TSP withdrawals

Withdrawal options
See: TSP Withdrawals at TSP.gov

Partial
After leaving Federal service, a TSP may make only one partial withdrawal from the TSP, if you haven't already made an in-service withdrawal.

For TSP participants, when and whether to make their single partial withdrawal is a very important decision to make, since you get only one and need to use it wisely.

The partial withdrawal may be from the Roth or Traditional TSP balance, or a combination of both. Unlike RMDs, which must come proportionally from the Traditional and Roth balances, a partial withdrawal may come from either or both in any percentage desired by the participant performing the withdrawal.

Roth TSP
As an employer sponsored retirement plans, the Roth TSP, like a Roth 401(k), has Required Minimum Distributions. According to the TSP, "Required minimum distributions apply to both traditional and Roth balances and are paid proportionally from both balances." One of the many advantages of Roth IRAs is that there are not subject to RMD. Employer sponsored retirement plans like the Roth TSP and Roth 401(k)s, by contrast, do not enjoy that advantage unless they are rolled over to a Roth IRA. For a TSP participant with a significant Roth TSP balance who would prefer not to withdraw from that balance, it may make sense to use the single partial withdrawal option to roll over the Roth TSP balance to a Roth IRA prior to or shortly after being required to take RMD.