Q: I’ve recently received a civil service deposit account statement and have two questions regarding payment. I am planning on rolling over an IRA account for payment. My first question: Can you confirm that there are no tax penalties for rolling over an IRA to the Civil Service Retirement System (Redeposit)? These are the instructions I am planning on giving my IRA company: Make check payable to Office of Personnel Management. Indicate FBO [my name]and include the claim number in the memo. My second question: Do you expect that this will cause any delays in processing my payments? If so, what do you suggest I do differently in order to avoid any delays?
A: Since CSRS deposits are made with after-tax dollars, I don’t believe that your strategy will work without triggering a taxable distribution from your IRA. You should work with a qualified tax adviser on this, however. You may be better off just taking the withdrawal and sending OPM a check of your own to avoid delays.
