Your TSP tax documents live in your online account at tsp.gov. Log in to My Account and open your participant mailbox, where Form 1099-R is posted by mid-February each year for any distribution you took the year before. If you would rather have a paper copy mailed to you, call the ThriftLine at 1-877-968-3778. Form 1099-R is the only tax form the TSP issues, and it only exists if money came out of your account during the tax year.
Downloading Your 1099-R From tsp.gov
Sign in to My Account with your username and password, then open the section for statements and correspondence. Your 1099-R is stored there as a PDF you can download to your computer or phone as soon as it is posted.
Every login uses multifactor authentication. You will get a one-time passcode by text, voice call, or the Okta Verify app; email delivery is limited to .mil addresses.1Thrift Savings Plan. Troubleshoot Account Access Check that your phone number and email on file are current before tax season so a code delivery failure does not lock you out when you need the form.
If you have already left federal service, you still use the same portal. One trap for separated employees: any address link your agency maintained through a payroll system like myPay ends when you leave, so update your mailing address directly on tsp.gov if you want paper mail to reach you.2Thrift Savings Plan. Leaving the Federal Government
Getting a Paper Copy by Phone
If you cannot get into the online portal, or you simply want a physical copy, call the ThriftLine at 1-877-968-3778 and ask a Participant Service Representative for a duplicate 1099-R. Representatives are available Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. Eastern time. Paper copies come by standard mail, so plan on the extra transit time rather than the instant download.
When the Form Is Available
IRS rules require that Form 1099-R be furnished to recipients by January 31 for the prior tax year.3Internal Revenue Service. General Instructions for Certain Information Returns The TSP posts copies to your online mailbox by mid-February, which still leaves roughly two months before the April filing deadline.4Thrift Savings Plan. January Processing Schedule
Corrective distributions and death benefit payments run on a separate track and can appear later than the standard schedule. If a correction has been requested on your form, expect the revised 1099-R within about three weeks after the TSP verifies the error.4Thrift Savings Plan. January Processing Schedule Waiting for the corrected form is usually simpler than filing first and amending later with Form 1040-X.
What Form 1099-R Reports
Form 1099-R covers every kind of money leaving your TSP: partial withdrawals, full cashouts, annuity purchases, required minimum distributions, and rollovers. The TSP files the same information with the IRS and, where applicable, your state tax agency.5Thrift Savings Plan. Taking Money From Your Account
Four boxes carry most of the weight:
- Box 1, Gross Distribution: the total paid out of your TSP during the year.
- Box 2a, Taxable Amount: the portion subject to income tax. For traditional TSP withdrawals this is normally the full Box 1 figure, because those contributions went in pre-tax.
- Box 4, Federal Tax Withheld: what the TSP already sent to the IRS on your behalf, credited against your tax bill when you file.
- Box 7, Distribution Code: a letter code that tells the IRS why the money came out, and whether the 10% early withdrawal additional tax applies.
If you did not take a distribution during the year, no 1099-R is issued. Contributions going into your account show up on your W-2 through payroll, not on a TSP-issued form.
Roth and Traditional Balances on the Same Form
How your distribution is taxed depends on which balance it came from. Traditional withdrawals are ordinary income in full. Roth withdrawals can be entirely tax-free if you are at least 59½ and at least five years have passed since your first Roth TSP contribution; when both are true, Box 2a shows $0.
If you take a Roth distribution before meeting those conditions, only the earnings portion is taxable. The contributions you already paid tax on come back to you tax-free, and the TSP separates the taxable earnings into Box 2a for you.
Box 7 also differs by type. Traditional distributions, Roth distributions, and direct rollovers each carry their own codes. If you rolled a traditional TSP balance directly into an IRA or another qualified plan, Box 2a will read $0 because a direct rollover is not a taxable event; the same is true for a Roth-to-Roth IRA rollover.
The Box 7 Code and the 10% Early Withdrawal Tax
Distributions taken before age 59½ generally carry a 10% additional tax on top of regular income tax. That extra tax is calculated on your return, not printed on the 1099-R, which is why the Box 7 code matters so much: it tells the IRS whether an exception applies.6Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Topics – Exceptions to Tax on Early Distributions
The exception most federal employees rely on is separation from service in or after the year you turn 55. For qualified public safety employees, including federal law enforcement officers, firefighters, customs and border protection officers, and air traffic controllers, that age drops to 50.6Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Topics – Exceptions to Tax on Early Distributions Confirm the code in Box 7 lines up with your situation before you file. A wrong code can cost you a penalty you do not actually owe.
Fixing an Error on Your 1099-R
If the distribution amount, withholding figure, or distribution code on your form is wrong, call the ThriftLine at 1-877-968-3778 and ask for a correction. The TSP issues a corrected 1099-R within about three weeks after verifying the error, and the corrected form replaces the original for filing purposes.4Thrift Savings Plan. January Processing Schedule Checking the form against your own records before you file is the easiest way to avoid an amended return.
A Note on State Taxes
The 1099-R handles your federal filing, but your TSP distribution may also be taxable at the state level. Some states do not tax retirement income, and others offer partial exemptions for federal retirement plan distributions. The TSP reports applicable distributions to state tax agencies, so the state already knows about the withdrawal.5Thrift Savings Plan. Taking Money From Your Account Check your state department of revenue for the specific treatment that applies where you live.