Short answer: first hired before September 1, 2012? You're Tier 1: full benefit at 60, and 2.125% then 2.25% a year in the formula. Hired on or after that date, you're Tier 2: full benefit at 65 and 2% a year. Both tiers can use the Rule of 85. A refund can move a returning member to Tier 2 (see leaving teaching), and the tier sets your early-retirement ages. The calculator works out your tier from your hire date.
Tier 1: first hired before September 1, 2012. Tier 2: first hired on or after September 1, 2012.
Handbook p. 7, Benefit Tiers| Tier 1 | Tier 2 | |
|---|---|---|
| Who | First hired before September 1, 2012 | First hired on or after September 1, 2012 |
| Benefit for each year | 2.125% for each of the first 15 years, 2.25% after | 2% for every year |
| Highest average salary | Best 36 continuous months | Best 60 continuous months |
| Full benefit | Age 60, vested, or the Rule of 85 | Age 65, vested, or the Rule of 85 |
| Reduced benefit | Age 50, vested, or 25 years at any age | Age 55, vested, or 25 years at any age |
| Early cut | 5% a year under 60 | 5% a year under 65 |
Sources: Handbook p. 9, Estimating Your Benefit and Public Employee Pension Benefit Table; Handbook pp. 7-8, Highest Average Salary and What Counts as Acceptable Salary; Handbook p. 11, Retirement Eligibility Ages and Understanding the 'Rule of 85'; Handbook p. 11, Taking a Reduced Retirement Benefit; Handbook p. 11, Taking a Reduced Retirement Benefit
If you left and came back
Original hire date and vesting/refund history. Tier 1: originally hired before Sept. 1, 2012. Tier 2: originally hired on or after Sept. 1, 2012. A Tier 1 member who returns on or after Sept. 1, 2012 comes back in Tier 2 if they were not vested when they left (left with fewer than 4 years without a refund) or took a refund or rollover. A vested Tier 1 member who left the account on deposit keeps Tier 1. A redeposit made after placement in Tier 2 does not restore Tier 1. Purchased service never changes the tier. Handbook p. 7, Benefit Tiers; p. 13, Important Tier 2 Rule; W.S. 9-3-402(a)(xxix); W.S. 9-3-415(d), (m)(vii)
| Your history | Your tier |
|---|---|
| Hired before Sept. 2012, vested, left your money with WRS, came back laterWRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook (Updated August 2026), p. 7, Benefit Tiers | Tier 1 |
| Hired before Sept. 2012, took a refund or rollover, came back on or after Sept. 1, 2012WRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook (Updated August 2026), p. 7, Benefit Tiers | Tier 2 |
| Hired before Sept. 2012, left with under 4 years (not vested), came back on or after Sept. 1, 2012WRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook (Updated August 2026), p. 7, Benefit Tiers | Tier 2 |
| Placed in Tier 2, then redeposited an old Tier 1 refundWRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook (Updated August 2026), pp. 12-13, Redeposits and Important Tier 2 Rule | Still Tier 2 |
| Bought service creditW.S. 9-3-415(d), (m)(i)-(vii) | No change to your tier |
WRS documents describe the Tier 2 start slightly differently (hire date, join date, first contribution). They all point to September 1, 2012.
The details
The handbook (p. 7) sorts tiers by 'original hire date'. The valuation (pp. 8, 51) says 'join ... by August 31, 2012'. Pension Plan Characteristics says 'first contribution before 9/1/2012'. W.S. 9-3-402(a)(xxix) defines Tier 2 by contributions for service on or after Sept. 1, 2012 plus the refund and non-vested return rules. Our calculator uses the hire date the user enters plus the handbook's return rules.
The Rule of 85
Unreduced: Tier 1 at age 60 and vested; Tier 2 at age 65 and vested; either tier when age plus years of service credit equal 85 or more (Rule of 85). Once you reach 60 (Tier 1) or 65 (Tier 2) the Rule of 85 no longer matters. Handbook p. 11, Retirement Eligibility Ages and Understanding the 'Rule of 85'
We add your age in years and months to your service. WRS might count age differently, which could move your Rule of 85 date by up to a month.
Why
The sources say 'age plus years of service credit equal 85' without saying whether age is counted in completed years, months or days. Our calculator uses completed months of age plus service years.
From the sources
- Wyoming public school teachers and other school district employees belong to the Wyoming Retirement System (WRS) Public Employee Pension Plan. If your employer participates, enrollment is required when you are hired into a full-time or part-time position.Handbook p. 4, Employers Who Participate and Enrolling in the Public Employee Pension Plan; W.S. 9-3-402(a)(vi)(D), (vii)
- Your tier depends on your original hire date. Hired before September 1, 2012: Tier 1. Hired on or after September 1, 2012: Tier 2. Your online account shows your tier.Handbook p. 7, Benefit Tiers
- If you were hired before September 1, 2012, left, and came back on or after that date, you keep Tier 1 only if you were vested and left your money with WRS. If you took a refund or rollover, or weren't vested when you left, you come back in Tier 2. Redepositing an old refund later does not put you back in Tier 1.Handbook p. 7, Benefit Tiers, and p. 13, Important Tier 2 Rule; W.S. 9-3-402(a)(xxix)
- University of Wyoming and community college employees choose once between a WRS pension and an alternative retirement plan. K-12 school district employees don't get that choice.Handbook p. 4, Important Note
Questions
How do I know my tier?
By the date you were first hired by a WRS employer: before September 1, 2012 is Tier 1, on or after is Tier 2. Your online account at pension.wyo.gov shows it.
I left and came back. Which tier am I?
If you were vested and left your money with WRS, you keep Tier 1. If you took a refund or rollover, or weren't vested when you left, you came back in Tier 2.
What is the Rule of 85?
Your age plus your years of service credit. When it reaches 85, you can retire with no cut in either tier, at any age.
Source: WRS Public Employee Pension Plan Handbook, Updated August 2026, pp. 4, 7-8, 11, 12-13, 16. Also: Actuarial valuation (2026); WRS Pension Plan Characteristics; W.S. §§ 9-3-402, 9-3-415, 9-3-430. Last reviewed .