Q. I will retire at 55 years old on the CSRS retirement in September 2011 with 34 years of service. I don’t need an annuity from my TSP, rather I just want to take money out ad hoc for vacations, etc. I understand you can make a one-time withdrawal of $1,000 or more, but I want to maybe withdraw $2,500 in 2011, then $2,000 in 2012, etc. I don’t want a set monthly withdrawal, but use it like a checking account. Is this possible? I’ve been searching and can’t seem to find this scenario.
A. The TSP does not permit this. To allow this, you’ll have to roll over some or all of your TSP balance to an IRA.