Q. I’m CSRS. If I deposit funds in my Voluntary Contributions Program, I thought I could only transfer interest gain to TSP. Can I transfer the whole amount if I choose Roth TSP? A. You may not transfer or convert money into the Roth TSP. You could roll the money over to a Roth IRA, however.
Browsing: rollover
Q. I received a packet from my previous employer that I needed to cash out or roll over my funds to an IRA or another retirement fund. I’m 48 years old. Where can I put this fund without having to pay a broker or a financial adviser fee? Is there a fund that I can roll this into without upfront fees or an annual fee? A. The best place for this money is your Thrift Savings Plan account. You can use form TSP-60 to request the transfer.
Q. I left federal service (did not retire) at age 57. If I opt for a lump-sum payout, will I just be taxed 20 percent? I keep seeing the additional 10 percent tax before age 59½. Also, are there additional taxes to be paid if I do not roll over into a traditional IRA? A. You will be exempt from the early withdrawal penalty since you separated from service during or after the calendar year in which you reached age 55. If you do not roll your withdrawal over, it will be taxed as ordinary income when you file your tax return for…
Q. I have the same question as I found on your site: “Q. I would like to take a portion of my Thrift Savings Plan balance and transfer it to a self-directed IRA. What is the process for doing that? What are the estimated costs and penalties? A: In your circumstances — actively employed and younger than 59½ — the TSP won’t allow this.” But I am 61 years old and in civil service for 34 years. You imply in the above answer that over 59½ might be OK. Do you recommend this, or can there be possible problems? A. You could…
Q. My wife recently retired from a state position. She was informed by her human resources/benefits office that she could roll over the balance of her 401(k) into my Thrift Savings Plan. Is this accurate? A. Wrong! One spouse can’t combine their retirement plan assets with those of the other.
Q. I recently retired from the military. I had $30,000 in the Thrift Savings Plan. I have no plans on returning to federal service. I have Roth IRAs with two other private companies, each with less than what I had in the TSP. I want to remove these from TSP and place into either a new Roth or one of my existing accounts, which makes more sense as a larger pot of money will earn me more since I can continue to contribute. This opens a new concern as the limitations of combined income and contributing to a Roth. I…
Q. I am considering doing a partial withdrawal from my Thrift Savings Plan account and was wondering what the taxes might be. I am 63 years old, still working, with a FERS status. I wanted to move most of my TSP savings into a mutual fund/IRA and continue to make deposits in TSP. A. If you roll the withdrawal over into an IRA, there will be no tax consequences under current law.
Q. Regarding the Thrift Savings Plan and what can be deposited into my active TSP account: I was previously employed in a nonfederal job for which I had a 401(k) plan in which I was fully vested. After leaving the company’s employ, I rolled the 401(k) into an IRA. Now, I am thinking about taking the IRA and depositing it into my TSP. Is this allowed? Is there a maximum amount that can be rolled into the TSP? Where should I look to get the appropriate forms? A. You may transfer an unlimited amount of pretax money from a 401(k) or IRA…
Q. I made the costly mistake of rolling over my Thrift Savings Plan into a traditional IRA. I had to file a Form 72(t) to take out payments until I reached age 59½. Then I moved to another firm, filed a new 72(t), and now I violated the original 72(t), and take a 10 percent retroactive penalty. A. I’ve written many times about the reasons not to roll your TSP account over to an IRA. This illustrates one of them — that you may be giving up penalty-free access to your funds. I’ve also written many times about the pitfalls…
Q. I am planning to retire next year. If Congress extends the Roth rollover provision, I am interested in pursuing the following scenario: I have funds in the Thrift Savings Plan that will be fully taxable upon withdrawal. If I withdraw them upon retirement (at 56), I will be taxed on them but not subject to the 10 percent penalty. I propose to take those funds and immediately (within the same day if possible) transfer them to the CSRS Voluntary Contribution Program account, which then could also allow a rollover into a Roth account. Therefore, am I permitted to fund the…