Q. I am retired CSRS. I was born Nov. 15, 1942. Therefore, I’ll be 70½ on May 15.
1. When will I have to start taking payments from my Thrift Savings Plan account?
2. Can I wait until January to March 2014 before I get my first payment?
3. What is the minimum I will have to take?
4. I do not want a total lump-sum payment.
5. Do I have to take a monthly payment, or can I get my minimum payment once a year?
6. What form do I need to submit to get minimal payments each year?
7. Can you provide the form?
A. You are required to take your first withdrawal by April 1, 2014. This will be the required minimum distribution for 2013. You are then required to take the 2014 RMD by end of the day on Dec. 31, 2014. The RMD amount is calculated for each year and will likely be different each year. The amount is calculated using the method described in IRS Publication 590. The TSP will calculate the RMD amount for you and send you monthly payments to meet the requirement. Use Form TSP-70 to request the monthly payments based on your life expectancy. You may take one lump-sum distribution from your TSP account and may only take monthly payments after that.
