Last Call for Catch-up Elections

Employees who are age 50 or above, or who will be before the end of the year, and who wish to make “catch-up contribution” investments into the TSP still can do so for this year, but note that those investments must be made through payroll withholding, as with regular TSP investments, and cannot be made with a lump-sum amount. Catch-ups are allowed if an eligible individual has hit the annual dollar TSP limit ($17,500 this year) or is on an investing pace to do so by the end of the year. The maximum allowable catch-up is $5,500 this year. Those figures will rise to $18,000 and $6,000, respectively, next year. A new catch-up election must be made each year. Unlike regular investments, those elections do not carry over year to year.