Federal Employees Group Life Insurance: What You Need To Know

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. FEGLI provides group term life insurance, which does not build up any cash value or paid-up value. It consists of Basic life insurance coverage and three options. Most federal employees have Basic Life Insurance under the FEGLI program, which is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater.

Basic Life Insurance

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. Most federal employees are eligible for FEGLI coverage and are automatically enrolled in Basic Life Insurance unless they waive coverage. Basic Life Insurance is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater. There is also an Extra Benefit for employees under the age of 45: double life insurance benefits until age 36, decreasing at 10% per year until age 45, when the extra coverage ends.

FEGLI provides group term life insurance, which means it does not build up any cash value or paid-up value. The cost of Basic Life Insurance is withheld from a federal employee's pay each pay period. Life insurance benefits under FEGLI would be paid in addition to any workers' compensation, Social Security, Civil Service Retirement System or Federal Employees Retirement System survivor benefit, or savings plan payment.

FEGLI optional insurance coverage

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. Most employees are eligible for FEGLI coverage, which provides group term life insurance.

FEGLI consists of Basic life insurance coverage and three optional insurance coverage options. Basic life insurance is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater. In most cases, if you are a new federal employee, you are automatically covered by Basic life insurance and your payroll office deducts premiums from your paycheck unless you waive the coverage.

The three optional insurance coverage options under FEGLI are:

• Option A: Standard, which provides $10,000 of coverage, doubling in case of accidental death.
• Option B: Additional, which provides one to five multiples of pay.
• Option C: This option is not explicitly defined but is mentioned as one of the four FEGLI options, along with Basic, Option A, and Option B.

The cost of each of these options is withheld from a federal employee's pay each pay period. It is important to note that FEGLI does not build up any cash value or paid-up value. Employees can use the calculator provided by the Office of Personnel Management to understand the cost of each type of coverage or any combinations thereof.

FEGLI benefits

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. The program was established on 29 August 1954 and is administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM).

FEGLI provides group term life insurance, which does not build up any cash value or paid-up value. Most federal employees are eligible for FEGLI coverage and are automatically enrolled in Basic Life Insurance unless they waive coverage. Basic Life Insurance is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater. Premiums are deducted from the employee's paycheck.

There are three additional FEGLI options: Option A, Option B, and Option C. Option A provides an extra $10,000 in coverage, which doubles in the case of accidental death. Option B provides one to five multiples of the employee's pay in additional coverage. There is also an Extra Benefit for employees under age 45, which provides double life insurance benefits until age 36, decreasing by 10% per year until age 45.

FEGLI options

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. Most federal employees are eligible for FEGLI coverage and are automatically covered by Basic Life Insurance unless they waive it. Basic Life Insurance is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater.

There are four FEGLI options: Basic, Option A, Option B and Option C. The cost of each of these options is withheld from a federal employee’s pay each pay period. The Office of Personnel Management provides a calculator to help federal employees understand the cost of each of these types of coverage, or any combinations thereof.

Option A is a standard option that provides $10,000 of coverage, which doubles in the case of accidental death. Option B provides one to five multiples of pay. There is also an Extra Benefit for employees under age 45: double life insurance benefits until age 36, decreasing at 10 per cent per year until age 45, at which time the extra coverage will end.

FEGLI claims

Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (FEGLI) is the largest group life insurance program in the world, covering over four million federal employees and retirees, as well as many of their family members. The program was established in 1954 and is administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Metropolitan Life Insurance Company (MetLife) provides the life insurance, and the Office of Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance (OFEGLI) adjudicates the claims.

Most federal employees are eligible for FEGLI coverage and are automatically enrolled in Basic Life Insurance unless they waive coverage. Basic Life Insurance is equal to the actual rate of annual basic pay (rounded to the next $1,000) plus $2,000, or $10,000, whichever is greater. Premiums are deducted from the employee's paycheck. There is also an Extra Benefit for employees under age 45: double life insurance benefits until age 36, decreasing at 10% per year until age 45, when the extra coverage ends.

In addition to Basic Life Insurance, there are three optional FEGLI coverage options: Option A, Option B, and Option C. Option A provides an additional $10,000 in coverage, which doubles in the case of accidental death. Option B provides one to five multiples of pay in additional coverage. Option C is available to employees with Option B coverage and provides coverage for their family members. The cost of these options is withheld from the employee's pay each period.

FEGLI benefits are paid in addition to any workers' compensation, Social Security, Civil Service Retirement System or Federal Employees Retirement System survivor benefit, or savings plan payment. It is important to note that FEGLI provides group term life insurance and does not build up any cash value or paid-up value. As such, understanding the different options and managing FEGLI benefits can be a challenging task for federal employees. The Office of Personnel Management provides resources and tools, such as a calculator, to help employees understand the cost and details of their coverage options.

Frequently asked questions