FERS Retirement Help in New York City
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By the OnPAR Federal Retirement Education editorial team · Last updated
If you live in New York State, your FERS annuity is free of state income tax, which is a big deal in one of the most expensive metros in the country. We help New York-area feds by phone or video and have no local office.
Federal employers in the area
OPM's August 2026 workforce data shows 28,636 federal civilians on duty in the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro[19]. That count leaves out employees whose metro OPM does not publish, mainly security agencies such as most of DoD[20], so the real number is higher. The Veterans Health Administration is by far the largest (10,476), followed by the IRS (3,254), the Social Security Administration (2,846) and the FAA (1,580)[19].
Who to call about your benefits
Current employees go through their agency's HR or benefits office. Retirees call OPM at 1-888-767-6738[3]. For Social Security questions, find your nearest SSA office with SSA's official locator[21]; we don't list addresses here because offices move.
State tax on your FERS annuity
- New York: On Form IT-201, line 26, you subtract a pension from the federal government that is included in federal AGI[28].
- New Jersey side of the metro: New Jersey's pension exclusion applies if you are 62 or older (or disabled) and your total income is $150,000 or less. With income up to $100,000, the cap is $100,000 for joint filers and $75,000 for single filers[29].
Cost of living
BEA puts the 2024 price level for the New York-Newark-Jersey City metro at 112.6, where 100 is the U.S. average[1].
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Sources
- BEA: Regional Price Parities by State and Metro Area (2024 data, released Feb 19, 2026)
- OPM: Retirement Services contact
- OPM Federal Workforce Data: Federal Employment raw data, August 2026 (EHRI Status, published Oct 4, 2026)
- OPM Data Release Policy (security-agency duty stations outside DC are not published by metro)
- SSA: Social Security Office Locator
- NY Department of Taxation and Finance: 2025 IT-201 instructions, line 26
- NJ Division of Taxation: Retirement Income Exclusions