You might want to change your Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) contributions, especially if you are in the Blended Retirement System (BRS) and are not yet contributing at least 5% of your Basic Pay to your TSP. Contributing 5% or more of your Basic Pay maximizes the matching government contribution for BRS participants. Even if you are not a BRS participant, saving more now means you don’t have to save more later (to “catch up”) when you are closer to retirement age.

Step 1

Go to myPay and log in.

 

Step 2

Under the “PAY CHANGES” heading, select the “Thrift Savings Plan (TSP)” link.

 

Step 3

Select the yellow pencil icon to make a change to your TSP contribution.

 

Step 4

In the resulting pop up window, enter the changes you want to make. If you are a Blended Retirement System (BRS) participant and you want to maximize your match, the total percentage of your base pay must be a minimum of 5%. It doesn’t matter how much you contribute to either Traditional TSP or Roth TSP as long as your total Base Pay percentage is at least 5%. The US Government contribution will all go to a Traditional TSP account (which will be reflected in your Thrift Savings Plan at TSP.gov, not here in myPay.), but your contribution can be in a Roth TSP account if your prefer. Once you’ve entered your changes, scroll.

 

Step 5

Select the “Continue” button to move to the “Review” stage.

 

Step 6

Review your changes and select the “Submit” button to move to the “Finish” stage.

 

Step 7

Review your changes and select the “Submit” button again to finish making your changes. (Also, if you’re a “trust but verify” person, you can download a record of the transaction form this view. Select the document icon above the green banner.)

 

BONUS!

You can see the changes you just made, when they’ll be effective, AND you have to option to override the pending transaction if you notice you’ve made a mistake.

Need help finding the 5% to contribute to your TSP? Do you want more in-depth assistance financially preparing for your future? Contact your installation’s Personal Financial Management staff or your Command Financial Specialist. Learn more at the PFM MarineNet Video channel, the Marine Corps M&RA BRS page, and the Military Compensation BRS page.