Q. I retired from the USPS on Nov. 28, 2014. I was a FERS employee with 35 years of federal service and was 57 when I retired. I transferred my TSP to an IRA in May 2015, I was told that I could not withdraw from my TSP until I was 59 1/2 without paying a penalty. I figured why not move it to an IRA. After reading the many questions on your website and your answers I now realize that this was not true, since we are in late 2015, and the money was transferred in May. Is there a way to go back and change this back to TSP so that I am eligible to withdraw some money without paying a penalty, since we are still in the same calendar year?
A. Whoever told you that was either a fool or a crook, and you made the mistake of trusting one or the other. Unfortunately, if your TSP account has been emptied and closed, it’s too late to reverse the transaction. Not only have you lost early access to your money without penalty, but you’ve lost access to the G Fund, which is a significant lost.
