Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) 

The TSP menu option allows users to view their current TSP data. Users can also start, stop, or change TSP contributions.

TSP is a retirement savings and investment plan for Federal employees covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS).

TSP provides retirement income for participants and offers Federal employees the same type of savings and tax benefits that many private corporations offer their employees under 401(k) plans.

The Thrift Savings Plan Enhancement Act of 2009, Public Law 111-31, signed on June 22, 2009, authorized the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB) to add a Roth 401(k) feature to the plan. This benefit allows participants to contribute on an after-tax basis to their TSP accounts and receive tax-free earnings when they withdraw funds (assuming certain criteria are met). For more information on Roth requirements, see the TSP website at https://www.tsp.gov.

TSP contributions are voluntary in the amount chosen by the participant. TSP benefits are in addition to employees’ FERS or CSRS annuity. TSP is an important part of a FERS employee’s retirement package, along with their FERS Basic Annuity and Social Security benefits. For CSRS employees, TSP serves as a supplement to their CSRS annuity. For more information about TSP, see the TSP Web site at https://www.tsp.gov.

1. To make changes to TSP, select the TSP component. The Thrift Savings Plan (Federal and Non-Federal) page is displayed. The user’s existing TSP data that is stored in the Payroll/Personnel System as of the last effective pay period is displayed.

2. Select the Self-Service button. The TSP Self-Service Request Page is displayed.

3. Select the Start TSP ROTH Contribution button for Roth transactions. The Enter ROTH TSP Self-Service Request page is displayed.
    

4. Complete the TSP ROTH fields as follows:

Plan Name Field Instruction

Type of Election Field Instruction

Dollar Amount Field Instruction

Percent of Basic Pay Field Instruction

Effective Pay Period, Year Field Instruction

5. Select the Continue button to confirm the selection. The ROTH TSP Self-Service Request page is displayed.

 

6. Select the Yes button to continue with the amount entered or No button to go back and make changes. If selecting the Yes button, the Submit ROTH TSP Self-Service Request page is displayed.

7. Select the Submit button to submit the changes entered. The ROTH TSP Self-Service Request Confirmation page is displayed.

OR

8. Select the Exit button. The Thrift Savings Plan (Federal and Non-Federal) page is displayed.

TSP Catch-Up Contributions

TSP catch-up contributions are supplemental tax-deferred employee contributions that employees can make to TSP beyond the maximum amount they could contribute through regular contributions.

TSP catch-up contributions do not require a separate annual catch-up election. To contribute to TSP catch-up, participants age 50 and older should add any contributions toward the catch-up limit to their TSP contributions. You must be contributing the maximum amount allowed into TSP (both traditional and Roth combined), and any spillover contributions will automatically rollover into TSP catch-up. The maximum amount allowed is the percentage of pay or dollar amount which will result in total contributions toward the IRS limits (both traditional and Roth combined) for TSP and catch-up totals by the end of the tax year.

For more information on catch-up contributions, refer to the TSP Fact Sheet, Contributions Toward the Catch-Up Limit, as well as the Official TSP Catch-Up Contribution Limits page.

In the TSP Catch-Up selection tab on the TSP Catch-Up page, EPP displays the following statement: TSP SECURE Act 2.0, Section 603: Impacts to Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Catch-Up Contributions which states a participant’s catch-up contributions must be Roth if the participant’s FICA wages (as defined in 26 U.S. Code §3121(a)) in the preceding tax year were above a certain threshold. This is regardless of the participant’s contribution elections on file.

Participants over 50 years old and whose prior year wages were less than or equal to $150K: Catch-up contributions will follow the contribution election the participant has on file.

Participants over 50 years old and whose prior year wages were greater than $150K: Catch-up contributions must be Roth regardless of the participant’s contribution election on file. Per section 603, catch-up eligible participants whose wages are over the defined threshold can only make Roth catch-up contributions.

Note: In Fall 2024, TSP sent a notice to eligible participants turning age 60–63 in calendar year 2025. The employee's date of birth must be accurate in the National Finance Center (NFC) system to ensure eligibility for higher catch-up contribution limits, with no opt-in required. 

TSP Spillover Contributions

Spillover contributions are made in conjunction with regular TSP contributions. There is no special form for spillover contributions. 

To be eligible to make spillover contributions, the following conditions must apply:

• The employee must be at least age 50 years or older during the calendar year in which the spillover contributions are made (even if the employee becomes age 50 on December 31 of that year).
• The employee must be currently employed and in a pay status (contributions are made through payroll deductions).
• The employee must be making regular contributions to a civilian or uniformed services TSP account (or both) and/or an equivalent employer plan (401(k), 403(b), or 408 plan) that equals the maximum allowed by the IRS.

Eligible employees may contribute up to the annual maximum dollar amount allowed by the IRS elective deferral limit.

Since spillover contributions are supplemental, they do not count against the IRS elective deferral limit. However, the combination of regular and spillover TSP contributions cannot exceed the total IRS contribution limit for the year.

Contributions spilling over toward the catch-up limit will be matched, but only up to the 5 percent of salary to which participants are already entitled.

Spillover contributions apply to the year during which they are made, even if they are posted to the TSP account in the following year (e.g., employee contributions for the last pay date in December may not be posted until January, but will be counted toward the limit in December).

Spillover contributions may only be made from the employee’s basic pay. Bonuses or special pay, and incentive pay for members of the uniformed services, cannot be applied towards spillover contributions.