LawWiki
HomeCodesSearchGlossaryAPIAbout
LawWiki

Plain English summaries of California law with zero-hallucination AI. Every summary is verified against official source text.

Product

  • Search
  • Codes
  • About

Legal

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Disclaimer

© 2026 LawWiki. All rights reserved.

HomeGovernment CodeDiv. 5Pt. 3Ch. 11Art. 4§ 21010 Service Credit Contributions

§ 21010 Service Credit Contributions

Government Code·California
AI Summary·Official Text·Key Terms·Related Statutes·References
AI SummaryVerified

§ 21010 Service Credit Contributions

Key Takeaways

  • •If you take time off from your state job and want to count that time toward your retirement, you have to pay for it.
  • •You pay what you would have paid into retirement during that time off, plus extra fees and interest.
  • •You can pay all at once or in small parts over time.
  • •The amount you pay is based on your salary and retirement rules when you come back to work.

Example

Imagine you work for the state but take 2 years off to travel. When you come back, you want those 2 years to count toward your retirement.

You’ll have to pay the retirement money you would have paid during those 2 years, plus extra fees and interest. It’s like catching up on missed payments with a little extra cost.

AI-generated — May contain errors. Not legal advice. Always verify source.

Official Source
View on CA.gov

§ 21010 Service Credit Contributions

Unless otherwise provided in this article, a member electing to receive service credit for time during which he or she was absent from state service shall contribute in a lump sum or by installments over that period and subject to such minimum payments as may be prescribed by regulations of the board, an amount equal to (a) the contributions he or she would have made to this system for the period for which current service credit is granted, assuming that the rate of contribution under his or her employer’s formula at the rate age applicable to him or her at the beginning of his or her first subsequent period of service in membership and his or her compensation earnable on that date had applied to him or her during the period for which credit is granted, plus (b) those added contributions as may be specially required under this article as a condition for crediting a particular absence, plus (c) the interest that would have accrued to those contributions if they had been on deposit at the beginning date of his or her first subsequent period of service in membership, from that date until the date of completion of payments. The beginning date of the first subsequent period of service for purposes of computation of contributions and interest shall be deemed to be the end of the period of service credited for a member who has no subsequent return to service. For a member who is subject to Section 21076 or 21076.5, and Section 21077, the service and contribution rate to be used for purposes of computation shall be deemed to be the service and contribution rate that would have been used had the member not been subject to Section 21076 or 21076.5, and Section 21077. Service shall be credited as current or prior service, or both, as it would be credited if the member had been in state service during his or her absence. All contributions of a member under this article shall be considered to be and shall be administered as normal contributions. (Amended by Stats. 2013, Ch. 526, Sec. 14. (SB 220) Effective January 1, 2014.)

Last verified: January 22, 2026

Key Terms

service creditcontributionscurrent service creditnormal contributions

Related Statutes

  • § 21006 Educational Leave Service Credit
  • § 21007 Service Credit For Leave
  • § 20991 Military Leave Contribution Credit
  • § 20993 Military Leave Employer Contributions
  • § 21002 Service Credit For Illness Leave

References

  • Official text at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
  • California Legislature. Government Code. Section 21010.
View Official Source