Miami-Dade County

Miami-Dade County provides retirement benefits for eligible employees through the Florida Retirement System (FRS). Enrollment is automatic for full-time and part-time employees.

Since 1975, the FRS has been a non-contributory retirement plan for employees. Participating employers are responsible for making the contributions needed to fund the retirement benefit. The only contributions which may be required of an employee is to purchase additional time, such as military, leave of absence, prior service, etc.

The FRS is a defined benefit plan, qualified under section 401(a) of the Internal Revenue Code. In order to qualify for a pension benefit, an employee must complete six (6) years of creditable service. This vesting requirement applies to all employee actively employed or hired into a retirement eligible position on or after July 1, 2002. For every month an employee receives a paycheck, they receive one month of service credit. Normal retirement age is 62 for all members (55 for special risk) or after the completion of 30 years of creditable service (25 years for special risk). At the time of retirement, an employee's annual benefit will be determined by multiplying the years of creditable service by a percentage value and by the average of the five highest years of creditable salary. An employee may retire before reaching normal retirement age, but the annual benefit will be reduced by 5% for each year under normal retirement age.

Disability retirement benefits may be provided for employees with eight years of creditable service who become totally and permanently disabled. Employees who become disabled in the line of duty may become eligible for disability benefits regardless of their length of service.

As a supplement to the retirement benefits under the FRS, Miami-Dade County offers employees a deferred compensation program.

Many of the Retirement forms are available online through the FRS web site. We have grouped the forms available to new, existing, retired and previous employees on the FRS web as follows:

Retirement Enrollment Forms:
BEN-001	Beneficiary Designation Form for Active Members All active and non-retired employees use this form to update or change their beneficiary. Submit the completed form to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
EOC-1	Ballot Form for Employees of Elected Officers ' Class Elected officials use this form to select what class of the FRS they want to participate in. Submit the completed form to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
FRS-400	Application of Special Risk Membership - Law Enforcement/ Correctional Officers Law enforcement and Correctional officers use this form to apply for Special Risk Membership when entering a position that does not have a pre-approved class code. Currently, the County has pre-approved class codes for the positions of Police Officer, Correctional Officer and Firefighter. Submit the completed form with a job description to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
FRS-404	Application for Special Risk Administrative Support Class Law enforcement, Correctional officers, and Firefighters use this form to apply for Special Risk Administrative Support Membership, when entering a position that does not qualify for Special Risk Membership. Submit the completed form with a job description to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
FRS-405	Application for Special Risk Membership - Firefighters Firefighters use this form to apply for Special Risk Membership when entering a position that does not have a pre-approved class code. Currently, the County has pre-approved class codes for the positions of Firefighter, Police Officer and Correctional Officer. Submit the completed form with a job description to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
FRS-410	Application for Special Risk Membership - Forensic Discipline Employees who fall under the Forensic discipline category must use this form to apply for Special Risk Membership when entering a position that does not have a pre-approved class code. Currently, the County has pre-approved class codes for the positions of Firefighter, Fire Lieutenant, Police Officer and Correctional Officer. Submit the completed form with a job description to the Benefits Administration Unit for processing.
SMS-3	SMSC Ballot/Enrollment Form for Local Agency Employees Senior managers who enter a position designated to the Senior Management Service Class complete this form electing to participate in the FRS or in an optional retirement plan. Submit the completed form to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
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Retirement Calculation Forms:
DP-ELE	Notice of Election to Participate in the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP ) and Resignation of Employment Employees who wish to join the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP) must complete this form. It serves as the employee's agreement with the employer to separate from service at the end of the DROP period. Employees should schedule an appointment with the Employee Benefits Section for a DROP counseling two to three months prior to their effective date. At that time the form will be completed and forwarded to the FRS.
DP-11	Application for Service Retirement and the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP ) Employees who wish to join the Deferred Retirement Option Program (DROP) must complete this form. This form is the employee's application for service retirement. Employees should schedule an appointment with the Employee Benefits Section for a DROP counseling two to three months prior to their effective date. At that time the form will be completed and forwarded to the FRS.
FR-9	Retirement Estimate/Information Request Form This form is used to request information on an employee's retirement account. It can be used to request an estimate, audit or amount due to purchase time. Employees can complete and submit this form on their own or call the Employee Benefits Section for assistance. The FRS will write directly to the employee conveying the information.
FR-11	Application for Service Retirement Employees must complete this form in order to receive their pension benefits under regular retirement. It serves as the employee's application for service retirement. Employees should schedule an appointment with the Employee Benefits Section for a retirement counseling two to three months prior to their effective date. At that time the form will be completed and forwarded to the FRS.
FR-28	Application to Purchase Retirement credit for LOA Employees use this form to certify a Leave of Absence (LOA) period in order to purchase back the retirement time. The employee and the employee's department must complete it. Upon completion of the form, submit it to the Employee Benefits Section and it will be forwarded along with an FR - 9 form to the FRS. The FRS will write directly to the employee notifying them of the cost.
FR-30	Verification for In-State or Out-of-State Service Credit Employees use this form to verify that their in-state, out of state, or federal service is eligible to be purchased. The employee and the employee's former employer must complete it. Upon completion of the form, submit it to the Employee Benefits Section and it will be forwarded along with an FR - 9 form to the FRS. The FRS will write directly to the employee notifying them of the cost.
FRS-11o	Retirement Option Selection Form Employees must complete this form in order to receive their pension benefits under regular retirement or DROP. This forms indicates what payment option the employee will be paid under. This form can be completed during the retirement or DROP counseling session with the Employee Benefits Section.
MF-1	Statement of Military Eligibility Employees who are purchasing military service must complete this form certifying that the time they are purchasing is eligible under the FRS. Upon completion of the form, the employee should forward it directly to the FRS.
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Disability Retirement Forms:
FR-13	Application for Disability Retirement This is the employee's statement for Disability Retirement and is one of four parts of the Disability Retirement application. It must be completed in full by the employee and forwarded to the Employee Benefits Section for processing. If the employee does not want to send their application through the Employee Benefits Section, they may forward it directly to the Disability Section of the FRS.
FR-13a	Statement of Disability by Employer If the employee is applying for Regular Disability Retirement, the employee's Department Personnel Representative must complete this form. If the employee is applying for In Line Of Duty Disability Retirement, this form must be completed by Miami-Dade County's Risk Management Division, General Services Administration (GSA). Upon completion of the form, it should be forwarded to the Employee Benefits Section for processing.
FR-13b	Physician's Report Employees applying for Disability Retirement must submit two statements of disability by state licensed physicians. It must be completed in full by the physicians and forwarded to the Employee Benefits Section for processing. If the employee does not want to send the physician statements through the Employee Benefits Section, they may forward it directly to the Disability Section of the FRS.
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Retiree Forms:
FST-12	Beneficiary Designation Form for Retired Members Only All retired employees, including DROP participants, use this form to update or change their beneficiary. Retirees in the DROP submit the completed form to the Employee Benefits Section for processing. Retirees who have separated employment submit their completed form directly to the FRS.
DFS-A1-26R	Direct Deposit Authorization Retirees use this form to change or establish direct payroll deposit of their pension benefit. Submit the completed form directly to the FRS.
W-4P	Withholding for Pension Payments Retirees use this form to change their Federal Income Tax Withholding for their pension benefit. Submit the completed form directly to the FRS.