Treasurer Joe Hockey is giving thousands of Canberra public servants the opportunity to take a payout and leave.

But one of the top tips for those thinking about accepting the offer is "don't get dazzled by the money".

A lot of people do not know where they stand financially, or have contingency plans if they are forced out.

In the words of Civic FP financial planner Howard Kemp, “so few have a definite plan for what they will do if they lose their job".

His company asked 50 public servants about their futures.

Most who took part in the small survey were unsure about whether they would keep their jobs or thought they would retain their positions so the demand for advice about demystifying the redundancy decision was high.

Here are the top five tips for bureaucrats who want to walk away from the brutal game of musical chairs – where 16,500 public servants will miss out on a seat in a federal government office nationally within a few years – with a smile on their face.

The advice is from Jason Andriessen, the general manager of marketing, product and advice at State Super Financial Services.

Mr Andriessen said it was important to investigate the tax-free nature of some redundancies or, more importantly, how much of a payout would not be taxed.

"There are limits," he said.

Other considerations include how long, realistically, it will take to find another job and increases in costs you will face in the coming years, such as more expensive education for older children.

People should be finding out about their personal financial situation now.

"Speak to your partner or people who are important to them," he said.

"For people who are close to retirement age this can be viewed as a bonus."

Can you really get another job? That's the hard question bureaucrats considering leaving their existing jobs should ask.

"People need to ask themselves how transferable their skills are," Mr Andriessen said.

"The fact of the matter is more experienced senior people find it more difficult to find work."

Some may consider scaling down their work life, and this gives them more options.

"For people who that sort of flexibility, it's a blessing."

"We see fewer people working flat out for 40 years and then stopping. People who go from 40 to 60 hours of work a week and stop have more trouble in retirement and finding purpose."

"Redundancy happens more quickly than many people would like," Mr Andriessen said.

The good thing about the Australian public service's upheaval at the moment is that it has, in general terms, been telegraphed.

The National Commission of Audit sent a message to the public service and now the number of cuts at departments and agencies has been outlined.

It takes little time for a public servant to work out where they stand financially and list what their options are. And people not expecting to volunteer for a redundancy should do this as well, just in case they receive a tap on the shoulder.

You don't need as much money as you think. Mr Andriessen tells people not to believe a lot of the online calculators available estimating how much money is needed to retire on.

"People usually think they need about $50,000 or $60,000 a year, then index that for inflation and this gives them a huge number," he said. "It's a blunt instrument and it's scary."

It is more likely it could cost a retiree more money during their active years of retirement – in the years immediately after they leave their jobs – but it costs much less as life becomes more sedentary.

So $60,000 a year for each year of retirement may be too high a figure.

But there is a catch. In the final years of life, it is handy to have lump sums of money available for large one-off expenses, such as house renovations – building a more age-friendly environment with ramps, for example – and health expenditure.