 IPERS Member Handbook
ACCRUING SERVICE CREDITS
 Service is an important part of the IPERS benefit formula. Service affects how much your monthly pension will be and may affect when you decide to retire. This section of the handbook explains how service accrues.
A. IPERS Credit
You receive 0.25 years of service for each calendar quarter in which covered wages are reported for you (after July 4, 1953). Therefore, if covered wages are reported for you for a full year, which is four calendar quarters, you earn one year of service:
| Quarter |
Years of
Service |
| Jan.–Mar. |
0.25 |
| Apr.–June |
0.25 |
| July–Sept. |
0.25 |
| Oct.–Dec. |
0.25 |
| Total: |
1 |
You cannot receive credit for more than four quarters of service in a calendar year, regardless of the number of employers reporting covered wages for you. A calendar year is the 12-month period beginning January 1 and ending December 31.
You will receive free service credit for unpaid leaves of absence that began before July 1, 1998, and were authorized in up to 12-month increments, if verified by the employer.
With proper documentation, free service credit also may be granted for service in the armed forces of the United States. However, you must be in covered employment immediately prior to entering the armed forces, and must return to covered employment within one year after leaving active-duty service in the armed forces. For more information, refer to “If You Serve in the Military.”
B. IOASI System Credit
You will receive “prior service” credit for service completed on or after January 1, 1946, and before July 4, 1953, if you made contributions under the abolished Iowa Old-Age and Survivors’ Insurance System (IOASI) and you have not qualified for IOASI benefits or applied for and received a refund of the related contributions.
C. Pre-1946 Credit
You may receive credit for years of service prior to January 1, 1946, if you:
- Are an active, vested, or retired member who worked for a public employer in Iowa prior to January 1, 1946.
- Are not eligible for or receiving a retirement allowance from that public employer.
- File acceptable written verification with IPERS documenting the dates of that public employment.
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