Q. I plan to retire next year with 35 years of federal service (FERS) at age 56, and eligible to receive a Thrift Savings Plan supplement of about $18,000 per year. Once I retire, I plan to work to earn approximately $38,000 per year. Of the earned income, I plan to contribute $17,500 to my 401(k) plan and an additional $5,500 toward the catch-up contribution. The remaining $15,000 will be reported as an earned income on my W-2 and Form 1040. I plan to earn $38,000 for the year, so that my supplemental income will not be deducted $1 from my…
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Q. I understand that a federal civilian employee under FERS can make $52,000 a year to the Thrift Savings Plan. I know that the $17,500 regular contribution and the $5,500 catch-up contribution totaling $23,000 can be put into the Roth TSP. How much of the overall $52,000 limit can be put into the Roth TSP, and how would one contribute to the Roth TSP above the $17,500 and $5,500 limits? A. You misunderstand the limits. The $17,500 and $5,500 limits are the total deferral limits to either the regular or Roth TSP.
Q. I am in FERS (age 57 with 30 years). I have been offered the buyout and will have to be off the roll Jan. 31. How should I go about having a portion of my lump-sum annual leave payment go directly into my Thrift Savings Plan account? A. This is not allowed.
Are you planning to retire soon? If so, you’ll need to figure out whether you’re financially able to make it work in the near and the distant future. Because there are few, if any, truly reliable financial guarantees, this can be a difficult thing to determine. The essential question is this: “Will I have the resources — usually cash — available when I need it to support my desired standard of living for the rest of my life?” If someone else is depending upon you for all or part of their financial support, your retirement decision will affect them, as…
It’s easy to make mistakes when you are planning to retire. Some of the biggest mistakes apply to all employees; a few apply only to CSRS or FERS retirees. All can be costly. Here they are and what you can do to avoid them: Retiring on the spur of the moment. It can be disastrous, for two reasons. First, if you hand in your retirement application at the last minute, it may contain errors that delay processing or even cause it to be rejected. Second, decisions made in haste often come back to bite you. Once committed to a course…
Q. I am a FERS employee and will have 30 years of service at age 56, my minimum retirement age. Thus, when I retire at 56, can I start withdrawing from my Thrift Savings Plan without any tax penalty? Or do I have to wait until 59½ to start withdrawing from my TSP to avoid any tax penalty? A. In the circumstance you describe, your TSP withdrawals will not be subject to the early withdrawal penalty.
Q. I am a FERS employee who turned 71 in September. I plan to retire in January 2015. When do I need to start taking my required minimum distribution? A. Under the current rules, and these circumstances, your first RMD, for tax year 2015, will be due by April 1, 2016.
Q. My wife and I are FERS employees. We are both considering retiring early if offered Voluntary Early Retirement Authority at ages 50+/- (both with more than 25 years of service). With children still in the picture for some time, access and flexibility with our Thrift Savings Plan accounts are crucial to any plan. I would like to accomplish two things: 1). 72(t) withdrawals until 59½ in one account. 2). Flexibility to roll over funds currently in TSP into a Roth IRA held at another institution (from an IRA as I see no method to do that while the funds…
Q. I am considering retirement at 62 (FERS) but not collecting Social Security until my full retirement age of 66. I know that once you start withdrawing from your Thrift Savings Plan account, you must continue to make withdrawals each year. To bridge the time from 62 to 66, I’m thinking of taking funds from my IRA instead. If I start taking withdrawals at 62, can I stop taking withdrawals from my IRA at 66 when I start Social Security and then resume withdrawals at 70½? A. You’ve got the right idea, and it will work. You may start and…
Q. I am a 60-year-old FERS employee and have decided to retire in March. With $250,000 in my Thrift Savings Plan, I am being courted by insurance companies to buy into their annuities. I can see some benefit but am worried that the administrative fees will take too much of my money. How can I overcome these anxieties? A. If history has taught us anything, it’s that these “financial services” companies don’t care about you and your interests. They care about profits, which always come at their customers’ expense. They’ll do and say anything they think they can get away with to confiscate your money.…