[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 5, Volume 3]
[Revised as of January 1, 2007]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 5CFR1653.12]

[Page 283-284]
 
                    TITLE 5--ADMINISTRATIVE PERSONNEL
 
         CHAPTER VI--FEDERAL RETIREMENT THRIFT INVESTMENT BOARD
 
PART 1653_COURT ORDERS AND LEGAL PROCESSES AFFECTING THRIFT SAVINGS PLAN 
 
  Subpart B_Legal Process for the Enforcement of a Participant's Legal 
          Obligations To Pay Child Support or Alimony Currently
 
Sec.  1653.12  Qualifying legal processes.

    (a) The TSP will only honor the terms of a legal process that is 
qualifying under paragraph (b) of this section.

[[Page 284]]

    (b) A legal process must meet each of the following requirements to 
be considered qualifying:
    (1) A competent authority must have issued the legal process;
    (2) The legal process must expressly relate to the Thrift Savings 
Plan account of a TSP participant, as described in Sec.  1653.2(a)(1);
    (3) The legal process must require the TSP to:
    (i) Pay a stated dollar amount from a participant's TSP account; or
    (ii) Freeze the participant's account in anticipation of an order to 
pay from the account.
    (c) The following legal processes are not qualifying:
    (1) A legal process relating to a TSP account that has been closed;
    (2) A legal process relating to a TSP account that contains only 
nonvested money, unless the money will become vested within 30 days of 
the date the TSP receives the order if the participant were to remain in 
Federal service;
    (3) A legal process requiring the return to the TSP of money that 
was properly paid pursuant to an earlier legal process;
    (4) A legal process requiring the TSP to make a payment in the 
future; and
    (5) A legal process requiring a series of payments.