The OPM retirement backlog sharply reversed course in June, growing by 9.3% over May to break its trend of four straight months of declines.
The Office of Personnel Management received 6,919 new retirement claims from federal employees last month and processed 5,614 which caused the outstanding inventory to grow to 15,340. It took an average of 64 days for OPM to process retirement claims.
In May, the OPM retirement backlog fell to an 8 year low (14,035). Despite the unfortunate shift in June, the inventory is still very low relative to recent years.
The table below shows the trends in the OPM retirement backlog during the month of June since 2020. June 2024 is the lowest level during that time.
| Claims Received | Claims Processed | Inventory | |
|---|---|---|---|
| June 2020 | 6,555 | 7,300 | 17,432 |
| June 2021 | 7,264 | 6,884 | 24,999 |
| June 2022 | 6,032 | 7,935 | 23,096 |
| June 2023 | 4,854 | 6,609 | 16,370 |
| June 2024 | 6,919 | 5,614 | 15,340 |
| Average | 6,325 | 6,868 | 19,447 |
The backlog has also done well in 2024 overall compared to previous years. So far this year, the average of the OPM retirement backlog has been 17,115. That is the lowest average through June by far since 2020.
The table below shows the retirement claims averages from January – June since 2020.
| Claims Received | Claims Processed | Inventory | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 8,819 | 8,732 | 20,729 |
| 2021 | 9,229 | 8,343 | 25,967 |
| 2022 | 9,873 | 9,254 | 33,468 |
| 2023 | 8,261 | 9,132 | 21,027 |
| 2024 | 8,384 | 8,210 | 17,115 |
As of June 2024, OPM estimates in its Retirement Quick Guide that federal retirees will get their first full annuity payments within 3-5 months of retiring.
The OPM Retirement Quick Guide is a three-page guide that walks federal employees through what to expect during the retirement process, including helping federal employees estimate when they can expect to receive their interim and first full annuity payments. OPM released it last year and updates it monthly with current estimates based on the current retirement processing status.
OPM Retirement Backlog Processing Status – June 2024
| Month | Claims Received | Claims Processed | Inventory (Steady state goal is 13,000) | Monthly Average Processing Time in Days | FYTD Average Processing Time in Days |
| March 2023 | 8,354 | 8,929 | 22,925 | 69 | 81 |
| April 2023 | 8,298 | 10,839 | 20,384 | 70 | 79 |
| May 2023 | 6,096 | 8,355 | 18,125 | 71 | 78 |
| June 2023 | 4,854 | 6,609 | 16,370 | 74 | 78 |
| July 2023 | 7,261 | 6,584 | 17,047 | 85 | 78 |
| August 2023 | 7,383 | 6,467 | 17,963 | 74 | 78 |
| September 2023 | 6,768 | 8,879 | 15,852 | 70 | 77 |
| October 2023 | 6,924 | 6,098 | 16,678 | 73 | 73 |
| November 2023 | 5,207 | 6,059 | 15,826 | 66 | 69 |
| December 2023 | 5,662 | 7,196 | 14,292 | 68 | 69 |
| January 2024 | 12,997 | 6,467 | 20,822 | 66 | 68 |
| February 2024 | 8,794 | 10,025 | 19,591 | 47 | 62 |
| March 2024 | 7,943 | 10,711 | 16,823 | 55 | 61 |
| April 2024 | 6,901 | 7,647 | 16,077 | 61 | 61 |
| May 2024 | 6,751 | 8,793 | 14,035 | 60 | 61 |
| June 2024 | 6,919 | 5,614 | 15,340 | 64 | 61 |
Disability determinations are included in the pending number after approval. Average Processing Time in Days represents the number of days starting when OPM receives the retirement application through final adjudication.
*Initial retirement cases produced in less than 60 days, on average took 38 days to complete; whereas cases that were produced in more than 60 days, on average, took 122 days to complete.
