Roth Hardship Withdrawal for House Down Payment

A Roth 403(b) participant wants to take a hardship withdrawal for down payment on a house. The plan allows hardship withdrawals for salary deferral contributions only, not for growth or gains. 

Q. Can the participant take the hardship withdrawal from the Roth account if the account has only been open for 2½ years and has not been in existence for more than five years? 

A. Under a 403(b), only the principal amount of deferrals is available for hardship distributions. Deferrals will include pre-tax and Roth deferrals, so yes, Roth contributions are permitted to be taken for hardship, regardless of the 5-year rule.