Q. I did a direct rollover from the California Public Employees Retirement System (a tax-deferred retirement) into the Thrift Savings Program. I have received a Form 1099 from CALPERS. I do not know why CALPERS would send me a 1099 as the monies went directly from one tax-deferred account into another. Do I have to declare the CALPERS monies, even though they went directly from one tax-deferred account to another? If I have to pay taxes on these monies, wouldn’t that make my contribution to TSP ineligible? If I have to pay taxes on this direct rollover, wouldn’t that mean I would, in essence, be paying taxes twice on the same monies when I eventually withdraw them?
A. This is a question for a qualified tax preparer, but I don’t expect that your direct transfer will be taxed. The 1099 is likely just standard procedure since payers aren’t responsible for determining the tax status of a distribution, just meeting the reporting requirements.
