When you can retire
| You have | You can retire | Cut? |
|---|---|---|
| 30 years or more | At any age | No cut |
| 10 years or more | At 60 or older | No cut |
| 25 to just under 30 years | Before 60 | Cut for life |
The 10 years for the age-60 rule can't include unused sick leave. Sick leave does count toward 25 and 30 years. Member's Guide p. 17, Unused Sick Leave: Limitations
How big the cut is
TRS of Georgia figures two cuts. Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits: Service Retirement
- The age test: 7/12 of 1% for each month you are under 60. That's 7% a year.
- The service test: 7% for each year you are short of 30 years. A part of a year counts as a whole year.
Your cut is whichever is smaller.
Worked examples
Each member retires July 1, 2026 with a $60,000 final average salary.
| Age, service | Age test | Service test | Your cut | Monthly check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 55, 27 years | 60 mo × 7/12% = 35% | 3 yr × 7% = 21% | 21% | $2,700 → $2,133.00 |
| 58, 25 years | 24 mo × 7/12% = 14% | 5 yr × 7% = 35% | 14% | $2,500 → $2,150.00 |
| 57 and 6 months, 29.5 years | 30 mo × 7/12% = 17.5% | 1 yr × 7% = 7% | 7% | $2,950 → $2,743.50 |
| 59, 26 years | 12 mo × 7/12% = 7% | 4 yr × 7% = 28% | 7% | $2,600 → $2,418.00 |
The green cell is the smaller cut, the one TRS of Georgia uses. Full check = 2% × years × $5,000.00 monthly average. Our examples, using the rule above. TRS of Georgia doesn't publish a table of early cuts.
We found no table of early retirement cuts on the TRS of Georgia website or in its guides. Only the rule is published.
What we use: the rule as written: the smaller of the age cut and the service cut.
The early cut is 7/12 of 1% for each month you are under 60. The sources don't say how a part month counts when your 60th birthday isn't on the 1st.
What we use: a part month counts as a full month. If TRS of Georgia counts it differently, its cut could be 7/12 of 1% smaller.
Other costs of retiring early
- If you retire on service retirement with less than 30 years and under age 60, you may get your first COLA only after you reach age 60 or would have reached 30 years of service, whichever comes first. Member's Guide p. 22, Cost-of-Living Adjustments
- You can't take a Partial Lump-Sum Option (PLOP). Member's Guide p. 13, Partial Lump-Sum Option (PLOP)
Ways to shrink the cut
- Unused sick leave. It counts toward 30 years. How sick days convert
- Air Time. With at least 25 years, buy up to 3 years of additional service, only when you apply to retire, at full actuarial cost. Refunded if you withdraw your application. Member's Guide p. 7, Air Time
- One more year. Each year of work can take 7 points off the cut. One more year?
You need 25 years of service to buy Air Time. The sources don't say if unused sick leave counts toward those 25 years.
What we use: sick leave counts toward the 25 years; Air Time itself doesn't.
The website says 25-year early retirement needs an active account. The sources don't say if someone with 30 years and an inactive account can retire before 60.
What we use: 30 years works with an inactive account; only the 25-year early option is blocked.
What the guide says
- You can retire with a full, unreduced benefit after 30 years of service at any age, or at age 60 with at least 10 years of service.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits
- Retirements take effect on the 1st of a month. The date can't be earlier than the month TRS of Georgia gets your application, the month after you have enough service, or the month after you leave your TRS of Georgia job.Member's Guide p. 18, Effective Date of Retirement
- Apply online no more than 6 months before your retirement date and no later than the end of that month. To retire July 1, apply between January 1 and July 31.Member's Guide p. 18, How to Apply for Service Retirement
- For a June, July or August retirement, send your application by the end of March to get your first payment in your retirement month.Member's Guide p. 20, When Are Benefits Paid?
- Your first payment comes in the middle of your first month on the new-retiree payroll. After that, TRS of Georgia pays on the first business day of each month.Member's Guide p. 20, When Are Benefits Paid?
- With at least 25 years of service you can retire before age 60 with a permanently reduced benefit.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits
- The reduction is the smaller of two amounts: 7/12 of 1% for each month you are under 60 (7% a year), or 7% for each year, or part of a year, that you are short of 30 years of service.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits
- Example: at 55 with 27 years, the age test gives 35% (60 months) and the service test gives 21% (3 years short). Your reduction is 21%.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits (rule applied)
- Even a small fraction of a year counts as a full year short of 30. At 29.5 years you're 1 year short, a 7% reduction.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement Benefits
- TRS of Georgia's website says the 25-year early retirement is for members with an active TRS of Georgia account.trsga.com, Eligibility for Retirement
- You can buy up to 3 years of 'Air Time' at full actuarial cost to reduce or remove the penalty. You need 25 years first, and you can buy it only when you apply to retire.Member's Guide p. 7, Air Time; trsga.com, Eligibility for Retirement
- Early retirees don't get cost-of-living increases until they reach 60 or the date they would have had 30 years, whichever comes first.Member's Guide p. 22, Cost-of-Living Adjustments
- You can't take a Partial Lump-Sum Option (PLOP) with an early retirement.Member's Guide p. 13, Partial Lump-Sum Option (PLOP)
- Check with TRS of GeorgiaTRS of Georgia's sources don't spell out how a partial month under 60 is counted. Our calculator counts it as a full month.Member's Guide p. 5, Eligibility for Retirement BenefitsPartial-month counting isn't stated in the saved sources.
Questions
How early can I retire from TRS of Georgia?
With at least 25 years of service you can retire before 60, with a cut. TRS of Georgia's website says you need an active account for this.
How is the early cut figured?
TRS of Georgia works out two cuts and uses the smaller one: 7/12 of 1% for each month you're under 60, or 7% for each year, or part of a year, that you're short of 30 years.
Is the cut permanent?
Yes. The cut stays for life. Early retirees also wait longer for their first cost-of-living increase.
Can I avoid the cut?
Work until you have 30 years or turn 60. Unused sick leave can help you reach 30 years. You can also buy up to 3 years of Air Time at full cost.
Source: Teachers Retirement System of Georgia Member's Guide, 06/26, pp. 5, 7, 13, 18, 20, 22; Pre-Retirement Handout p. 1; ACFR FY2026 p. 12; trsga.com pages. Last reviewed .