Q: What happens if your total contributions to the TSP for the year exceed the IRS limit of $16,500? A: I’m not sure how this could happen since the payroll system should cut off your payroll deferral when the annual limit is reached. I suggest you contact the ThriftLine at 877-968-3778 to discuss the situation.
Browsing: IRS
Q: I am a FERS employee who will be retiring in the year in which I will turn 70½, which will be in 2012. I am having difficulty understanding the timing requirements for withdrawing the RMD from my TSP account. I would like my first RMD to be a partial withdrawal from TSP of the lump sum required to be withdrawn; this would be followed by monthly payments starting a year later. Under the scenario above, would I have to take a RMD for the year 2012? Or does the RMD requirement start in 2013, the year after the year…
Q: I owe back taxes to the IRS. Is there any way to transfer the money from my TSP balance back to the government? Most of the balance I have in my TSP account is the amount that was matching funds from the government. I just want to give it back to satisfy my tax debt and start all over again, and be square with the IRS. Can this be done? A: Not that I know of. You’ll have to either take a loan or a withdrawal and pay any taxes due before sending the money to the Treasury.
Q: I am planning on retiring next month when I turn 50. I would like to take monthly installments based on the IRS life expectancy tables to avoid the 10 percent penalty for early withdrawal. Would I still be able to make a withdrawal for my son’s college fees and still avoid the 10 percent penalty? A: You’re planning to use the life expectancy method for calculating withdrawals that will satisfy the exception to the early withdrawal penalty. This exception is allowed under IRS code section 72(t). One of the requirements for meeting this exception is that exactly the correct…
Q: I plan to retire from a federal law enforcement position at the end of February. I am covered under the Federal Employees Retirement System and will have an outstanding Thrift Savings Plan loan balance when I retire. I assume that there will be some type of “demand for payment” notice sent by TSP, and if I don’t repay the loan by a certain date, the balance will be considered a withdrawal. Will the TSP deduct the 10 percent penalty from my account, or will they bill me? Will the “withdrawal” be taxed along with my regular income on my…
Q: In a Dec. 13 blog post, you answered the following question: “I am a federal firefighter under CSRS Special Retirement due to retire in November 2011 at age 50. At what age will I be able to collect on my TSP retirement?” You said that the writer would be subject to the early withdrawal penalty until age 59 1/2 unless the withdrawal was rolled over, used to buy a life annuity or met one of the other “specific exceptions to the rule.” I’m an 1811-series federal employee, age 52, and will be retiring in 2011. I’ve read that I…
Q: My husband and I want to convert all or a portion of our traditional individual retirement accounts into Roth IRAs in 2010. Our contributions have been nondeductible, and our IRA accounts are about double the investments we have made (value versus basis). So, we will be paying tax on the earnings. Then I thought about our Thrift Savings Plans. Are these considered IRAs for the purposes of this conversion opportunity? I read that the IRS will consider all IRAs; you can’t pick and choose among or within our IRAs regarding the conversion, but I certainly would not want to…
Q: Once retired from the federal government, how long can you leave money in a Thrift Savings Plan account without designating how it is to be allocated? A: You can leave your money in the TSP and direct it — or not, as you see fit — until the IRS Required Minimum Distribution rules kick in.
Q: I retired from the U.S. Postal Service on Oct. 31 and received a $10,000 incentive payment in December that was counted as part of my 2009 earned income. As part of the incentive package, I will receive another $5,000 this October. This has nothing to do with my retirement annuity, so will it again be counted as earned income for 2010? If so, I will be able to contribute it to my Roth IRA, correct? A: This is really a question for your tax preparer, but I expect that income to be reported for tax year 2010.
Q: I turned 55 this year and just applied for disability retirement under the Federal Employees Retirement System. I have large bills I want to pay off. My income will drop the first year, then will decrease $1,000 the following year before continuing at that rate. I realize if I keep my Thrift Savings Plan or roll it over once I leave service, I will not be able too take a loan on it. I realize I will need to pay my fair share of taxes, but is there a way I can work it out that I can take…