covered employers are required by law to report all hours worked, even Saturdays and Sundays, and any paid leave.” TRS adds that “if you work as a substitute and in a one-half time or less position in the same month, your combined work must not exceed 11 workdays in that calendar month.” and that before combining exceptions “a retiree should strongly consider contacting TRS for guidance before doing so.”
Full time after a 12-month break	Full time after a 12-month break (service retirees only; disability retirees cannot use it): Texas law allows work “on as much as a full-time basis, if the retiree has been separated from service with all Texas public educational institutions” “for at least 12 full consecutive months after the retiree's effective date of retirement;” TRS’s brochure says “You cannot work in any capacity in Texas public education during the 12-month break in service.” and “This break in service begins the day after your effective retirement date and ends on the last day of the 12th month.” Its Benefits Handbook says that during that 12-month break, “which can occur at any time during retirement, the service retiree cannot be employed by a TRS-covered employer in any capacity.” (The two documents differ on when the 12 months run; ask TRS.) TRS also says: “If you perform work as an independent contractor or volunteer for a TRS-covered employer during the first 12” consecutive calendar months after your effective retirement date “and that work would normally be done by an employee, you will be considered an employee instead of a volunteer or independent contractor.” Then “your work will restart your 12-month break in service required to be eligible for full-time employment without restrictions.”
Tutoring in a §33.913 program	The non-profit tutor exception: Texas law allows work “as a tutor under Section 33.913, Education Code.” TRS says “Tutoring programs under Section 33.913 are administered by school districts” and that the exception “does not cover all tutor work that a retiree performs for a school district if the retiree is affiliated with a non-profit entity.”

Volunteers and contractors. TRS’s brochure says: “After the first 12 months following your retirement, you may volunteer or work as an independent contractor for a TRS-covered employer, without being subject to the EAR restrictions, if you meet all the legal requirements for volunteering or working as an independent contractor.”

Through a company. Work for a TRS-covered employer through a company can count too, and TRS says it also restarts the 12-month break: TRS’s words are in section 2.

What changed in 2025. The statute file’s history lines show the last changes to §824.601 and §824.602 in 2021. TRS’s summer 2025 newsletter for retirees says: “This session saw limited legislative activity directly impacting TRS members.” The change it names is the surcharge rule below. The newsletter points to TRS’s full 2025 legislative summary, which was not read for this guide.

Surcharges, an employer’s cost: TRS says “Surcharges are additional contributions that TRS-covered employers must pay to TRS if they employ TRS retirees who retired after Sept. 1, 2005” “for more than one-half time during a month.” Its Benefits Handbook says that if you “work more than one-half time in a month, in most cases your employer(s) will owe TRS pension and health care surcharges.” TRS’s brochure says the health care surcharge “only applies if an employed retiree is a TRS-Care participant.” HB 2 (2025) repealed the Texas law that barred employers from passing these costs on to the retiree, effective June 20, 2025, and TRS removed the same ban from its own rules effective December 30, 2025 (Texas Register). TRS’s brochure now says: “an employer may require that a TRS retiree it employs share in the cost of these surcharges as a condition of employment.” “TRS does not review or approve these agreements.”

If you retired on disability, only some of these exceptions are open to you: see section 5. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

5. If you retired on disability

If you are a TRS disability retiree, your limits are different. TRS says: “Disability retirees may also work an unlimited amount of time for an employer not covered by TRS but may be subject to compensation limits.” For work with a TRS-covered employer, a disability retiree may use only the substitute, one-half time or less and non-profit tutor exceptions (apart from a one-time trial work period), for no more than 90 days in a school year in all, and TRS adds: “Please note: The 12 full, consecutive-calendar-month break in service is not available to disability retirees.” On the trial work period TRS says: “As a disability retiree, you are allowed a one-time only trial work period to determine if you can return to work full time.” “This trial period must be three consecutive months.” “To opt for the trial work period, you must notify TRS by submitting the Employment after Retirement Disability Election form (TRS 118D), found on the TRS website.” “The TRS 118D must be filed with TRS before the end of the trial period for the election to be effective.” “The trial work period cannot be elected in the same school year you retired.” “If you continue to work full time after the trial work period has ended, you will be recovered from disability retirement and returned to active membership.” “You must repay any annuity payments that you received after being restored to active service.” “Any days you work during the three-month trial period do not count against the 90-day limit for a school year.” If you applied for disability retirement after Aug. 31, 2007 and your retirement took effect after that date, TRS limits what you may earn: “The compensation cap is based on your income during a calendar year.” “The limit is the highest salary received in any school year before disability retirement or $40,000, whichever is greater.” “The limit applies to all employment even employment with a non TRS-covered employer.” “This limit does not apply to retirees receiving gross disability retirement benefits of $2,000 or less per year.” “If you’re subject to the cap, you must correctly report your compensation to TRS by May 1 of the calendar year after the compensation was earned.” TRS adds: “If you exceed the amount of compensation allowed, you will forfeit your disability annuity payment and you will be required to pay for the full cost of your TRS-Care coverage, until you are able to report that your compensation is below the established limit.”

On the earnings cap, TRS’s brochure adds: “It includes compensation for any work performed for any employer including a TRS-covered employer, self-employment, work as an independent contractor, and profit from a business.” For the day limit, TRS’s trifold says: “A school year for purposes of employment after retirement is Sept. 1 through Aug. 31.”

Ask TRS before you accept any job, tutoring included. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

6. Which TRS documents are current, and how to reach TRS

TRS’s brochure says: “TRS laws and rules must remain the final authority.” When this guide’s facts were read on Oct. 20, 2026, these were the documents behind it:

Document	Date it shows	Status
Texas Government Code, chapters 821 to 825 (TRS law)	No page date; §824.601 and §824.602 last amended in 2021; §825.4092 in 2025 (HB 2)	Controls.
TRS brochure: Employment After Retirement: How it Works for You	Cover September 2025	The newest full TRS guide to working after retirement we found. It carries the 2025 surcharge change, but its back page still says it is “based upon the TRS plan terms in effect on Nov. 1, 2021.”
TRS Benefits Handbook	Cover September 2025	Current. Its Social Security passage is not updated for the Social Security Fairness Act (below).
TRS trifolds for service and disability retirees	Updated September 2025	Current short guides. The disability trifold cites Education Code section 33.923 for the tutor exception, where Texas law, the brochure and the service trifold say §33.913.
TRS web page: Employment After Retirement (EAR)	None shown	Current; read October 20, 2026. It links to the brochure and the two trifolds.
TRS’s rules (Texas Administrative Code, Title 34, chapter 31)	Latest change found in the Texas Register’s indexes through October 16, 2026: §31.3 (surcharges), effective December 30, 2025	Their current official text was not read for this guide, so it quotes none of them.

On October 20, 2026, TRS’s links served the September 2025 editions. TRS’s publications page could not be read for this guide, so a newer edition cannot be ruled out.

Social Security. TRS’s Benefits Handbook (September 2025) still says: “In some instances, the calculation of your social security benefits may be affected by the TRS benefits that you receive.” It points readers to the windfall elimination provision and the government pension offset without mentioning that both were repealed. TRS’s current Social Security page says: “The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 (HR 82), which became law on Jan. 5, 2025, repealed two provisions that reduced or eliminated Social Security benefits for certain retirees.” and “The best and most direct source for information on how this may affect you is the Social Security Administration.” Our Social Security guide covers the rest.

How to reach TRS. Confirm your own situation with TRS before you start: call 800-223-8778, Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Central (TRS’s contact page, read October 20, 2026). For the hearing impaired, TRS lists Texas Relay 711 or 800-735-2989. TRS’s contact page has its mailing address and offices.

Frequently asked questions

Can a retired teacher work in Texas?

Yes, with conditions that depend on who you work for, when you retired and whether you retired on service or on disability. What TRS says about employers it does not cover, with its conditions, is in section 1. Work through a company can count as work for a TRS-covered employer (section 2). Work for a TRS-covered employer, such as a Texas school district or charter school, comes after the one-month break (section 3) and has TRS’s EAR limits and exceptions (section 4). If you retired on disability, read section 5 first. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

What does TRS mean by employment after retirement (EAR)?

TRS’s brochure says that when it uses the term EAR, “it refers to any work a TRS retiree performs for a TRS-covered employer and the TRS laws and rules that apply”. TRS’s EAR page says: “EAR limits can vary depending on when you retired or what kind of job you have, and TRS can help you understand the specific limits or requirements that apply to you.” “If you have questions about your specific situation, please contact TRS.” The exceptions are in section 4. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

When can I go back to work after I retire from TRS?

How many hours can a TRS retiree work?

TRS’s hour limit is part of its one-half time or less exception for work with a TRS-covered employer. One-half time or less: TRS says “This employment type allows you to work up to 92 hours per month.” and “if you work for more than one TRS-covered employer during a month, you are still limited to 92 hours total”; “TRS-covered employers are required by law to report all hours worked, even Saturdays and Sundays, and any paid leave.” TRS adds that “if you work as a substitute and in a one-half time or less position in the same month, your combined work must not exceed 11 workdays in that calendar month.” and that before combining exceptions “a retiree should strongly consider contacting TRS for guidance before doing so.” TRS’s EAR page says: “EAR limits apply to service retirees who retired after Jan. 1, 2021 and disability retirees (regardless of retirement date) who are working for a TRS-covered employer under the one-half time or less exception.” The other exceptions (substitute work, full time after a 12-month break and §33.913 tutoring programs) are in section 4. If you retired on disability, see section 5. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

Can retired teachers substitute in Texas?

Substitute work: Texas law allows work “as a substitute only with pay not more than the daily rate of substitute pay established by the employer”. TRS’s brochure says: “You may work without any limit on the number of hours and days if:” “the position is not vacant;” “you are not paid more than the daily rate of pay established by the employer;” “and you do not perform any other type of work for a TRS-covered employer in the same calendar month.” It adds: “You may work as a substitute in a vacant position for up to 20 days during a school year” and “that position must not be vacant because you retired from it.” “Working any part of a day, as a substitute, counts as working a full day.” For work with a TRS-covered employer, the break comes first: TRS says “You must always have a one full, calendar-month break in service before you may return to work for a TRS-covered employer even if the work qualifies for an EAR exception.” Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

Can retired Texas teachers work as tutors in a school district?

The non-profit tutor exception: Texas law allows work “as a tutor under Section 33.913, Education Code.” TRS says “Tutoring programs under Section 33.913 are administered by school districts” and that the exception “does not cover all tutor work that a retiree performs for a school district if the retiree is affiliated with a non-profit entity.” Texas law sets four requirements for a tutor in such a program: “To participate in the program as a tutor, a person must: (1) be an active or retired teacher; (2) apply for the position in a manner specified by the nonprofit organization;” The other two are saying in the application whether you plan to tutor for pay, as a volunteer or both, and in person, online or both, and not being on the state’s registry of people not eligible for employment by a public school (§33.913(b)). TRS’s brochure says the retiree’s tutor employment “must meet all requirements for qualifying tutor employment under Section 33.913, Education Code.” As we read Education Code §33.913, a paid tutor in such a program is employed by the school district or open-enrollment charter school that runs it. Other tutoring for a school district falls under TRS’s other rules for TRS-covered work (section 4). Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

Can retired teachers work full time in Texas?

Full time after a 12-month break (service retirees only; disability retirees cannot use it): Texas law allows work “on as much as a full-time basis, if the retiree has been separated from service with all Texas public educational institutions” “for at least 12 full consecutive months after the retiree's effective date of retirement;” TRS’s brochure says “You cannot work in any capacity in Texas public education during the 12-month break in service.” and “This break in service begins the day after your effective retirement date and ends on the last day of the 12th month.” Its Benefits Handbook says that during that 12-month break, “which can occur at any time during retirement, the service retiree cannot be employed by a TRS-covered employer in any capacity.” (The two documents differ on when the 12 months run; ask TRS.) TRS also says: “If you perform work as an independent contractor or volunteer for a TRS-covered employer during the first 12” consecutive calendar months after your effective retirement date “and that work would normally be done by an employee, you will be considered an employee instead of a volunteer or independent contractor.” Then “your work will restart your 12-month break in service required to be eligible for full-time employment without restrictions.” Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

When can teachers retire in Texas?

TRS’s Benefits Handbook says members with “five years of membership service credit are eligible to retire and receive a lifetime monthly annuity when they meet the applicable age requirement.” The age rule depends on when you joined. For members who did not have five years of service credit by Aug. 31, 2014, or who joined on or after Sept. 1, 2014, Texas law (Government Code §824.202(a-2)) says a member is “eligible to retire and receive a standard service retirement annuity if:” “the member is at least 65 years old and has at least five years of service credit in the retirement system; or” or “the member is at least 62 years old and has at least five years of service credit in the retirement system and the sum of the member’s age and amount of service credit in the retirement system equals the number 80.” Other members have other age rules in the same section (subsections (a) and (a-1)). Those ages are for an unreduced (standard) annuity. The handbook says your age and service credit, with the date you joined TRS and your eligibility for grandfathering, “determine when you are eligible for an unreduced, normal-age retirement annuity or for an early-age retirement annuity reduced according to actuarial tables or based on a flat percentage rate.” TRS also says: “Your effective retirement date with TRS will always be the last calendar day of the month that you retire”. Ask TRS for your own dates before you set a retirement date. Confirm your own situation with TRS (800-223-8778) before you start.

I left teaching but have not retired. What happens to my TRS account?

If you leave a job covered by TRS, you can leave your contributions with TRS or, if you meet its conditions, ask for a refund. TRS’s Benefits Handbook says that members who have at least “five years of membership service credit are eligible to retire and receive a lifetime monthly annuity when they meet the applicable age requirement.” If you leave your money in, Texas law (Government Code §822.003) says that if a person “has five or more years of service credit, failure to qualify for additional service credit does not terminate membership” in TRS “unless all of the person's contributions are withdrawn.”

With less than five years of service credit, the handbook says: “Inactive members are those who have less than five years of service credit” “and who terminated all employment with TRS-covered employers more than five years ago.” The same law (§822.003(a)(4)) ends membership when a person does not qualify for service credit for five years in a row (effective the next September 1). The handbook says: “When this occurs, former members may have their accumulated contributions returned to them or paid to their beneficiary(ies).” and “Once you have terminated membership, you will no longer earn interest.” The law has exceptions: “A person does not terminate membership under Subsection (a)(4) if the person:” “is performing military service creditable in the retirement system;” “is on leave of absence from employment in a public school;” “is earning service credit in another retirement system covered by Chapter 803 or 805; or” is employed by a TRS-covered employer and “is not eligible for membership in the retirement system because the person is employed on less than a half-time basis.” For its own list of these exceptions, the handbook says inactive members must also “provide documentation that verifies their absence from TRS-covered service”.

A refund has conditions. Texas law says: “A person is not entitled to withdraw contributions if the person is employed, has applied for employment, or has received a promise of employment with an employer covered by the retirement system.” The handbook says the refund form asks for this: “You must sign a notarized statement on the form that your employment with all Texas public educational institutions has permanently terminated and that you are not currently seeking employment with a TRS-covered employer.” It says: “By refunding your account and ending your membership, you lose your service credit and forfeit any retirement benefits (including retirement health care benefits).” It adds that “individuals who terminate membership but later return to TRS membership are subject to new normal-age retirement eligibility criteria, including minimum age 62 for unreduced service retirement benefits, and new more costly early-age retirement reductions.” On taxes, it says: “Refunded amounts that represent pre-tax contributions are subject to a mandatory 20% federal income tax withholding unless you roll over all eligible amounts” (to another eligible plan or a traditional IRA), and “A 10% additional income tax on early distributions may be required by the Internal Revenue Service if you are under 59½.” If you later become a TRS member again, Texas law (Government Code §823.501) lets you reinstate refunded service by paying back the amount refunded plus “a reinstatement fee of eight percent, compounded annually, of the amount withdrawn or refunded” from the refund to the repayment. Questions about your own account go to TRS (800-223-8778).

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