Q. If I receive a Voluntary Early Retirement Authority from the U.S. Postal Service, can I take a lump-sum withdrawal from my Thrift Savings Plan without paying a penalty? I am 57 years old with 27 years of service. A. Yes.
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Q. I’m a Postal Service worker with 33 years of service under CSRS. Can I make contributions to Thrift Savings Plan that exceed the $17,000 maximum and $5,500 catch-up contributions? A. No. You may transfer money into TSP from an eligible IRA without limit, however.
Q. I’ve worked for the Postal Service since 2001. There is $29,000 in my Thrift Savings Plan. I was on the 3 fund for all of those years. I would like to make some changes hoping to bring in more. I am 37 years old. I just changed it to 30 percent S and 70 percent G, but I am sure that is not good. Could you assist me? A. Why did you choose this inefficient allocation? If you’re not sure which allocation best suits your needs, try the L Fund with the maturity that most closely matches your life…
Q. I’m considering the Postal Service incentive currently being offered. I would like to withdraw my money when I turn 59½ in November, then pay the fed tax. Where could I invest the remaining balance and draw a small annuity? A. After you withdraw it and pay the tax, you can invest the money anywhere you like and use some or all of it to purchase an annuity from an insurance company. But why wouldn’t you leave it in the Thrift Savings Plan? You won’t find a better place to invest for retirement income anywhere.
Q. I’m 57 years old, started with the Postal Service in June 1987, bought back five years and nine months of military time. What would be the difference in benefits between retiring if a VERA is offered and retiring before a VERA is offered? Would I be penalized on my Thrift Savings Plan? Can I get the Social Security supplement? Would I be able to collect Social Security supplement either way? Mike Miles: Since you’d be retiring during or after the calendar year in which you reached age 55, you would have access to your TSP account without incurring the…
Q. I am 62, retiring from the Postal Service after 45 years of government service and wish to take a set amount of money from my Thrift Savings Plan account on a monthly basis. If I should I pass away prior to my wife becoming age 59½ years of age, would she have to pay the 10 percent penalty? A. No, the penalty does not apply to distributions made on account of the death of the account holder.
Q. I am four years away from retirement at the Postal Service. However I have Parkinson’s disease, and I don’t know if I can hang in there. Any advice on whom I can contact regarding my options and what is best? Disability or trying to hang in there until 2016? A. Continuing to work will produce a better financial result. The real question is whether the financial improvement is worth the suffering, and only you can make that decision. I can show you what the additional work will mean to you in terms of your lifetime standard of living. Visit…
Q. I am a Postal Service employee, age 57, and I currently contribute $6,000 a year to a Roth Individual Retirement Account. Am I also allowed to contribute to the Thrift Savings Plan, or would that be considered an excess contribution? A. You are permitted to contribute the maximum to the TSP, but, depending upon your circumstances, this may limit your ability to contribute to a Roth IRA. See Internal Revenue Service Publication 590 for the rules.
Q. I am a 54-year-old letter carrier with 24 years postal and nine years military. According to Senate bill S.1789, will I be eligible for early retirement? What about the Social Security supplement? How does this affect my Thrift Savings Plan? Can I get that also? A. You will have access to your TSP account for retirement income as soon as you separate from service. You will be subject to the early withdrawal penalty until you reach age 59½ unless you qualify for one of the exceptions listed on page 4 of the notice at https://www.tsp.gov/PDF/formspubs/tsp-536.pdf. Note that one of the…
Q. I’m a 50-year-old postal clerk (FERS) with 23½ years of service, and I want to get out. I want to move from Florida back to my home state 1,000 miles away. I think I only have four options, and I’m looking for advice on what would be best for me. 1. Retire with 50/20 and either pay the penalties or defer or postpone annuities? If I do that, what will the penalties be? 2. Stick it out for another year and a half until I have 25 years of service and retire. If I do that, will there be…