VRS Handbook for Members - Virginia Retirement System

Severance Benefits
You may be eligible for severance benefits if you are involuntarily separated from
employment. Involuntary separation is a layoff because of a budget reduction,
agency reorganization, workforce downsizing or another cause not related to job
performance or misconduct. If you voluntarily resign from your position, you are
not eligible for severance benefits.
If you are a state employee, you may be eligible for severance benefits under the
Workforce Transition Act (WTA). If you are an employee of a school division
or a political subdivision, you may be eligible for severance benefits under the
Transitional Benefits Program if your employer has elected to offer this program.
Information about both programs is available at www.varetire.org. Additional
information about WTA severance benefits also is available on the Department of
Human Resource Management website at www.dhrm.virginia.gov.
Your employer will notify you if you are involuntarily separated from employment
and coordinate your benefits. For more information, contact your human
resource office.
58 | www.varetire.org • 1-888-VARETIR (1-888-827-3847) Plan 1
Special waiver for selected positions. If you hold one of the following positions, are
involuntarily separated from employment for reasons other than cause and have
20 or more years of service credit at the time of separation, you may be eligible to
retire with an unreduced benefit as early as age 60:
• Agency head appointed by the Governor or a state board, commission
or council
• School superintendent
• County, city or town manager or attorney
• Constitutional officer (if your position is abolished)
Your employer must certify your eligibility on the Certification of Exception
from General Early Retirement Provisions (VRS-8). If you return to covered
employment, you will be subject to the normal provisions for unreduced and
reduced retirement under your plan, unless you are in a position that qualifies
for this special waiver.