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HomeEducation CodeCh. 27§ 24204 Retirement Allowance Effective Date

§ 24204 Retirement Allowance Effective Date

Education Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 24204 Retirement Allowance Effective Date

Key Takeaways

  • •You can choose when to start getting your retirement money, but there are rules about when you can pick that date.
  • •You have to fill out a form to ask for your retirement money, and you can’t do it too early.
  • •If you change your mind after asking for retirement, you have a short time to cancel or change it, but you might have to pay back money you already got.
  • •You can’t get more than one kind of retirement or disability money at the same time.

Example

If you work for the government and want to retire, you can’t just say, 'I want my money now!' You have to fill out a form and pick a date that follows the rules. For example, if you stop working on June 1st, you can’t pick May 31st as your retirement date—it has to be after your last day of work.

The law says your retirement date has to be after your last day of earning money at work. So if you pick a date too early, they won’t let you start getting your retirement money yet.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 24204 Retirement Allowance Effective Date

(a) A service retirement allowance under this part shall become effective upon any date designated by the member, provided all of the following conditions are met: (1) An application for service retirement allowance is filed on a form provided by the system, which is executed no earlier than six months before the effective date of retirement allowance. (2) The effective date is later than the last day the member earned creditable compensation pursuant to Section 22119.2 or 22119.3. (3) The effective date is no earlier than one day after the date on which the retirement allowance was terminated under Section 24208. (4) The effective date is no earlier than one year following the date on which the retirement allowance was terminated under subdivision (a) of Section 24117. (5) The effective date is no earlier than the date upon and continuously after which the member is determined to the satisfaction of the board to have been mentally incompetent. (6) The effective date is no earlier than one day after the date upon which the member completes payment of a service credit purchase pursuant to Section 22801, 22820, or 22826, or payment of a redeposit of contributions pursuant to Section 23200, except as provided in Section 22801 or 22829. (b) A member who files an application for service retirement may change or cancel their retirement application if all of the following are met: (1) The form provided by the system is received by the system no later than 30 days from the date the member’s initial benefit payment for the member’s most recent retirement under the Defined Benefit Program is paid by the system. (2) The member returns the total gross distribution amount of all payments for any canceled benefit, including a lump-sum payment being changed to an annuity, to the system no later than 45 days from the date of the member’s initial benefit payment. The member shall be liable for any adverse tax consequences that may result from these actions. (c) The retirement date of a member who files an application for retirement pursuant to Section 24201 on or after January 1, 2012, shall be no earlier than January 1, 2012. (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to allow a member to receive more than one type of retirement or disability allowance for the same period of time by virtue of the member’s own membership. (e) (1) The board shall determine a date based on when the system has the capacity to implement the changes made by the act that added this subdivision. The date determined by the board shall be posted on the website of the system no later than January 1, 2026. (2) This section shall become inoperative on the date determined by the board pursuant to paragraph (1), and this section shall be repealed on January 1, 2026. (Amended by Stats. 2023, Ch. 708, Sec. 3. (SB 327) Effective January 1, 2024. Inoperative on the date prescribed by its own provisions. Repealed as of January 1, 2026, by its own provisions. See later operative version added by Sec. 4 of Stats. 2023, Ch. 708.)

Last verified: January 23, 2026

Key Terms

retirementallowanceapplicationannuitybenefitfinecompensationdistribution

Related Statutes

  • § 24201.5 Disability Retirement Application Option
  • § 24212 Disability Allowance Termination Rules
  • § 24211 Disability Allowance Reemployment Rules
  • § 24213 Disability To Service Retirement
  • § 24415 Supplemental Benefit Distribution

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Education Code. Section 24204.
View Official Source