Your initial TSP contribution amount depends on your retirement system and when you enrolled. After your initial contribution, you have complete control over how much you contribute to the TSP to maximize your savings.
If you’re a FERS, CSRS, or BRS participant who began or rejoined federal service on or after October 1, 2020, your agency or service automatically enrolled you in the TSP, and 5% of your basic salary is deducted from your paycheck every pay period and deposited into the traditional balance of your TSP account unless you made a contribution election to stop or change your contributions. (BRS members are not automatically enrolled until they have served for 60 days.) If you’re a BRS member who stopped your contributions during the year, you are automatically re-enrolled at 5% of your basic pay on January 1.
If you’re a FERS or CSRS participant who began or rejoined federal service between August 1, 2010, and September 30, 2020, or a BRS member who began or rejoined service between January 1, 2018, and September 30, 2020, you were automatically enrolled at 3%.
If you’re a FERS employee hired before August 1, 2010, or a BRS “opt-in” member and you’re not contributing your own money, you still have a TSP account with accruing Agency/Service Automatic (1%) Contributions. You have to make a contribution election through your agency or service to start contributing your own money to your account and to receive Agency/Service Matching Contributions.
If you’re not described in any of the previous paragraphs, then you need to make a TSP contribution election through your agency or service to establish a TSP account. You do not receive agency/service contributions.
How to start, change, or stop contributions
In most cases, you’ll use your agency’s or service’s electronic payroll system to start (if you’re not automatically enrolled), change, or stop your TSP contributions:
Civilian payroll systems
Uniformed services payroll systems
Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps
myPay
Coast Guard and NOAA Corps
Direct Access
Members in the USPHS Commissioned Corps need to fill out the paper forms and not the electronic payroll system.
Does your agency or service accept paper forms?
If you need them, you can get paper forms from your agency or service, or you can download TSP Election Forms from this site. Return paper forms to your agency or service, not to the TSP.
