INQUIRY 19-05, Elimination of Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Financial Hardship In-Service Withdrawal 6-Month Suspension Rule

Published: September 16, 2019
Effective: Pay Period 19, 2019

Summary

Effective September 15, 2019 (Pay Period 19, 2019), the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) will eliminate the 6-month non-contribution period related to a financial hardship in-service withdrawal.

This also allows TSP participants who previously executed a financial hardship in-service withdrawal and are currently within a 6 month non-contribution period to restart their contributions as of September 15, 2019 (Pay Period 19, 2019).

Note: Employees currently under the 6-month non-contribution period are responsible for restarting their TSP contributions either through the Employee Personal Page (EPP) or by submitting a TSP-1, Election Form, to their Human Resources office.

Agencies and/or employees entering entering these documents should select Pay Period 19, 2019 (September 15, 2019) as the starting pay period for the employee contributions.

The Pay Period 19, 2019, document will be a future document, and the employee contributions will begin with the October 7, 2019, pay date.

Effective Pay Period 19, if an employee elects a financial hardship in-service withdrawal, TSP contributions will continue. The employee will be responsible for stopping those contributions if desired, either through EPP or by submitting a Form TSP-1.

Resources

For additional information, see TSP Bulletin 19-3 issued May 17, 2019, available online at www.TSP.gov.

The procedure manuals affected include EmpowHR: Section 6 - Payroll Documents, EPP, and Non-Automated Processing (NONAUTO). These manuals are available online at the National Finance Center (NFC) Web site and are being updated to include the information in this bulletin. To view and/or print these procedures, select HR and Payroll Clients from the MyNFC drop-down menu on the NFC Home page. At the HR and Payroll Clients page, select the Publications tab and select the applicable category to access the procedure manuals within the category.

Inquiries

For questions about NFC processing, authorized Servicing Personnel Office representatives should contact the NFC Contact Center at 1-855-NFC-4GOV (1-855-632-4468) or via the customer service portal.