Originally Posted by
Rcf3
Here is the list of “known issues” that is posted on the new TSP website as of 6/25/22 at 9:20 am DST. Despite the fact that there doesn’t seem to be a way to make an online request to change the amount of existing installment payments or federal tax withholding status, such things are not listed as issues they are working on. As far as I can see there is no guidance about making these requests through mail in / fax in forms either. I have seen references here stating that these features can only be accomplished by calling the TSP line, but I had no success when I called and actually got through.
Nevertheless, I thought it would be helpful to post the things TSP has identified as problematic and perhaps ask readers here to add issues you have identified that are not on this list. Maybe someone from the TSP is actually monitoring this thread and they can pass along our findings.
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Confirm Your Beneficiary
For a small number of participants, we did not transfer beneficiary information to our new system because it did not meet certain data quality standards. We encourage all participants to review and confirm beneficiary information.
Additionally, if your beneficiary is also a TSP participant, meaning they work or worked for the federal government or uniformed services, the new system “connects” their participant record to your beneficiary record.
• If your beneficiary information appears to be inaccurate and they are an active participant, they will need to contact their agency or service’s payroll office to update their mailing address and any other personal information. Once your beneficiary’s information is updated in their agency or service’s payroll system, it will be updated in My Account accordingly.
• If your beneficiary is a separated participant, meaning they’ve left federal service, they can update their information when they log in to their My Account or call the ThriftLine.
Installment Payment Dates
As communicated prior to our transition, all installment payments will be disbursed on the 15th of
the month the payment is scheduled to be sent. If the 15th is a holiday or weekend, the payment
will be disbursed the following business day. This distribution date applies to monthly, quarterly,
and annual payments. You will not be able to change this date.
Access to Historical Information
You have access to year-to-date employee contributions for 2022 along with ten years of prior year-ending account balances in My Account (2012 – 2021). Additional historical information, such as statements, documents, and other messages from the prior system, have not been transferred to the new My Account.
Changes to your Maximum Loan Amount Calculation
We’ve made some changes to the way your maximum TSP loan amount is calculated. The maximum amount you can borrow is the smallest of the three “tests” listed below.
1. Your own contributions and earnings on those contributions in the TSP account from which you intend to borrow (civilian or uniformed services), not including any outstanding loan balance (the Contributions and Earnings Test).
2. 50 percent of the portion of your total account balance that is made up of your own contributions and earnings on those contribtuions (including any outstanding loan balance) or $10,000, whichever is greater, minus any outstanding loan balance
Note: Before June 2022, this was 50 percent of your vested account balance (including any outstanding loan balance) or $10,000, whichever is greater, minus any outstanding loan balance
3. $50,000 minus your highest outstanding loan balance, if any, during the last 12 months (the IRS $50,000 Test).
Please refer to our General Purpose and Primary Loans publication for additional information.
Account Hold vs. Account Lock
If you initiated a hold on your account prior to June 1, 2022, we’ve transferred that hold to the new system, and it will still prevent processing of loan, withdrawal, and distribution requests. However, you won’t see information about this hold when you log in to My Account because we’ve introduced a new “account lock” feature in the new My Account, which we encourage you to set up to replace the existing hold. The new account lock feature has the same functionality as the hold in that it prevents processing of loan, withdrawal, and distribution requests from your account. The difference is that you can remove the lock yourself in My Account without having to call the ThriftLine. If you need to request a loan, withdrawal, or distribution from your account with a hold, you’ll need to call the ThriftLine first to release the hold, even if you also create an account lock in My Account. Once you remove a hold from your account, you’ll use only the account lock feature for this extra layer of security.
Year-to-Date and Conversion-to-Date Personal Rate of Return Information
In My Account, you will see “year-to-date” and “conversion-to-date” information. Please note this information for the rate of return for your personal TSP investments represents data as of the transition to our new system on June 1, not the beginning of the calendar year. Please visit tsp.gov for more information regarding TSP fund performance by month and calendar year.
Address Change in Document History
In the Document History section of My Account, you may see an “Address Change” activity. Please note this refers to the action that was recorded when you established your new online account log in. For more information on how to change your address, click here.
References to “Deposits”
In the Online Account Statement section of My Account, you will see a reference to “Deposits.” Your payroll contributions and loan repayments are accounted for here.
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