“It Can’t Perform Miracles”- OPM Director Pulls Back Curtain on Retirement System
The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) provided an update on federal retirement processing amid a growing backlog fueled by employees taking the deferred resignation program and early retirements.
In a blog post called “Peeling the Onion on Federal Retirement Processing,” OPM Director Scott Kupor notes that for the first time, applications made via the Online Retirement Application (ORA) are surpassing those made via paper. The director said there are currently 107,000 applications sitting in ORA.
Director Kupor also aimed to clear up questions on ORA, noting that while it offers advantages such as faster processing times, greater transparency, and ease of use, “it can’t perform miracles (at least not yet).”
The ORA Process
Director Kupor provided updates on the process, including processing times at each stage. He noted the following:
Applicants are taking an average of 14 days to finish their ORA applications which are then routed to agency HR departments.
ORA applications are sitting in agency HR departments for an average of 60 days.
Then it comes to the agency’s payroll provider for final pay and pension calculation. That’s taking about 51 days on average.
“Here’s the reality: OPM does not receive a fully completed application and cannot begin its work – on average – for about 120 days from when the applicant starts the application process,” noted Director Kupor.
Out of the 107,000 ORA applications, about 50 percent are currently at OPM, 30 percent with payroll providers, 12 percent with agency HR, and eight percent with the applicant.
OPM’s Role
Director Kupor notes that when cases reach OPM, “we move quickly” noting that on average, within seven days of receiving the application, annuitants will be getting 80 percent of their expected final post-adjudication payout.
He also notes that OPM is completing ORA applications in less than 40 days from when they are received, twice as fast as paper claims.
“We are working with the HR and Payroll providers to help reduce the time it takes for them to complete their ORA work, and we are continuously rolling out new ORA features that expand the types of cases we can handle and will reduce adjudication times further,” wrote the director.
According to OPM’s data as of December 2025, there are more than 50,000 applications currently awaiting processing at OPM. Average processing time is 67 days total, 40 days if you use ORA.
Regardless, federal retirees say the wait is anxious.
“The response I received was basically, due to the backlog and large volume of retirement applications, we’re working as fast as we can,” said recent retiree Felicia Jones, who worked for 38 years across agencies. “We don’t have any information for you.”
