A contribution limit answers how much may go into a category during a year. A payroll election answers what comes out of a particular paycheck. Agency matching depends on the applicable retirement system and pay period. Review those three records together before deciding that a larger deduction will produce a larger match.
The TSP overview explains the basic program. This worksheet focuses on reconciling your own payroll elections and the amounts the recordkeeper receives. Keep pay statements, salary amounts and account details in your verified payroll or TSP process; a general website inquiry does not need them.
Which contribution total are you checking?
The TSP's 2026 educational bulletin identifies an employee elective-deferral limit of $24,500. Traditional and Roth employee deferrals share that limit. Choosing some Roth contributions does not create a second $24,500 employee limit.
The same bulletin identifies an $8,000 catch-up limit for eligible participants age 50 or older in 2026. Participants turning 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2026 may use the higher $11,250 catch-up limit. These are 2026 amounts; do not copy them into a later year's election without checking that year's IRS and TSP guidance.
Agency or service automatic and matching contributions are separate from the employee elective-deferral total. Uniformed-services contributions from tax-exempt combat-zone pay have additional distinctions. Payroll should confirm which categories apply to your particular service and pay.
| Record to reconcile | Question it answers |
|---|---|
| Current contribution election | What percentage or dollar amount did payroll accept, and when does it take effect? |
| Year-to-date employee deductions | How much has payroll already deducted into traditional and Roth categories? |
| TSP transaction history | Were those deductions received and classified as expected? |
| Agency or service contributions | Which automatic and matching amounts were credited for each pay period? |
| Other employer-plan records | Does another plan affect the employee limit you need to coordinate? |
| Remaining contributory pay dates | How many actual deductions remain in the calendar year? |
Why does the pay period matter for matching?
The current TSP contribution regulation calculates applicable matching against basic pay for the pay period. For covered FERS and BRS contributions, it describes a full match on the first 3% and a half match on the portion above 3% through 5%. The regulation has separate rules for agency automatic contributions and for when particular uniformed-service members become eligible.
That structure makes the timing question useful: if employee deductions stop before the final pay periods because a limit has been reached, what happens to the matching you expected for those later periods? Ask payroll to explain the applicable result before front-loading contributions or assuming there will be a year-end adjustment.
Do not apply the civilian FERS timing rules to every military account. Ask the service to identify the member's retirement system, eligibility dates and types of pay. A contribution deducted from a bonus or special pay is not automatically treated like an eligible basic-pay contribution for matching.
Make a calendar calculation, then have payroll verify it
A simple division can expose a planning error without establishing an election. For a purely illustrative year with 26 contributory pay dates, $24,500 divided by 26 is about $942.31 per date. The regulation requires civilian elections in whole percentages or whole dollar amounts, so the arithmetic result is not a dollar election to enter into payroll. That calculation also assumes the full stated employee limit applies and that nothing has already been contributed. It does not establish your number of pay dates, available pay, catch-up eligibility, matching entitlement or another plan's effect on the limit.
For a midyear change, start with the applicable limit that payroll confirms, subtract the relevant year-to-date amounts, and identify the remaining actual deductions. Check how rounding, a delayed effective date, a pay change or unpaid leave would affect the result. Keep the agency's confirmation with the accepted election and compare subsequent statements.
Where does the Roth catch-up rule enter?
The mandatory Roth catch-up rule is a separate payroll question from the ordinary choice between traditional and Roth contributions. The TSP's current bulletin explains how prior-year employer wages can affect catch-up treatment and how its spillover process works. Ask payroll which prior-year wage record and current election it will use; household income and account balance do not answer that payroll question.
A Roth catch-up contribution also differs from converting an existing traditional balance to Roth. A conversion moves money already in the account and can create taxable income. Review the separate traditional, Roth and conversion questions before treating the two transactions as interchangeable.
Close the loop after the election changes
Record the requested effective pay date, the first statement showing the new deduction and the first TSP entry reflecting it. If a deduction or match differs from your expectation, ask payroll and the recordkeeper to reconcile the same pay period. Avoid submitting repeated replacement elections while the first change is still being explained.
The practical result is a confirmed contribution record and a clear next review date. It is not a recommendation to contribute a particular amount or to change investments. The appropriate election depends on your circumstances and the rules your employer and TSP confirm.
Browse federal benefits, retirement and insurance topics or read how we prepare and check our guides.
Sources
- TSP: Make the most of your TSP contributions in 2026, checked November 3, 2026
- eCFR: 5 CFR Part 1600 - Employee Contribution Elections, Investment Elections, and Automatic Enrollment Program, checked November 3, 2026
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