Purchase Service Credit

If you have previous permanent public service, you may purchase this service credit at any time while actively contributing to NDPERS. 

In order to purchase any previous public employment, your previous public employer account must be liquidated.  NDPERS requires verification that you are not be eligible to receive any benefits from your previous public employer-sponsored retirement plan.  Under IRC Section 415 limitations, NDPERS cannot offer service credit for any time period in which you are already eligible to receive benefits (retirement or disability) from another public employer-sponsored retirement plan.  

What is considered eligible previous public service?

The public position must have been a permanent and regularly funded position in an eligible governmental unit to be considered eligible previous public service. In addition, the individual must have been at least 18 years of age and employed twenty hours or more per week for at least 20 weeks a year.

Types of Eligible Previous Public Service

• Service Credit in NDPERS defined benefit system that was forfeited by taking refund/rollover,
• Employment by political subdivision participating in NDPERS which your employer did not purchase upon joining NDPERS,
• Employment with a public employer either within or outside the state of North Dakota, or
• Employment with the Federal government.

If you are an active employee of a participating employer and served time in the military, you may be eligible to purchase up to 48 months of active duty service credit for retirement purposes.

In order to purchase any previous military service, your previous military employer-sponsored retirement account must be liquidated.  NDPERS requires verification that you are not eligible to receive any benefits (retirement or disability) from your previous military service.  Under IRC Section 415 limitations, NDPERS cannot offer service credit for any time period in which you are already eligible to receive benefits (retirement or disability) from the military.

If you experience an interruption of covered employment, the provisions of the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) may apply.

If you are an active employee of a participating employer and are granted an employer-approved leave of absence from your position, you will remain a member of NDPERS on inactive status. You will not receive service credit for any unpaid leave of absence because no contributions will be made during that time. However, you may purchase service credit for a leave of absence upon returning to work.

Seasonal employees who work less than 12 months each year may purchase their time away upon returning to work.

If you are an active employee of a participating employer and you served as a member of the Legislative Assembly while a member of NDPERS, you may be eligible to purchase legislative service credit. Service credit must be purchased within one year after the adjournment of the legislative session.

The easiest way to get your own service purchase estimate is online. Login to your PERSLink Member Self Service (MSS) account and click “Service Purchase” for a personal cost estimate.

In order to buy up to five additional years (60 months) generic service credit, you must be vested. Vested means you already have 3 years (36 months) of service credit or more with NDPERS.

If you choose to purchase generic service, this can be based upon a designated amount of funds or a designated number of months. You can submit more than one request for a generic service purchase. However, the total number of months purchased throughout your NDPERS career cannot exceed 60 months.

As your years of service, age and salary increases, this affects the purchasing factors, which also increases the cost of your service purchase.

The easiest way to get your own service purchase estimate is online. Login to your PERSLink Member Self Service (MSS) account and click “Service Purchase” for a personal cost estimate.

At termination of eligible employment, you may convert all or part of your unused sick leave (as certified by your employer) into service credit. One month of service credit will be awarded for every 173.3 hours of unused accumulated sick leave. Hours of sick leave equal to a fraction of a month are deemed to be a full month.

If you are transferring from one participating employer to another without terminating eligible employment, special provisions apply. See the “Notice of Transfer Guide”. NDPERS will record your unused sick leave if your new employer certifies it will not transfer your unused sick leave. You may purchase your unused sick leave at a later date, upon termination of eligible employment.

If you are retiring, conversion of sick leave is optional and does not affect any employer lump sum sick leave payment policies. To elect to convert your sick leave, the “Conversion of Unused Sick Leave Application – Defined Benefit SFN 58358” must be completed. Your sick leave payment must also be paid by the 15th of the month following the month of separation from employment.

The easiest way to get your own service purchase estimate is online. Log in to your Member Self Service (MSS) account and click “Service Purchase” for a personal cost estimate.