US Internal Revenue Service: p721--1999

8/14/2019 US Internal Revenue Service: p721--1999

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ContentsImportant Change for 1999 ............................... 1

Introduction ........................................................ 1

Part IGeneral Information ......................................... 2

Part II

Rules for Retirees ............................................ 4

Part III

Rules for Disability Retirement and Credit forthe Elderly or the Disabled ....................... 15

Part IV

Rules for Survivors of Federal Employees ...... 17

Part VRules for Survivors of Federal Retirees .......... 21

How To Get More Information .......................... 23

Simplified Method Worksheet ........................... 25

Worksheet for Lump-Sum Payment ................. 26

Index .................................................................... 27

Important Change for 1999

Photographs of missing children. The Internal Rev-enue Service is a proud partner with the National Cen-ter for Missing and Exploited Children. Photographs ofmissing children selected by the Center may appear inthis publication on pages that would otherwise be blank.You can help bring these children home by looking at

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IntroductionThis publication explains how the federal income taxrules apply to civil service retirement benefits receivedby retired federal employees (including those disabled)or their survivors. These benefits are paid primarilyunder the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) orthe Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS).

Tax rules for annuity benefits. Part of the annuity

benefits you receive is a tax-free recovery of your con-tributions to the CSRS or FERS. The rest of your ben-efits is taxable. If your annuity starting date is afterNovember 18, 1996, you must use the SimplifiedMethod to figure the taxable and tax-free parts. If yourannuity starting date is before November 19, 1996, youcould have chosen to use the Simplified Method or theGeneral Rule. See Part II, Rules for Retirees.

Thrift Savings Plan. The Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)provides federal employees with the same savings andtax benefits that many private employers offer theiremployees. This plan is similar to private sector 401(k)

Department of the TreasuryInternal Revenue Service

Publication 721Cat. No. 46713C

Tax Guide toU.S. Civil

Service

Retirement

Benefits

For use in preparing

1999 Returns


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plans. You can defer tax on part of your pay by havingit contributed to your account in the plan. The contri-butions and earnings on them are not taxed until theyare distributed to you. See Thrift Savings Plan in PartII.

Useful ItemsYou may want to see:

Publication

524 Credit for the Elderly or the Disabled

575 Pension and Annuity Income

590 Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs)(Including Roth IRAs and Education IRAs)

939 General Rule for Pensions and Annuities

Form (and Instructions)

CSA 1099R Statement of Annuity Paid

CSF 1099R Statement of Survivor Annuity Paid

1099R Distributions From Pensions, Annuities, Re-tirement or Profit-Sharing Plans, IRAs, In-surance Contracts, etc.

5329 Additional Taxes Attributable to IRAs, OtherQualified Retirement Plans, Annuities, Mod-ified Endowment Contracts, and MSAs

See How To Get More Information near the end ofthis publication for information about getting thesepublications and forms.

Part I

General InformationThis part of the publication contains information that canapply to most recipients of civil service retirement ben-efits.

Refund of ContributionsIf you leave federal government service or transfer toa job not under the retirement system and you are noteligible for an immediate annuity, you can choose toreceive a refund of the money to your credit in the re-tirement fund (your total contributions, both regular andvoluntary, plus any interest payable). The amount of therefund that is more than your total contributions to the

fund (cost) is taxable. It is taxable in the year the refundis distributed or made available to you. If you only re-ceive your contributions, no part of the refund is taxable.

Generally, some or all of the taxable part of the dis-tribution (the interest payable) from active participationin the retirement plan before 1974 may qualify for cap-ital gain treatment. The taxable part from participationafter 1973 is taxed as ordinary income, but may beeligible for the 5-year or 10-year tax option.

The taxable part of the distribution may also besubject to an additional 10% tax on early distributionsif you separate from service before the calendar yearin which you reach age 55. For more information, see

Lump-Sum Distributionsand Tax on Early Distributionsin Publication 575.

CAUTION

!This discussion does not apply to the lump-sumpayment available to certain retirees whochoose the alternative annuity option. See Al-

ternative Annuity Option in Part II.

Rollovers. If you leave federal service and receiveyour contributions plusinterest, you may be able to roll

over all or part of the interest tax free into anotherqualified plan or a traditional individual retirement ar-rangement (IRA). Tax will be withheld at a 20% rateunless you roll the interest over by having the Officeof Personnel Management (OPM) transfer it directly toa traditional IRA or other plan.

Under the CSRS, interest is not paid on civil servicecontributions for service after 1956 unless the refundof contributions covers a period of government serviceof more than 1 year but less than 5 years. Many em-ployees who withdraw their contributions under theCSRS do not get interest; consequently, they havenothing to roll over.

If you are the surviving spouse of an employee or

retiree and you receive a refund of the contributionsplus interest, you may roll over all or part of the interestinto a traditional IRA.

See Rollover Rulesin Part II for more information.

Traditional IRA defined. A traditional IRA is any IRAthat is not a Roth IRA, a SIMPLE IRA, or an educationIRA.

Tax Withholdingand Estimated TaxThe annuity you receive is subject to federal income taxwithholding based on tables prepared by the Internal

Revenue Service, unless you choose not to have taxwithheld. The Office of Personnel Management will tellyou how to make the choice. The choice for no with-holding remains in effect until you change it. Thesewithholding rules also apply to a disability annuity,whether received before or after minimum retirementage.

If you choose not to have tax withheld, or if you donot have enough tax withheld, you may have to makeestimated tax payments. See Part III for rules on disa-bility retirement.

CAUTION

!You may owe a penalty if the total of yourwithheld tax and estimated tax does not cover

most of the tax shown on your return. Generally,you will owe the penalty if the additional tax you mustpay with your return is $1,000 or more and more than10% of the tax shown on your return. For more infor-mation, including exceptions to the penalty, see Publi-cation 505, Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax.

Choosing no withholding on payments outside theUnited States. The choice for no withholding generallycannot be made for annuity payments to be deliveredoutside the United States and its possessions.

To choose exemption from withholding if you are aU.S. citizen or resident, you must provide OPM with

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your home address in the United States or its pos-sessions. Otherwise, OPM has to withhold tax. For ex-ample, OPM must withhold if you provide a U.S. ad-dress for a nominee, trustee, or agent (such as a bank)to whom the benefits are to be delivered, but you donot provide your own U.S. home address.

You also may choose exemption from this withhold-ing if you certify to OPM that you are nota U.S. citizen,a U.S. resident alien, or someone who left the UnitedStates to avoid tax. But if you so certify, you may be

subject to the 30% flat rate withholding that applies tononresident aliens. For details, see Publication 519,U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens.

Withholding certificate. If you give OPM a FormW-4P-A, Election of Federal Income Tax Withholding,choosing withholding, your annuity will be treated likewages for income tax withholding purposes. If you donot make a choice, OPM must withhold as if you weremarried with three withholding allowances.

To change the amount of tax withholding or tostop withholding, call OPM's Retirement Infor-mation Office at 1-888-767-6738 ( in the met-

ropolitan Washington, D.C. area call 202-606-0500),or call Annuitant Express at 1-800-409-6528. No specialform is needed. You will need your retirement claimnumber (CSA or CSF) and your social security numberwhen you call.

Withholding from certain lump-sum payments. Ifyou leave the federal government before becoming eli-gible to retire and you apply for a refund of your con-tributions, or you die without leaving a survivor eligiblefor an annuity, you or your beneficiary will receive adistribution of your contributions to the retirement planplus any interest payable. Tax will be withheld at a 20%rate on the interest distributed. However, tax will notbe withheld on the interest if you roll it over to a tradi-tional IRA or a qualified plan by having OPM transferit directly to the traditional IRA or other plan. SeeRollover Rules in Part II. If you receive only your con-tributions, no tax will be withheld.

If you retire and elect to receive a reduced annuityand a lump-sum payment under the alternative annuityoption, tax will be withheld at a 20% rate on the taxablepart of the lump-sum payment received. (See Alterna-tive Annuity Option in Part II for information about thisoption.) However, no tax will be withheld from the lumpsum if you roll the taxable part over to a traditional IRAor a qualified plan by having OPM transfer the taxablepart directly to a traditional IRA or other plan.

Estimated tax. Generally, for the year 2000, youshould make estimated tax payments if you expect toowe at least $1,000 in tax (after subtracting your with-holding and credits) and you expect your withholdingand your credits to be less than the smaller of:

1) 90% of the tax to be shown on your income taxreturn for the year 2000, or

2) The tax shown on your 1999 income tax return(108.6% of that amount if the adjusted gross in-come shown on the return was more than $150,000

($75,000 if your filing status for 2000 will be marriedfiling separately)). The return must cover all 12months.

You do not have to pay estimated tax for the year2000 if you were a U.S. citizen or resident for all of 1999and you had no tax liability for the full 12-month 1999tax year.

Form 1040-ES contains a worksheet that you canuse to see if you should make estimated tax payments.

For more information, see chapter 2 in Publication 505.Form CSA 1099R. Form CSA 1099R is mailed toyou by OPM each year. It will show any tax you hadwithheld. File copy B of Form CSA 1099R with yourreturn if any federal income tax was withheld.

Withholding from Thrift Savings Plan payments.Generally, a distribution that you receive from the ThriftSavings Plan (TSP) is subject to federal income taxwithholding. The amount withheld is:

20% if the distribution is an eligible rollover distri-bution, or

10% if it is a nonperiodic distribution, or

Determined by treating the payment as wages, if itis a periodic distribution.

However, you can usually choose not to have taxwithheld from TSP payments other than eligible rolloverdistributions. By January 31 after the end of the yearin which you receive a distribution, the TSP will issueForm 1099R showing the total distributions you re-ceived in the prior year and the amount of tax withheld.

For a detailed discussion of withholding on distribu-tions from the TSP, see Important Tax InformationAbout Payments From Your Thrift Savings Plan Ac-count (Rev. July 1998), available from your agency

personnel office or from the TSP.The above document is also available on theInternet at www.tsp.gov. Select Forms &Publications, then select Other Documents.

Filing RequirementsIf your gross income, including the taxable part of yourannuity, is less than a certain amount, you generallydo not have to file a federal income tax return. Thegross income filing requirements are in the instructionsto the Form 1040, 1040A, or 1040EZ, that you get eachyear. You should check these requirements closelybecause they change occasionally.

Children. If you are the surviving spouse of a federalemployee or retiree and your monthly annuity checkincludes a survivor annuity for one or more children,each child's annuity counts as his or her own income(not yours) for federal income tax purposes.

If your child can be claimed as a dependent, treathis or her annuity as unearned income to apply the filingrequirements.

Form CSF 1099R. By January 31 after the end ofeach tax year, you should receive Form CSF 1099R,which will show the total amount of the annuity youreceived in the past year. It should also separately show

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the survivor annuity for a child or children. Only the partthat is each individual's survivor annuity should beshown on that individual's Form 1040 or 1040A.

If your Form CSF 1099R does not separately showthe amount paid to you for a child or children, attach astatement to your return, along with a copy of FormCSF 1099R, explaining why the amount shown on thetax return differs from the amount shown on Form CSF1099R.

You may request a Summary of Benefits,showing the amounts paid to you for yourchild(ren), from OPM by calling OPM's Retire-

ment Information Office at 1-888-767-6738 (in themetropolitan Washington, D.C. area, call (202)6060500). You will need your CSF claim number andyour social security number when you call.

Taxable part of annuity. To find the taxable partof each annuity, see the discussion in Part IV, Rules forSurvivors of Federal Employees, or Part V, Rules forSurvivors of Federal Retirees, whichever applies.

Part IIRules for RetireesThis part of the publication is for retirees who retiredon nondisability retirement. If you retired on disability,see Part III, Rules for Disability Retirement and Creditfor the Elderly or the Disabled, later.

Annuity statement. The statement you received fromthe Office of Personnel Management (OPM) when yourCSRS or FERS annuity was approved shows your totalcontributions to the retirement plan (your cost), thecommencing date(the annuity starting date), and the

gross monthly rateof your annuity benefit. The grossmonthly rate is the amount you were to get after yourannuity was adjusted for electing the survivor's annuityand for electing the lump-sum payment under the al-ternative annuity option (if either applied) but beforeincome tax withholding, insurance premiums, etc., werededucted.

You will use the information from your annuitystatement to figure the tax-free recovery of your cost.

Your cost. Your monthly annuity check contains anamount on which you have previously paid income tax.This amount represents part of your contributions to theretirement plan. Even though you did not receive the

money that was contributed to the plan, it was includedin your gross income for federal income tax purposesin the years it was taken out of your pay.

The cost of your annuity is the total of your contri-butions to the retirement plan. If you elected the alter-native annuity options, it includes any deemed depositsand any deemed redeposits. See Deemed deposits andredepositsunder Alternative Annuity Option, later.

Repayment of contributions plus interest. If yourepaid to the retirement plan contributions that you hadwithdrawn earlier, or if you paid into the plan to receivefull credit for service not subject to retirement de-ductions, the entire repayment, including any interest,

is a part of your cost. You cannot claim an interest de-duction for any interest payments. You cannot treatthese payments as voluntary contributions; they areconsidered regular employee contributions.

Recovering your cost tax free. How you figure thetax-free recovery of the cost of your CSRS or FERSannuity depends on your annuity starting date.

If your annuity starting date is before July 2, 1986,

either the Three-Year Rule or the General Rule(both discussed later in this Part II) would apply toyour annuity.

If your annuity starting date is after July 1, 1986,and before November 19, 1996, you could havechosen to use the General Rule or the SimplifiedMethod.

If your annuity starting date is after November 18,1996, you must use the Simplified Method.

Under the General Rule or the Simplified Method,each of your monthly annuity payments is made up oftwo parts: the tax-free part that is a return of your cost,

and the taxable balance. The tax-free part is a fixeddollar amount. It remains the same, even if your annuityis increased. Generally, this rule applies as long as youreceive your annuity. For an exception, see Exclusionlimit, later.

Changing the method. If your annuity starting dateis after July 1, 1986, but before November 19, 1996,you can change the way you figure the tax-free recov-ery of your cost from the General Rule to the SimplifiedMethod, or from the Simplified Method to the GeneralRule. However, you must use the same method for allyears. To do this, you must file amended returns(showing the change) for all previous tax years, begin-ning with the year in which you received your first an-

nuity payment. Generally, you must make this changebefore the later of:

3 years after the due date of the return for the yearin which you received your first annuity payment,or

2 years after the tax for that year was paid.

Annuity starting date. If you retire from federal gov-ernment service on a regular annuity, your annuitystarting date is the commencing date on your annuitystatement from OPM.

If something delays payment of your annuity, suchas a late application for retirement, it does not affect the

date your annuity begins to accrue or your annuitystarting date.

Disability retirement. If you retired on disability, seePart III, Rules for Disability Retirement and Credit forthe Elderly or the Disabled, later in this publication, todetermine the date you will begin to report your disa-bility payments as an annuity.

Exclusion limit. If your annuity starting date is after1986, the total amount of annuity income that you (orthe survivor annuitant) can exclude over the years asa return of your cost may not exceed your total cost.

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Annuity payments you or your survivors receive afterthe total cost in the plan has been recovered are fullytaxable.

Example. Your annuity starting date is after 1986and you exclude $100 a month under the SimplifiedMethod. If your cost is $12,000, the exclusion ends after10 years (120 months). Thereafter, your entire annuityis taxable.

Annuity starting date before 1987. If your annuity

starting date was before 1987, you continue to takeyour monthly exclusion figured under the General Ruleor Simplified Method for as long as you receive yourannuity. If you chose a joint and survivor annuity, yoursurvivor continues to take the survivor's exclusion fig-ured as of the annuity starting date. The total exclusionmay be more than your cost.

Deduction of unrecovered cost. If your annuitystarting date is after July 1, 1986, and the cost of yourannuity has not been fully recovered at your (or thesurvivor annuitant's) death, a deduction is allowed forthe unrecovered cost. The deduction is claimed on your(or your survivor's) final tax return as a miscellaneousitemized deduction (not subject to the2%-of-adjusted-gross-income limit). If your annuitystarting date is before July 2, 1986, no tax benefit isallowed for any unrecovered cost at death.

Choosing a survivor annuity after retirement. If youretired without a survivor annuity and began reportingyour annuity under the Simplified Method, do notchange your tax-free monthly amount even if you laterchoose a survivor annuity.

If you retired without a survivor annuity and decidedto report your annuity under the General Rule, you mustfigure a new exclusion percentage if you later choose

a survivor annuity. To figure it, reduce your cost by theamount you previously recovered tax free. Figure theexpected return as of the date the reduced annuity be-gins. For details on the General Rule, see Publication939.

Canceling a survivor annuity after retirement. If younotify the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) thatyour marriage has ended, your annuity might be in-creased to remove the reduction for a survivor benefit.The increased annuity does not change the cost re-covery you figured at the annuity starting date. Thetax-free part of each annuity payment remains thesame.

For more information, contact OPM's Retire-ment Information Office at 1-888-767-6738 ( inthe metropolitan Washington, D.C. area call

202-606-0500), or call Annuitant Express at1-800-409-6528.

Simplified MethodIf your annuity starting date is after November 18, 1996,you must use the Simplified Method to figure the tax-free part of your CSRS or FERS annuity. You couldhave chosen to use either the Simplified Method or the

General Rule if your annuity starting date is after July1, 1986, but before November 19, 1996. The SimplifiedMethod does not apply if your annuity starting date isbefore July 2, 1986.

Under the Simplified Method, you figure the tax-freepart of each full monthly payment by dividing your costby a number of months based on your age. This num-ber will differ depending on whether your annuity start-ing date is on or before November 18, 1996, or later.If your annuity starting date is after 1997 and your an-

nuity includes a survivor benefit for your spouse, thisnumber is based on your combined ages.

Table 1. Use Table 1, Simplified Method Worksheet(near the end of this publication), to figure your taxableannuity. Be sure to keep the completed worksheet; itwill help you figure your taxable amounts for later years.

Line 2. See the discussion at the beginning of thisPart II for an explanation of your cost in the plan. If yourannuity starting date was after November 18, 1996, andyou chose the alternative annuity option (explained laterunder Alternative Annuity Option), you must reduceyour cost by the part of the lump-sum payment you

received tax-free as a return of your cost.Line 3. Find the appropriate number from one of the

tables at the bottom of the worksheet. If your annuitystarting date is after 1997, use:

Table 1 for an annuity withouta survivor's benefit,or

Table 2 for an annuity witha survivor's benefit.

If your annuity starting date is before 1998, use Table1.

Line 6. If you retired before 1998, the amount pre-viously recovered tax free that you must enter on line6 is the total amount from line 10 of last year's work-sheet. If your annuity starting date is before November19, 1996, and you chose the alternative annuity option,it includes the tax-free part of the lump-sum paymentyou received.

Example. Bill Kirkland retired from the federal gov-ernment on April 30, 1999, under an annuity that willprovide a survivor benefit for his wife, Kathy. His annuitystarting date is May 3, 1999. He must use the SimplifiedMethod to figure the tax-free part of his annuity benefits.

Bill's monthly annuity benefit is $1,000. He had con-tributed $24,700 to his retirement plan and had receivedno distributions before his annuity starting date. At hisannuity starting date, he was 65 and Kathy was 57.

Bill's completed worksheet (Table 1) is shown on thenext page. To complete line 3, he used Table 2 at thebottom of the worksheet and found the number in thesecond column opposite the age range that includes122 (his and Kathy's combined ages). Bill keeps a copyof the completed worksheet for his records. It will helphim (and Kathy, if she survives him) figure the taxableamount of the annuity in later years.

Bill's tax-free monthly amount is $80. (See line 4 ofthe worksheet.) If he lives to collect more than 310monthly payments, he will have to include in his grossincome the full amount of any annuity payments re-ceived after 310 payments have been made.

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Table 1.

Enter the total annuity received this year. Also add this amount to the total for Form 1040,line 16a, or Form 1040A, line 11a

10.

1.

Enter your cost in the plan at the annuity starting date, plus any death benefit exclusion2.

Enter the appropriate number from Table 1 below. But if your annuity starting date wasafter 1997 and the payments are for your life and that of your beneficiary, enter theappropriate number from Table 2 below

3.

Divide line 2 by line 34.

Multiply line 4 by the number of months for which this years payments were made. Ifyour annuity starting date was before 1987, enter this amount on line 8 below and skiplines 6, 7, 10, and 11. Otherwise go to line 6

5.

Enter any amounts previously recovered tax free in years after 19866.

Subtract line 6 from line 27.

Enter the smaller of line 5 or line 78.

Taxable annuity for year. Subtract line 8 from line 1. Enter the result, but not less thanzero. Also add this amount to the total for Form 1040, line 16b, or Form 1040A, line 11b.If your Form CSA 1099R or Form CSF 1099R shows a larger amount, use the amount onthis line instead

9.

Add lines 6 and 8

Balance of cost to be recovered. Subtract line 10 from line 211.

Simplified Method Worksheet (Keep For Your Records)

$

$

$

See the instructions for the worksheet in Part II under Simplified Method.

NOTE: If your annuity starting date wasbefore this yearand you completed this worksheet

last year, skip line 3 and enter the amount from line 4 of last years worksheet on line 4below. Otherwise, go to line 3.

Table 1 for Line 3 Above

AND your annuity starting date wasIF the age atannuity startingdate was. . .

before November 19, 1996,enter on line 3. . .

after November 18, 1996,enter on line 3. . .

55 or under56606165667071 or older

300260240170120

360310260210160

Table 2 for Line 3 AboveIF the combined ages at annuitystarting date were. . . THEN enter on line 3. . .

110 and under111120121130131140141 or older

410360310260210

8,000

24,700

310

80

6 40

0

24,700

6 40

7,360

6 40

24,060

$

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If Bill does not live to collect 310 monthly paymentsand his wife begins to receive monthly payments, shewill also exclude $80 from each monthly payment until310 payments (Bill's and hers) have been collected. Ifshe dies before 310 payments have been made, amiscellaneous itemized deduction (not subject to the2%-of-adjusted-gross-income limit) will be allowed forthe unrecovered cost on her final income tax return.

General RuleIf your annuity starting date is after November 18, 1996,you cannot use the General Rule to figure the tax-freepart of your CSRS or FERS annuity. If your annuitystarting date is after July 1, 1986, but before November19, 1996, you could have chosen to use either theGeneral Rule or the Simplified Method. If your annuitystarting date is before July 2, 1986, you could havechosen to use the General Rule only if you could notuse the Three-Year Rule.

Under the General Rule, you figure the tax-free partof each full monthly payment by multiplying the initialgross monthly rate of your annuity by an exclusionpercentage. Figuring this percentage is complex and

requires the use of actuarial tables. For these tablesand other information about using the General Rule,see Publication 939.

Three-Year RuleIf your annuity starting date was before July 2, 1986,you probably had to report your annuity using theThree-Year Rule. Under this rule, you excluded all theannuity payments from income until you fully recoveredyour cost. After the cost was recovered, all paymentsbecame fully taxable. You cannot use another rule toagain exclude amounts from income.

The Three-Year Rule was repealed for retirees who

have an annuity starting date after July 1, 1986.

Alternative Annuity OptionIf you are a nondisability retiree under either CSRS orFERS, you may be able to choose the alternative an-nuity option. This option is generally available only tothose with certain life-threatening illnesses or othercritical medical conditions. If you choose this option,you will receive a lump-sum payment equal to your totalregular contributions to the retirement plan plus anyinterest that applies. Your monthly annuity is then re-duced by about 5 to 15 percent to adjust for this pay-ment.

Lump-sum payment. If you choose the alternativeannuity option, the lump-sum payment you receive willhave a taxable part and a tax-free part. The tax-freeamount represents part of your cost, and the taxableamount represents part of the earnings on your annuitycontract. To determine the taxable part of your lump-sum payment, you must know the present value of yourannuity contract.

To find out the present value of your annuitycontract, call the IRS Actuarial Branch 1 at2026227789 (not a toll-free call).

You can figure the taxable part of a lump-sum pay-ment using Table 2, Worksheet for Lump-SumPayment, near the end of this publication.

Example. David Brown retired from the federalgovernment in 1999, one month after his 55th birthday.He had contributed $31,000 to his retirement plan andchose to receive a lump-sum payment of that amountunder the alternative annuity option. The present valueof his annuity contract was $155,000. Using the Table

2 worksheet, he figures the taxable part of the lump-sum payment and his net cost in the plan. That work-sheet is shown later.

Simplified method after receiving a lump-sum pay-ment. If you have chosen to receive a lump-sum pay-ment under the alternative annuity option, you will alsoreceive reduced monthly annuity payments. These an-nuity payments will each have a tax-free and a taxablepart. To figure the tax-free part of each annuity pay-ment, you must use the Simplified Method Worksheet(Table 1). In figuring the tax-free part, you must reduceyour cost in the plan (line 2 of Table 1) by the tax-freepart of the lump-sum payment you received. Do not

include this tax-free amount with other amounts recov-ered tax free (line 6 of Table 1) when limiting your totalexclusion to your total cost.

Example. Under the facts in the previous example,David figures the taxable part of his annuity paymentsby reducing his $31,000 cost in the annuity plan by the$6,200 tax-free part of the lump-sum payment. He en-ters his $24,800 net cost in the plan (from line 5 ofTable 2) on line 2 of Table 1. He does not include the$6,200 tax-free part of the lump-sum payment on line6 of Table 1. Assuming that David receives 10 annuitypayments of $1,200, he uses Table 1 to figure the tax-able portion of his total annuity payments. David's Table1 is shown, later.

Annuity starting date before November 19, 1996. Ifyour annuity starting date was before November 19,1996, and you chose the alternative annuity option, adifferent rule applied to determine the taxable and tax-free parts of your lump-sum payment. Under that rule,the tax-free part was in the same proportion to thelump-sum payment as the reduction in your annuitybenefit under the option was to your original annuitybenefit without the option.

A different rule also applies to determine the tax-freepart of your annuity payments. Under this rule, you donotreduce your cost in the plan (line 2 of Table 1) by

the part of the lump-sum payment you received tax free.However, you must include that tax-free amount withother amounts previously recovered tax free (line 6 ofTable 1) when limiting your total exclusion to your totalcost.

CAUTION

!Reemployment after receiving a lump-sumpayment. If you chose to receive a lump-sumpayment when you retired and then you were

reemployed by the federal government before retiringagain, your Form CSA 1099R may show only theamount of your contributions to your retirement planduring your reemployment. If the amount on the formdoes not include all your contributions, disregard it and

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Table 2.

Enter your lump-sum payment (your cost in the plan at the annuity starting date)1.

Enter the present value of your annuity contract2.


Tax-free part of lump-sum payment. Multiply line 1 by the number on line 3.

(Caution: Do not include this amount on line 6 of Table 1 in this publication.)

4.

Taxable part of lump-sum payment (Net cost in the plan). Subtract line 4 from line1. Include this amount in the total on line 16b of Form 1040 or line 11b of Form 1040A.Also, enter this amount on line 2 of Table 1 in this publication

5.

Worksheet for Lump-Sum Payment (Keep For Your Records)

$

See the instructions for the worksheet in Part II under Alternative Annuity Option.

31,00 0

155 ,0 00

.20

6,200

24,800

$

$

use your total contributions to figure the taxable partof your annuity payments.

Rollovers. You can roll over the taxable part of thelump-sum payment to a traditional IRA or a qualified

retirement plan. OPM must withhold income tax of 20%on the taxable part of the payment unless you haveOPM transfer that part directly to a traditional IRA or aqualified retirement plan. See Rollover Rules later inthis part for more information.

If your contributions include a deemed deposit orredeposit, discussed later, OPM will make a directrollover only up to the net lump-sum payment amount.If the taxable amount is more than your net lump-sumpayment, you can roll over the difference using yourown funds within 60 days. If you do not roll over thisdifference, you must include it as taxable income onyour income tax return.

5-year or 10-year tax option or capital gain treat-ment. Your lump-sum payment does notqualify for the5-year or 10-year tax option or capital gain treatment.Do not report the lump-sum payment or any interest onForm 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions. This formis used to elect these optional methods. For more in-formation, get Publication 575.

Where to report. Add any actual or deemed paymentof your lump-sum credit (defined later) to the total forline 16a, Form 1040, or line 11a, Form 1040A. Add thetaxable part to the total for line 16b, Form 1040, or line11b, Form 1040A, unless you roll over the taxable partto a traditional IRA or a qualified retirement plan. If you

receive the lump-sum payment in two installments, in-clude any interest paid with the second installment online 8a of either Form 1040 or Form 1040A.

Additional tax. If you retired before the calendar yearin which you reached (or will reach) age 55, you mustpay an additional tax equal to 10% of the taxableamount of the lump-sum payment that you do not rollover to a traditional IRA or a qualified retirement plan.Report the additional tax on line 53, Form 1040. Youmay also have to complete Form 5329 and attach it toyour Form 1040. If you do not have to attach Form5329, write No on the dotted line next to line 53 of your

Form 1040. See Instructions for Form 5329 to deter-mine if you must file the form.

CAUTION

!If you owe the 10% additional tax, you must fileForm 1040.

The 10% additional tax does not apply to the taxableamount of the lump-sum payment that is equal to your

deductible medical expenses for the year (after re-duction by 71/2% of your adjusted gross income), evenif you do not itemize deductions.

Example. You left government service at the ageof 50 and received a lump-sum distribution from yourTSP account of $16,000. When completing your taxreturn you are not able to itemize, but you realize thatyou are subject to the 10% additional tax for earlywithdrawal. Total allowable medical expenses were$8,200 and your AGI for the tax year was $69,000. The10% additional tax for early withdrawal would be figuredas shown in the following worksheet.

16 ,0 00

8,200

69 ,000

5,175

3,025

12,9 75

1,297.50

Enter the total lump-sum paymentreceived

Enter your allowable medicalexpenses

Enter your total Adjusted GrossIncome (AGI)

Multiply line 3 by 7.5% (.075)

1.

2.

3.

4.

Deductible Medical ExpensesSubtract line 4 from line 2

5.

$


If you do notneed to file Form 5329,multiply line 6 by 10% and enter onForm 1040, line 53

7.

If you do need to file Form 5329,enter the amount from line 6 of thisworksheet on line 2 of Form 5329

8.

For information about deductible medical expenses,see Publication 502, Medical and Dental Expenses.

Lump-sum credit. Your lump-sum credit is the sum ofyour contributions to the retirement system, interest onthose contributions, and any deemed deposits anddeemed redeposits. Deemed deposits (including inter-est) are for federal employment during which no retire-

Page 8


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Table 1.

Enter the total annuity received this year. Also add this amount to the total for Form 1040,line 16a, or Form 1040A, line 11a

10.

1.

Enter your cost in the plan at the annuity starting date, plus any death benefit exclusion2.

Enter the appropriate number from Table 1 below. But if your annuity starting date wasafter 1997 and the payments are for your life and that of your beneficiary, enter theappropriate number from Table 2 below

3.


Multiply line 4 by the number of months for which this year s payments were made. Ifyour annuity starting date was before 1987, enter this amount on line 8 below and skiplines 6, 7, 10, and 11. Otherwise go to line 6

5.

Enter any amounts previously recovered tax free in years after 19866.


Enter the smaller of line 5 or line 78.

Taxable annuity for year. Subtract line 8 from line 1. Enter the result, but not less thanzero. Also add this amount to the total for Form 1040, line 16b, or Form 1040A, line 11b.If your Form CSA 1099R or Form CSF 1099R shows a larger amount, use the amount onthis line instead

9.

Add lines 6 and 8

Balance of cost to be recovered. Subtract line 10 from line 211.

Simplified Method Worksheet (Keep For Your Records)

$

$

$

See the instructions for the worksheet in Part II under Simplified Method.

NOTE: If your annuity starting date wasbefore this yearand you completed this worksheetlast year, skip line 3 and enter the amount from line 4 of last years worksheet on line 4

below. Otherwise, go to line 3.

Table 1 for Line 3 Above

AND your annuity starting date wasIF the age atannuity startingdate was. . .

before November 19, 1996,enter on line 3. . .

after November 18, 1996,enter on line 3. . .

55 or under56606165667071 or older

300260240170120

360310260210160

Table 2 for Line 3 AboveIF the combined ages at annuitystarting date were. . . THEN enter on line 3. . .

110 and under111120121130131140141 or older

410360310260210

12,00 0 .0 0

24,800.00

36 0

68.89

688.90

-0 -

24,800.00

688.90

11,3 11.10

688.90

24,111.10

$

Page 9


10/28

ment contributions were taken out of your pay. Deemedredeposits (including interest) are for any refunds ofretirement contributions that you received but have notrepaid. You will get credit for this prior service withoutactually making these deposits or redeposits. Your re-duced (alternative) annuity will be figured as though,before retirement, you had made these deposits andredeposits to OPM. The lump-sum payment actuallymade to you will not include these amounts.

Lump-sum payment in installments. If you choosethe alternative annuity option, you usually will receivethe lump-sum payment in two equal installments. Youwill receive the first installment after you make thechoice upon retirement. The second installment will bepaid to you, with interest, in the next calendar year.(Exceptions to the installment rule are provided forcases of critical medical need.)

Even though the lump-sum payment is made in in-stallments, the overall tax treatment (explained at thebeginning of this discussion) is the same as if the wholepayment were paid at once. If the payment has a tax-free part, you must treat the taxable part as received

first.

Federal Gift TaxIf, through the exercise or nonexercise of an electionor option, you provide an annuity for your beneficiaryat or after your death, you have made a gift. The giftmay be taxable for gift tax purposes. The value of thegift is equal to the value of the annuity.

Joint and survivor annuity. If the gift is an interest ina joint and survivor annuity where onlyyou and your

spouse can receive payments before the death of thelast spouse to die, the gift will generally qualify for theunlimited marital deduction. This will eliminate any gifttax liability with regard to that gift.

If you provide survivor annuity benefits for someoneother than your current spouse, such as your formerspouse, the unlimited marital deduction will not apply.This may result in a taxable gift.

More information. For information about the gifttax, see Publication 950, Introduction to Estate and GiftTaxes.

Retirement During the Past YearIf you have recently retired, the following discussionscovering annual leave, voluntary contributions, andcommunity property may apply to you.

Annual leave. Treat a payment for accrued annualleave received on retirement as a salary payment. It istaxable as wages in the tax year you receive it.

Voluntary contributions. Voluntary contributions tothe retirement fund are those made in addition to theregular contributions that were deducted from your

salary. They also include the regular contributionswithheld from your salary after you have the years ofservice necessary for the maximum annuity allowed bylaw. Voluntary contributions are not the same as em-ployee contributions to the Thrift Savings Plan. SeeThrift Savings Plan, later.

Additional annuity benefit. If you choose an addi-tional annuity benefit from your voluntary contributions,it is treated separately from the annuity benefit thatcomes from the regular contributions deducted from

your salary. This separate treatment applies for figuringthe amounts to be excluded from, and included in, grossincome. It does not matter that you receive only onemonthly check covering both benefits. Each year youwill receive Form CSA 1099R that will show how muchof your total annuity received in the past year was fromeach type of benefit.

Figure the taxable and tax-free parts of your addi-tional monthly benefits from voluntary contributions us-ing the rules that apply to regular CSRS and FERSannuities, as explained earlier in Part II.

Refund of voluntary contributions. If you choosea refund of your voluntary contributions plus accruedinterest, the interest is taxable to you in the tax year it

is distributed unless you roll it over to a traditional IRAor a qualified retirement plan. See Rollover Rules, later.The interest does not qualify for the 5-year or 10-yeartax option.

Example. You retired in November when youreached the necessary age and years of service to re-tire. You applied for an annuity based on your regularcontributions to the plan. You chose a refund of yourvoluntary contributions plus interest.

On December 15, you received the refund. The in-terest is fully taxable (no 5-year or 10-year tax optiontreatment is allowed) unless you roll it over to a tradi-tional IRA or a qualified retirement plan within 60 days.

Additional tax. The accrued interest included in therefund of voluntary contributions and not rolled over intoa traditional IRA or a qualified retirement plan is gen-erally subject to a 10% additional tax on early distribu-tions if the refund is made to you before the date youreach age 591/2. However, the tax does not apply if therefund is made after your retirement and you retiredduring or after the calendar year in which you reachedage 55.

Also, the 10% additional tax does not apply if youretired at any age because of total and permanent dis-ability. Nor does the additional tax apply to the accrued

interest that is equal to your deductible medical ex-penses for the year (the amount of medical expensesthat exceeds 71/2% of your adjusted gross income),even if you do not itemize deductions. For informationabout deductible medical expenses, see Publication502. Use the worksheet below to determine the amountof your lump-sum payment subject to the 10% addi-tional tax.

Page 10


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1.

2.

3.

4.

Deductible Medical Expenses

Subtract line 4 from line 2

5.

$



7.


8.

Report the additional tax on line 53, Form 1040. Youmay also have to complete Form 5329 and attach it toyour Form 1040. See Instructions for Form 5329 todetermine if you must file the form. If you do not haveto file Form 5329, write No on the dotted line next toline 53 of your Form 1040.

CAUTION

!If you owe the 10% additional tax, you must fileForm 1040.

Community property laws. State community propertylaws apply to your annuity. These laws will affect yourincome tax only if you file a return separate from yourspouse.

Generally, the determination of whether your annuityis separate income (taxable to you) or community in-come (taxable to both you and your spouse) is basedon your marital status and domicile when you wereworking. Regardless of whether you are now living ina community property state or a noncommunity propertystate, your current annuity may be community incomeif it is based on services you performed while marriedand domiciled in a community property state.

At any time, you have only one domicile even thoughyou may have more than one home. Your domicile isyour fixed and permanent legal home to which, whenabsent, you intend to return. The question of yourdomicile is mainly a matter of your intentions as indi-cated by your actions.

If your annuity is a mixture of community income andseparate income, you must divide it between the twokinds of income. The division is based on your periodsof service and domicile in community and noncommu-nity property states while you were married.

For more information, see Publication 555, Commu-nity Property.

Reemployment After RetirementIf you retired from federal service and were later re-employed by the federal government, you can continueto receive your annuity during reemployment. Your an-nuity will continue to be taxed just as it was before. Ifyou are still recovering your cost, you continue to doso. If you have recovered your cost, the annuity youreceive while you are reemployed is generally fully

taxable. The employing agency will pay you the differ-ence between your salary for your period of reemploy-ment and your annuity. This amount is taxable aswages.

Nonresident AliensThere are some special rules for nonresident alienfederal employees performing services outside theUnited States and for nonresident alien retirees and

beneficiaries.

Special rule for figuring your total contributions.Your contributions to the retirement plan (your cost)also include the government's contributions to the planto a certain extent. You include government contribu-tions that would not have been taxable to you at thetime they were contributed if they had been paid directlyto you. For example, government contributions wouldnot have been taxable to you if, at the time made, yourservices were performed outside the United States.Thus, your cost is increased by government contribu-tions that you would have excluded as income fromforeign services if you had received them directly as

wages. This reduces the benefits that you, or yourbeneficiary, must include in income.

This method of figuring your total contributions doesnot apply to any contributions the government madeon your behalf after you became a citizen or residentof the United States.

Limit on taxable amount. There is a limit on the tax-able amount of payments received from the CSRS, theFERS, or the TSP by a nonresident alien retiree ornonresident alien beneficiary. This limited taxableamount is in the same proportion to the otherwise tax-able amount that the retiree's total U.S. Governmentbasic pay other than tax-exempt pay for services per-

formed outside the United States is to the retiree's totalU.S. Government basic pay for all services.

Basic pay includes regular pay plus any standbydifferential. It does not include bonuses, overtime pay,certain retroactive pay, uniform or other allowances, orlump-sum leave payments.

To figure the limited taxable amount of your CSRSor FERS annuity or your TSP distributions, use the fol-lowing worksheet.

Enter the otherwise taxable amount ofthe CSRS or FERS annuity (from line 9

of Table 1) or TSP distributions

Worksheet for Nonresident Alien

Enter the total U.S. Government basicpay other than tax-exempt pay forservices performed outside the UnitedStates

Enter the total U.S. Government basicpay for all services

Divide line 2 by line 3

1.

2.

3.

4.

Limited taxable amount. Multiply line 1by the number on line 4. Enter thisamount on Form 1040NR, line 17b

5.

$

Page 11


12/28

Example 1. You are a nonresident alien who hadperformed all services for the United States abroad asa nonresident alien. You retired and began to receivea monthly annuity of $200. Your total basic pay for allservices for the United States was $100,000.

Without regard to the limit explained above, the tax-able amount of your annuity would be $720. Becauseyou are a nonresident alien, you figure the taxableamount of your annuity as follows.

Enter the otherwise taxable amount ofthe CSRS or FERS annuity (from line 9of Table 1) or TSP distributions





1.

2.

3.

4.

Limited taxable amount. Multiply line 1by the number on line 4. Enter this

amount on Form 1040NR, line 17b

5.

$ 720

0

100 ,0 00

0

0

Example 2. You are a nonresident alien who retiredfrom your employment with the United States. For yourwork performed both within the United States andabroad you began to receive a monthly annuity of $240.

Your total basic pay for your services for the UnitedStates was $120,000; $80,000 was for work done in theUnited States, and $40,000 was for your work done ina foreign country. You were a nonresident alien duringall of your employment.

Without regard to the limit explained above, the tax-able amount of your annuity would be $1,980. Because

you are a nonresident alien, you figure the taxableamount of your annuity as follows.

Enter the otherwise taxable amount ofthe CSRS or FERS annuity (from line 9of Table 1) or TSP distributions





1.

2.

3.

4.

Limited taxable amount. Multiply line 1by the number on line 4. Enter thisamount on Form 1040NR, line 17b

5.

$ 1,98 0

80 ,000

120 ,00 0

.667

1,321

Thrift Savings PlanAll of the money in your Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) ac-count is taxed as ordinary income when you receive it.This is because neither the contributions to your TSPaccount nor its earnings have been previously includedin your taxable income. The way that you withdraw your

account balance determines when you must pay thetax.

Direct rollover by the TSP. If you ask the TSP totransfer any part of the money in your account to atraditional individual retirement arrangement (IRA) orother qualified retirement plan, the tax on that part isdeferred until you receive payments from the traditionalIRA or other plan. Distributions cannot be rolled overinto a Roth IRA or an education IRA. See Rollover

Rules, later.Hardship distributions. Hardship distributions from

your TSP account cannot be rolled over into a tradi-tional IRA. Since these distributions cannot be rolledover into a traditional IRA they are not subject to the20% withholding for federal income taxes. If you re-ceived a hardship distribution before the year you wereage 591/2, you may be subject to the additional 10% taxon early withdrawals. See Tax on early distributions,later.

TSP annuity. If you ask the TSP to buy an annuity withthe money in your account, the annuity payments aretaxed when you receive them. However, the payments

are not subject to the tax on early distributions, even ifyou are under age 55 when they begin.

Cash withdrawals. If you withdraw any of the moneyin your TSP account, it is taxed as ordinary incomewhen you receive it unless you roll it over into a tradi-tional IRA or other qualified plan. (See Rollover Rules,later.) If you receive your entire TSP account balancein a single tax year, you may be able to use the 5-yearor 10-year tax option to figure your tax. See Lump-SumDistributions in Publication 575 for details.

If you receive a single payment or you choose toreceive your account balance in monthly payments overa period of less than 10 years, the TSP must withhold20% for federal income tax. If you choose to receiveyour account balance in monthly payments over a pe-riod of 10 or more years or a period based on your lifeexpectancy, the payments are subject to withholdingunder the same rules as your CSRS or FERS annuity.See Tax Withholding and Estimated Taxin Part I.

Tax on early distributions. Any money paid to youfrom your TSP account before you reach age 591/2 isgenerally subject to an additional 10% tax on earlydistributions. Report the tax on line 53 of Form 1040.You may also have to file Form 5329. For details, seeInstructions for Form 5329.

This additional tax does not apply in any of the fol-lowing situations.

1) You choose to receive your account balance inmonthly payments based on your life expectancy.

2) You retire on disability.

3) You separate from government service during orafter the calendar year in which you reach age 55.

Also, this tax does not apply to the amount of pay-ments you receive equal to your medical expenses forthe year, minus 71/2% of your adjusted gross income.For information about deductible medical expenses,

Page 12


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see Publication 502. Use the worksheet below to de-termine the amount of your lump-sum payment subjectto the 10% additional tax.





1.

2.

3.

4.Deductible Medical ExpensesSubtract line 4 from line 2

5.

$



7.


8.

Outstanding loan. If the TSP declares a distributionfrom your account because money you borrowed hasnot been repaid when you separate from governmentservice, your account is reduced and the amount of thedistribution (your unpaid loan balance and any unpaidinterest) is taxed in the year declared. The distributionalso may be subject to the additional 10% tax on earlydistributions. However, the tax will be deferred if youmake a rollover contribution to a traditional IRA or otherqualified plan equal to the declared distribution amount.See Rollover Rules, next. If you withdraw any moneyfrom your TSP account the same year, the TSP mustwithhold income tax of 20% of the total of the declareddistribution and the amount withdrawn.

More information. For more information about theTSP, see Summary of the Thrift Savings Plan forFederal Employees, distributed to all federal employ-ees. Also see Important Tax Information About Pay-ments From Your Thrift Savings Plan Account (Rev.July 1998) and Tax Treatment of TSP Payments toNonresident Aliens and Their Beneficiaries (Rev. Au-gust 1998), which are available from your agency per-sonnel office or from the TSP.

The above documents are also available on theInternet at www.tsp.gov. Select Forms andPublications.

Rollover RulesA rollover is a tax-free withdrawal of cash or other as-sets from one qualified retirement plan or traditional IRAand its reinvestment in another qualified retirement planor traditional IRA. Do not include the amount rolled overin your income, and you cannot take a deduction for it.The amount rolled over is taxable later as the newprogram pays that amount to you. If you roll overamounts into a traditional IRA, subsequent distributionsof these amounts from the traditional IRA do not qualifyfor the capital gain or the 5-year or 10-year tax option.Capital gain treatment or the 5-year or 10-year tax op-

tion will be restored if the traditional IRA contains onlyamounts rolled over from a qualified plan and theseamounts are rolled over from the traditional IRA into aqualified retirement plan.

A qualified retirement plan is a qualified pension,profit-sharing, or stock bonus plan, or a qualified an-nuity plan. The CSRS, the FERS, and the TSP areconsidered qualified retirement plans.

Distributions eligible for rollover treatment. If you

receive a refund of your CSRS or FERS contributionswhen you leave government service, you can roll overany interest you receive on the contributions. You can-not roll over any part of your CSRS or FERS annuitypayments.

You can roll over a distribution of any part of yourTSP account balance except:

1) A distribution of your account balance that youchoose to receive in monthly payments over:

a) Your life expectancy, or

b) A period of 10 years or more,

2) A required minimum distribution generally begin-ning at age 701/2,

3) A declared distribution because of an unrepaidloan, if you have not separated from governmentservice (see Outstanding loanunder Thrift SavingsPlan, earlier), or

4) A hardship distribution.

In addition, a distribution to your beneficiary gener-ally is not treated as an eligible rollover distribution.However, see Qualified domestic relations order andRollover by surviving spouse, later.

Direct rollover option. You can choose to have theOPM or TSP transfer any part of an eligible rolloverdistribution directly to another qualified retirement planthat accepts rollover distributions or to a traditional IRA.Distributions from your TSP account cannot be rolledover into an education IRA or a Roth IRA.

No tax withheld. If you choose the direct rolloveroption, no tax will be withheld from any part of the dis-tribution that is directly paid to the trustee of the otherplan.

Payment to you option. If an eligible rollover distri-bution is paid to you, the OPM or TSP must withhold20% for income tax even if you plan to roll over the

distribution to another qualified retirement plan or tra-ditional IRA. However, the full amount is treated asdistributed to you even though you actually receive only80%. You must include in income any part (includingthe part withheld) that you do not roll over within 60days to another qualified retirement plan or to a tradi-tional IRA.

If you leave government service before the calendaryear in which you reach age 55 and are under age591/2 when a distribution is paid to you, you may haveto pay an additional 10% tax on any part, including anytax withheld, that you do not roll over. See Tax on EarlyDistributions in Publication 575.

Page 13


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Exception to withholding. Withholding from an el-igible rollover distribution paid to you is not required ifthe distributions for your tax year total less than $200.

Partial rollovers. If you receive a lump-sum distri-bution, it may qualify for capital gain treatment or the5-year or 10-year tax option. See Lump-Sum Distribu-tions in Publication 575. If you roll over any part of thedistribution, the part you keep does notqualify for thisspecial tax treatment.

Rolling over more than amount received. If you

want to roll over more of an eligible rollover distributionthan the amount you received after income tax waswithheld, you will have to add funds from some othersource (such as your savings or borrowed amounts).

Example. You left government service at age 53.On February 1, 2000, you receive an eligible rolloverdistribution of $10,000 from your TSP account. TheTSP withholds $2,000, so you actually receive $8,000.If you want to roll over the entire $10,000 to postponeincluding that amount in your income, you will have toget $2,000 from some other source and add it to the$8,000 you actually received. You must complete therollover by April 3, 2000.

If you roll over only $8,000, you must include in yourgross income the $2,000 not rolled over. Also, you maybe subject to the 10% additional tax on the $2,000.

Time for making rollover. You must complete therollover of an eligible rollover distribution by the 60thday following the day on which you receive the distri-bution.

Frozen deposits. If an amount that was distributedto you is deposited in an account from which you cannotwithdraw it because of either:

1) The bankruptcy or insolvency of the financial insti-tution, or

2) Any requirement imposed by the state in which theinstitution is located because of the bankruptcy orinsolvency (or threat of it) of one or more financialinstitutions in the state,

that amount is considered a frozen deposit for theperiod during which you cannot withdraw it.

A special rule extends the period allowed for a tax-free rollover for frozen deposits. The period duringwhich the amount is a frozen deposit is not counted inthe 60-day period allowed for a tax-free rollover to aqualified plan or a traditional IRA. Also, the 60-day pe-riod does not end earlier than 10 days after the deposit

is no longer a frozen deposit. To qualify under this rule,the deposit must be frozen on at least one day duringthe 60-day rollover period.

Qualified domestic relations order. You may be ableto roll over tax free all or part of a distribution you re-ceive from the CSRS, the FERS, or the TSP under acourt order in a divorce or similar proceeding. You mustreceive the distribution as the government employee'sspouse or former spouse (not as a nonspousal benefi-ciary). The rollover rules apply to you as if you were theemployee. You can roll over the distribution if it is aneligible rollover distribution (described earlier) and it is

made under a qualified domestic relations order(QDRO) or, for the TSP, a qualifying order.

A QDRO is a judgment, decree, or order relating topayment of child support, alimony, or marital propertyrights. The payments must be made to a spouse, formerspouse, child, or other dependent of a participant in theplan. For the TSP, a QDRO can be a qualifying order,but a domestic relations order can be a qualifying ordereven if it is not a QDRO. For example, a qualifyingorder can include an order that requires a TSP payment

of attorney's fees to the attorney for the spouse, formerspouse, or child of the participant.

The order must contain certain information, includingthe amount or percentage of the participant's benefitsto be paid to each payee. It cannot require the plan topay benefits in a form not offered by the plan, nor canit require the plan to pay increased benefits.

A distribution that is paid to a child, dependent, or,if applicable, an attorney for fees, under a QDRO or aqualifying order is taxed to the plan participant.

Rollover by surviving spouse. You may be able toroll over tax free all or part of the CSRS, FERS, or TSPdistribution you receive as the surviving spouse of a

deceased employee. The rollover rules apply to you asif you were the employee, except that you can roll overthe distribution only into a traditional IRA. You cannotroll it over into a qualified retirement plan. A distributionpaid to a beneficiary other than the employee's surviv-ing spouse is not an eligible rollover distribution.

How to report. On your Form 1040, report the totaldistributions from the CSRS, FERS, or TSP on line 16a.Report the taxable amount of the distributions minus theamount rolled over, regardless of how the rollover wasmade, on line 16b. If you file Form 1040A, report thetotal distributions on line 11a and the taxable amountminus the amount rolled over on line 11b.

Written explanation to recipients. The TSP or OPMmust provide a written explanation to you within a rea-sonable period of time before making an eligible rolloverdistribution to you. It must tell you about:

1) Your right to have the distribution paid tax free di-rectly to another qualified retirement plan or to atraditional IRA,

2) The requirement to withhold tax from the distribu-tion if it is not paid directly to another qualified re-tirement plan or to a traditional IRA,

3) The nontaxability of any part of the distribution thatyou roll over to another qualified retirement plan orto a traditional IRA within 60 days after you receivethe distribution, and

4) If they apply, the other qualified retirement planrules, including those for lump-sum distributions,alternate payees, and cash or deferred arrange-ments.

Reasonable period of time. The TSP or OPM mustprovide you with a written explanation no earlier than90 days and no later than 30 days before the distribu-tion is made. However, you can choose to have a dis-

Page 14


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tribution made less than 30 days after the explanationis provided as long as the following two requirementsare met.

1) You must have the opportunity to consider whetheror not you want to make a direct rollover for at least30 days after the explanation is provided.

2) The information you receive must clearly state that

you have the right to have 30 days to make a de-cision.

Contact the TSP or OPM if you have any questionsabout this information.

Choosing the right option. The following comparisonchart may help you decide which distribution option tochoose. Carefully compare the tax effects of each andchoose the option that is best for you.

Direct Rollover

No withholding.

No 10% additional tax.

Not income until later distributedto you from the other plan or thetraditional IRA.

Payer must withhold income tax of

20% on the taxable part even if youroll it over to another plan or to atraditional IRA.

Payment to you

If you are under age 5912, a 10%additional tax may apply to thetaxable part, including the taxwithheld, that you do not roll over.

Taxable part, including the taxwithheld, is income if not rolled over.

Not eligible for capital gain or5-year or 10-year tax option.*

May be eligible for capital gaintreatment or the 5-year or 10-yeartax option if no part is rolled over.

*May be eligible for capital gain treatment or the 5-year or 10-year taxoption when later distributed to you from the plan that accepts the rollover.

Comparison Chart

How To Report BenefitsIf you received annuity benefits that are not fully taxa-ble, report the total received for the year on Form 1040,line 16a, or on Form 1040A, line 11a. Also include onthat line the total of any other pension plan payments(even if fully taxable, such as those from the TSP) thatyou received during the year in addition to the annuity.Report the taxable amount of these total benefits on line16b (Form 1040) or line 11b (Form 1040A). If you useForm 4972, Tax on Lump-Sum Distributions, however,to report the tax on any amount, do not include thatamount on lines 16a and 16b or lines 11a and 11b;

follow the Form 4972 instructions.If you received only fully taxable payments from your

retirement, the TSP, or other pension plan, report onForm 1040, line 16b, or Form 1040A, line 11b, the totalreceived for the year (except for any amount reportedon Form 4972); no entry is required on line 16a (Form1040) or line 11a (Form 1040A).

Part IIIRules for DisabilityRetirement andCredit for the Elderly orthe DisabledThis part of the publication is for federal employees andretirees who receive disability benefits under the CSRS,the FERS, or other federal programs. It also explainsthe tax credit available to certain taxpayers because ofage or disability.

Disability RetirementIf you retired on disability, the disability pension youreceive from the CSRS or FERS is taxable as wagesuntil you reach minimum retirement age. Beginningon the day after you reach minimum retirement age,your payments are treated as a retirement annuity. At

that time or at any time thereafter, you can begin torecover the cost of your annuity under the rules dis-cussed in Part II.

If you find that you could have started your recoveryin an earlier year for which you have already filed areturn, you can elect to start your recovery of contribu-tions in that earlier year by filing an amended return forthat year and each succeeding year. Generally, anamended return for any year must be filed within 3years after the due date for filing your original return forthat year.

Minimum retirement age (MRA). This is the age at

which you could first receive an annuity were you notdisabled. This is generally based on your age andlength of service.

Retirement under the Civil Service RetirementSystem (CSRS). In most cases, under the CSRS, theminimum combinations of age and service for retire-ment are:

Age 55 with 30 years of service,

Age 60 with 20 years of service,

Age 62 with 5 years of service, and

For law enforcement, firefighter, or air traffic con-troller service, age 50 with 20 years of coveredservice.

Retirement under the Federal Employees Retire-ment System (FERS). Your MRA under the FERS isbetween ages 55 and 57 with at least 10 years of ser-vice. With at least 5 years of service, your MRA cannotbe greater than age 62. Specifically, your MRA with atleast 10 years of service is shown in the following table.

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If you were born in

1947 or earlier

1948

1949

1950

1951

55 years

Your MRA is

1952

55 years, 2 months

55 years, 4 months

55 years, 6 months

56 years

55 years, 8 months

55 years, 10 months

1953 to 1964

19651966

1967

1968

1969

1970 or later

56 years, 2 months56 years, 4 months

56 years, 6 months

57 years

56 years, 8 months

56 years, 10 months

How to report. You must report all your disabilitypayments received before minimum retirement age online 7 (Form 1040 or Form 1040A).

Withholding. For income tax withholding purposes, a

disability annuity is treated the same as a nondisabilityannuity. This treatment also applies to disability pay-ments received before minimum retirement age whenthese payments are shown as wages on your return.See Tax Withholding and Estimated Tax in Part I, ear-lier.

Credit for the Elderly or the DisabledYou can take the credit for the elderly or the disabledif:

1) You are a qualified individual, and

2) Your income is not more than certain limits.

You are a qualified individual for this credit if you area U.S. citizen or resident and, at the end of the tax year,you are:

1) Age 65 or older, or

2) Under age 65 and you

a) Retired on permanent and total disability,

b) Received taxable disability income, and

c) Did not reach mandatory retirement age(ex-plained later) before the beginning of the taxyear.

You are retired on permanent and total disability ifyou were permanently and totally disabled when youretired, and you retired on disability before the close ofthe tax year. If you retired on disability before 1977 butyou were not permanently and totally disabled at thetime you retired, you can qualify for the credit if youwere permanently and totally disabled on January 1,1976, or January 1, 1977.

Permanently and totally disabled. You are perma-nently and totally disabled if you cannot engage in anysubstantial gainful activity because of your physical or

mental condition. A physician must certify that yourcondition is expected to result in death or has lasted,or can be expected to last, continuously for 12 monthsor more. Substantial gainful activity is the perform-ance of significant duties over a reasonable period oftime while working for pay or profit, or in work generallydone for pay or profit.

Mandatory retirement age. This is the age set by youremployer at which you would have had to retire if you

had not become disabled. There is no mandatory re-tirement age for most federal employees. However,there is a mandatory retirement age for the followingemployees.

1) An air traffic controller appointed after May 15,1972, by the Department of Transportation or theDepartment of Defense, generally must retire by thelast day of the month in which he or she reachesage 56.

2) A firefighter employed by the U.S. Government whois otherwise eligible for immediate retirement gen-erally must retire by the last day of the month in

which he or she reaches age 55 or, if later, com-pletes 20 years of firefighter service.

3) A law enforcement officer employed by the U.S.Government who is otherwise eligible for immediateretirement generally must retire by the last day ofthe month in which he or she reaches age 57 or, iflater, completes 20 years of law enforcement ser-vice.

Physician's statement. If you are under 65, you musthave your physician complete a statement certifyingthat you are permanently and totally disabled. You mustkeep this statement for your tax records. You can usethe Physician's Statement in the instructions for either

Schedule R (Form 1040) or Schedule 3 (Form 1040A).

Figuring the credit. If you figure the credit yourself,fill out the front of either Schedule R (if you are filingForm 1040) or Schedule 3 (if you are filing Form1040A). Next fill out Part III of either Schedule R orSchedule 3.

If you want the Internal Revenue Service to figureyour tax and credits, including the credit for the elderlyor the disabled, see Publication 967, The IRS Will Fig-ure Your Tax, and the instructions for Schedule R (Form1040) or Schedule 3 (Form 1040A).

More information. For detailed information about thiscredit, get Publication 524.

Other BenefitsThe tax treatment of certain other benefits is explainedin this section.

Federal Employees' Compensation Act (FECA).FECA payments you receive for personal injuries orsickness resulting from the performance of your dutiesare like workers' compensation. They are tax exemptand are not treated as disability income or annuities.However, payments you receive while your claim is

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being processed, including pay while on sick leave andcontinuation of pay for up to 45 days, are taxable.

Sick pay or disability payments repaid. If yourepay sick leave or disability payments you received inan earlier year to be eligible for nontaxable FECAbenefits, you can deduct the amount you repay. Youcan claim the deduction whether you repay the amountyourself or have the FECA payment sent directly to youremploying agency or the OPM.

Claim the deduction on Schedule A (Form 1040) as

a miscellaneous itemized deduction, subject to the2%-of-adjusted-gross-income limit. It is considered abusiness loss and may create a net operating loss ifyour deductions for the year are more than your incomefor the year. Get Publication 536, Net OperatingLosses, for more information. The repayment is not el-igible for the special tax credit that applies to repay-ments over $3,000 of amounts received under a claimof right.

If you repay sick leave or disability payments in thesame year you receive them, the repayment reducesthe taxable sick pay or disability benefits you include inincome. Do not deduct it separately.

Terrorist attack. Disability benefits you receive for in-juries resulting from a violent attack are tax exempt andare not treated as disability income or annuities if:

1) The attack took place while you were a federalemployee performing official duties outside theUnited States, and

2) The Secretary of State determines it to have beena terrorist attack.

Disability resulting from military service injuries.If you received tax-exempt benefits from the Depart-ment of Veterans Affairs for personal injuries resulting

from active service in the armed forces and later receiveCSRS or FERS disability payments for disability arisingfrom the same injuries, you cannot treat the disabilitypayments as tax-exempt income. They are treated asa disability pension or annuity subject to the rules de-scribed earlier.

Payment for annual leave. When you retire, any pay-ment for your unused annual leave is taxed as a salarypayment. It is not treated as disability or annuity pay,but is taxed as wages in the tax year you receive thepayment.

Part IVRules for Survivorsof Federal EmployeesThis part of the publication is for survivors of federalemployees. It explains how to treat amounts you re-ceive because of the employee's death. If you are thesurvivor of a federal retiree, see Part V.

Employee earnings. Salary or wages earned by afederal employee but paid to the employee's survivoror beneficiary after the employee's death are income

in respect of the decedent. This income is taxable tothe survivor or beneficiary. This treatment also appliesto payments for accrued annual leave.

Dependents of public safety officers. The PublicSafety Officer's Benefits program provides a deathbenefit to eligible survivors of public safety officerswhose death is the direct and proximate result of atraumatic injury sustained in the line of duty.

A public safety officer is a law enforcement officer,firefighter, or member of a public rescue squad or am-bulance crew.

This program, administered through the Bureau ofJustice Assistance, may pay survivors a temporarybenefit up to $3,000 if it finds that the death of the publicsafety officer is one for which a final benefit will proba-bly be paid. If there is no final payment, the recipientof the temporary benefit is liable for repayment. How-ever, the Bureau may not require all or part of the re-payment if it will cause a hardship. If that happens, thatamount is tax free.

The death benefit is not includible in the decedent'sgross estate for federal estate tax purposes, or thesurvivor's gross income for federal income tax pur-poses.

For more information on this program, you maycontact the Bureau of Justice Assistance bycalling 1-(888)-744-6513, or (202) 307-0635 if

you are in the metropolitan Washington D.C. callingarea.

Additional information about this death benefitis also available on the Internet atwww.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA.

FERS Death BenefitYou may be entitled to a special FERS death benefit ifyou were the spouse of an active FERS employee whodied after at least 18 months of federal service. At youroption, you can take the benefit in the form of a singlepayment or in the form of a special annuity payable overa 3-year period.

The tax treatment of the special death benefit de-pends on the option you choose and whether a FERSsurvivor annuity is also paid.

If you choose the single payment option, use thefollowing rules.

1) If a FERS survivor annuity is not paid, at least part

of the special death benefit is tax free. The tax-freepart is an amount equal to the employee's FERScontributions (plus any allowable death benefit ex-clusion allocated to that benefit).

2) If a FERS survivor annuity is paid, all of the specialdeath benefit is taxable. You cannot allocate anyof the employee's FERS contributions (or any al-lowable death benefit exclusion) to the specialdeath benefit.

If you choose the 3-year annuity option, at leastpart of each monthly payment is tax free. Use the fol-lowing rules.

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1) If a FERS survivor annuity is not paid, the tax-freepart of each monthly payment is an amount equalto the employee's FERS contributions (plus any al-lowable death benefit exclusion allocated to thespecial death benefit) divided by 36.

2) If a FERS survivor annuity is paid, allocate theemployee's FERS contributions (plus any allowabledeath benefit exclusion allocated to the FERSbenefits) between the 3-year annuity and the sur-

vivor annuity. Make the allocation in the same pro-portion that the expected return from each annuitybears to the total expected return from both annui-ties. Divide the amount allocated to the 3-year an-nuity by 36. The result is the tax-free part of eachmonthly payment of the 3-year annuity.

CSRS or FERS Survivor AnnuityIf you receive a CSRS or FERS survivor annuity, youcan recover the employee's cost tax free. The employ-ee's cost is the total of the retirement plan contributionsthat were taken out of his or her pay.

How you figure the tax-free recovery of the cost de-pends on your annuity starting date. This is the day

after the date of the employee's death. The methods touse are the same as those described near the begin-ning of Part II under Recovering your cost tax free.

The following discussions cover only the SimplifiedMethod. You can use this method if your annuitystarting date is after July 1, 1986. You mustuse thismethod if your annuity starting date is after November18, 1996. Under the Simplified Method, each of yourmonthly annuity payments is made up of two parts: thetax-free part that is a return of the employee's cost andthe taxable balance. The tax-free part remains thesame, even if your annuity is increased. However, seeExclusion limit, later.

Surviving spouse with no children receiving annui-ties. Under the Simplified Method, you figure the tax-free part of each full monthly payment by dividing yourcost by a number of months based on your age. Thisnumber will differ depending on whether your annuitystarting date is on or before November 18, 1996, orlater. To use the Simplified Method, complete theworksheet in Table 1, near the end of this publication.Specific instructions for Table 1 are given in Part II un-der Simplified Method.

Example. Diane Greene, age 48, began receivinga $1,500 monthly CSRS annuity in March 1999 uponthe death of her husband. Her husband was a federal

employee when he died. She received 10 payments in1999. Her husband had contributed $36,000 to the re-tirement plan.

Diane must use the Simplified Method. Her com-pleted worksheet (Table 1) is shown on the next page.To complete line 3, she used Table 1 at the bottom ofthe worksheet and found the number in the last columnopposite the age range that includes her age. Dianekeeps a copy of the completed worksheet for her rec-ords. It will help her figure her taxable annuity in lateryears.

Diane's tax-free monthly amount is $100 (line 4 of theworksheet). If she lives to collect more than 360 pay-

ments, the payments after the 360th will be fully taxa-ble. If she dies before 360 payments have been made,a miscellaneous itemized deduction (not subject to the2%-of-adjusted-gross-income limit) will be allowed forthe unrecovered cost on her final income tax return.

Surviving spouse with child. If the survivor benefitsinclude both a life annuity for the surviving spouse andone or more temporary annuities for the employee's

children, an additional step is needed under the Sim-plified Method to allocate the monthly exclusion amongthe beneficiaries correctly.

Figure the total monthly exclusion for all beneficiariesby completing lines 2 through 4 of the worksheet inTable 1 as if only the surviving spouse received anannuity. Then, to figure the monthly exclusion for eachbeneficiary, multiply line 4 of the worksheet by a frac-tion. For any beneficiary, the numerator of the fractionis that beneficiary's monthly annuity, and the denomi-nator of the fraction is the total of the monthly annuitypayments to all the beneficiaries.

The ending of a child's temporary annuity does notaffect the total monthly exclusion figured under the

Simplified Method. The total exclusion merely needs tobe reallocated at that time among the remaining ben-eficiaries. If only the surviving spouse is left drawingan annuity, the surviving spouse is entitled to the entiremonthly exclusion as figured in the worksheet.

Example. Assume the same facts as in the DianeGreene example, earlier, except that the Greenes hada son, Robert, who was age 15 at the time of his father'sdeath. Robert is entitled to a $500 per month temporaryannuity until he reaches age 18 (age 22, if he remainsa full-time student and does not marry).

In completing the Simplified Method Worksheet,Diane fills out the entries through line 4 exactly as

shown in the earlier example. That is, she includes online 1 only the amount of the annuity she herself re-ceived and she uses on line 3 the 360 factor for herage. After arriving at the $100 monthly exclusion on line4, however, Diane allocates it between her own annuityand that of her son.

To find how much of the monthly exclusion to allo-cate to her own annuity, Diane multiplies the $100monthly exclusion by the fraction $1,500 (her monthlyannuity) over $2,000 (the total of her $1,500 andRobert's $500 annuities). She enters the result, $75,

just below the entry space for line 4. She completesthe worksheet by entering $750 on lines 5 and 8 and$14,250 on line 9.

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