OPM Cuts Retirement Backlog to 33,851 as 95% of Applications Go Fully Digital
Updated
Updated · FedSmith.com · Jul 7
OPM Cuts Retirement Backlog to 33,851 as 95% of Applications Go Fully Digital
3 articles · Updated · FedSmith.com · Jul 7
Summary
33,851 retirement claims remained in OPM’s backlog at the end of June, down 4,696 from May and 48.1% below February’s record 65,237.
12,751 cases processed versus 8,663 new claims drove the decline, extending the backlog’s drop to a fourth straight month.
108 days was the average processing time in June, up from 87 in May; digital claims also slowed to 96 days from 66, though still faster than paper’s 120 days.
July 1 marked OPM’s “Last Day of Paper,” with more than 95% of retirement applications now fully electronic and cumulative online submissions topping 155,000 since May 2025.
400 million paper records still stored in Boyers, Pennsylvania are next for digitization as OPM adds self-service tools and plans 24/7 AI phone support by September.