Forms and Benefit Information

NEW HIRE FORMS

Direct Deposit Form	Employees must have their weekly earnings deposited into a bank/financial institution of their choice. When completing the direct deposit form, please double check the routing and account numbers to ensure the information is accurate.
Employment Eligibility Verification Form (I-9)	Employees must be U.S. Citizens or actively seeking citizenship to be eligible for employment with the Judiciary. In addition to completing Section 1 of the form, employees are required to provide proof that they are eligible to work in the United States. Therefore, employees must bring appropriate documentation with them on their first day of work. To review a complete list of acceptable documents, please refer to page 4 of the I-9 Form. Examples of the most commonly provided documents include: U.S. Passport OR Driver's License/ID Card and Social Security Card Driver's License/ID Card and Official Birth Certificate Voter's Registration Card and Social Security Card Voter's Registration Card and Birth Certificate U.S. Military or Military Dependent's ID Card and Social Security Card U.S. Military or Military Dependent's ID Card and Birth Certificate
Federal Tax Withholding Form (W-4)	This form is required by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and is used to determine the correct amount of federal income tax to be withheld from your bi-weekly earnings based on the number of exemptions that you claim.
State Tax Withholding Form (NC-4) or (NC4-EZ)	This form is required by the IRS and is used to determine the correct amount of state income tax to be withheld from your bi-weekly earnings based on the number of exemptions that you claim. In North Carolina, employees can complete EITHER the NC-4 OR the NC4-EZ. Only one form is required.
Statement of Prior Federal Service Form (SF-144)	This form should be completed if an employee has prior federal civilian service with the exception of employees who have Judiciary experience within the last 12 months. Completion of this form assists the agency in verifying service dates and ensuring prior service records are requested. Prior federal service may have an impact on leave accrual and retirement benefits (if applicable). This form is NOT needed if the employee has not previously worked for the federal government, has Judiciary service within the last 12 months, or those transferring without a break in service.
BENEFITS	On an employee's first day, Human Resources will discuss the various benefit programs available to new employees. Employees have the option of completing the applicable forms and bringing them on their first day.

BENEFITS

The Federal Judiciary Benefits Program provides a wide range of benefits and choices so that employees can create a package that is most beneficial to his/her needs. Benefit eligibility is determined based on the type of appointment. The information below outlines benefit eligibility, enrollment timelines, as well as further details regarding the designated benefit.

New hires should keep in mind that the enrollment clock starts ticking on the employee's first day of employment, and there are certain benefits that require an employee to take action sooner rather than later. Outside of the initial enrollment period, employees are only permitted to make changes to their benefit elections if they experience a Qualified Life Event (QLE) or opt to make changes during open season, which occurs each November. Changes made during open season will become effective after the 1st of the following calendar year.

(Click photo to review the Benefits Overview booklet)

TYPE OF APPOINTMENT (Full Time)	FEHB	FEDVIP	FEGLI	FLTCIP	FSA	RETIREMENT & TSP
Permanent (no established time limit)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Temporary (more than 1 year)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Temporary (90 days to 1 year)*	Yes	No	No	Yes	No	No
Temporary (less than 90 days)	No	No	No	No	No	No
*Temporary employees working 90 days or more but less than one year must have a standard work schedule of at least 32.5 hours per week.

BENEFIT PROGRAMS AND FORMS

Health Insurance (FEHB)	Employees have more than 10 health plan options to choose from that provide comprehensive medical benefits including preventative care, doctor's visits, hospitalization, surgery and prescription drugs. The premium is shared between the Judiciary and the employee and is based on the plan selected and option chosen. There are three (3) options of coverage: self only, self + one, and self + family. A plan comparison tool is available on the OPM Insurance Webpage to assist in making a plan selection. As a non-postal, biweekly employee, the search should be completed by entering the zip code of your duty station/home address to achieve the most accurate results. Your search will include the nationwide and specific group plans available to your area. If you select a specific group plan as your insurance provider, please contact Human Resources to verify that this plan is offered to Judiciary employees. Employees have sixty (60) days to make a health benefits election. The effective date of the health insurance depends on the employee's actual start date or the date the employee makes the election. Health insurance is generally effective within two (2) weeks after the employee has made his/her selection. There is an "open season" period each November; therefore, if an employee decides later in the year that he/she wants to change plans, this change can be made during open season with an effective date in the first pay period in January. If an employee experiences a Qualified Life Event (QLE) (i.e., marriage, divorce, loss of other health insurance coverage, etc.), he/she has the ability to make changes mid-year and is not required to wait until open season to do so.
Supplemental Dental and Vision Insurance (FEDVIP)	The Federal Employees Dental and Vision Insurance Program (FEDVIP) is available to all eligible employees whether or not they participate in the FEHB program. Enrollment and additional information regarding these plans can be found at www.BENEFEDS.com . To review the plan options, compare coverage and determine the biweekly cost, please utilize the FEDVIP plan comparison tool and search by zip code of your duty station/home address.
Life Insurance (FEGLI)	The FEGLI program can help employees protect their loved ones from burdensome funeral costs and catastrophic loss of income in the event of an unexpected death. Employees are automatically enrolled in the Basic Life Insurance Plan unless coverage is waived, and may elect for additional coverage options, including coverage on spouse and/or children. The various life insurance options can be found HERE. The cost of the life insurance is based on the employee's age and the amount of coverage elected. Employees are encouraged to use the FEGLI Calculator to compare plan options and determine applicable premiums. Employees who do not enroll when first eligible, may only enroll at a later date either by experiencing a qualified life event, or undergoing a physical at his/her own expense. A regular open season period is not offered for the FEGLI program.
Federal Long Term Care Insurance (FLTCIP)	Long Term Care (LTC) provides assistance to employees if they can no longer perform everyday tasks themselves due to a chronic illness, injury, disability or the aging process. This benefit is specifically designed to provide benefits in the event an individual incurs LTC expenses for services such as nursing home care, home health care, assisted living, hospice, adult day care, etc. There are four pre-packaged plans plus the ability to customize a plan. For more information, click HERE.
Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)	The Judiciary offers two types of Flexible Spending Accounts: Health Care Reimbursement Account (HCRA) and Dependent Care Reimbursement Account (DCRA). Both of these accounts allow an employee to set aside pre-tax dollars to cover eligible out-of-pocket expenses. The HCRA may be used for certain health care expenses the employee or family incur, including deductibles, copayments, and other out-of-pocket medical, dental and vision expenses. The DCRA allows employees to pay for eligible daycare/childcare expenses while the employee and spouse work or attend school full-time. For 2022, employees may contribute a maximum of $2,850 per year to a HCRA, and $5,000 per to the DCRA (provided the employee is single or married filing a join tax return).
Retirement (FERS)	The Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) is a retirement plan consisting of three components: FERS Basic Benefit, Social Security and Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). In addition to Social Security taxes, FERS-FRAE employees contribute 4.4% (4.9% for officers) of their base pay to the Basic Benefit plan throughout their career.
Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)	The third component of the FERS Retirement System is TSP. It gives the employee the ability to participate in a long-term retirement savings and investment plan. New employees are automatically enrolled in TSP contributing 5% of their biweekly salary; however, employees may opt to increase or decrease contributions, or completely opt out of the plan at any time. The agency automatically contributes 1% to the employee's TSP account regardless of whether they choose to participate in the plan. In addition, the agency matches dollar for dollar for the first 3% an employee contributes and 50 cents on the dollar for the next 2% an employee contributes to the TSP plan. This means that when an employee contributes 5% of their basic pay, the agency will contribute 4% to the employee's TSP account. Together with the automatic agency contribution of 1%, the agency puts in a total of 5% to the employee's TSP account.