Contributions to the Plans
On this page:
- Choose How You Pay Taxes
- Annual Limits on Contributions
- Penn's Contributions
- Maximize Your Contributions
Choose How You Pay Taxes
Your contributions, which are deducted from your paycheck, can be made on a pre-tax or Roth basis. This allows you to choose the tax treatment that best supports your long-term goals.
Pre-tax contributions
Pre-tax contributions are tax-deferred, so you don’t pay taxes on the contributions, or on any investment earnings, until you take the money out of your account.
Example: Suppose your monthly pay is $4,000 and you contribute 5%. Your monthly contribution amount would be $200, but your net pay would be reduced by only $144 (at 28% tax bracket). Your tax savings is $56 per month, or $672 per year.
Roth contributions
Roth contributions are taken from your pay after taxes, but all earnings are tax-free if they are taken as a Qualified Distribution (you must be at least 59½ years of age, and you must have made your first Roth contribution to the plan at least five years ago).
Enroll or Make Changes
Penn TIAA.org Sign-on
Quick Links
Contact Us
TIAA Retirement Call Center
(877) 736-6738
Penn Employee Solution Center
solutioncenter@upenn.edu
or
(215) 898-7372
Annual Limits on Contributions
The Internal Revenue Service specifies annual limits for the maximum amounts you can contribute to the retirement plans in any calendar year.
Employee Contributions: Your combined pre-tax and Roth contributions for the Matching and Supplemental plans (as well as applicable retirement plans at other employers) cannot exceed $20,500 in 2022. If you turn 50 anytime during the year, you can contribute $27,000.
Annual Compensation Limit for Employer Contributions: The IRS limits the amount of annual compensation that can be considered when calculating employer contributions. The Annual Compensation Limit for 2022 is $305,000.
Excess Employee Deferrals
If you accidentally made elective employee contributions in excess of the limits above (which usually happens when somebody is contributing to more than one employer's retirement plan), you will need to take a refund of that excess. You can read more about excess deferrals and how to request a refund here.
| 2022 Age 49 and below | 2022 Age 50 and over |
|---|---|
| $20,500 | $27,000 |
Penn's Contributions
If you are eligible for the Basic and Matching Plans, Penn makes employer contributions to those plans for you. Penn’s contributions are pre-tax.
Basic Contributions
Penn makes regular, automatic contributions to your Basic Plan account as long as you are eligible, regardless of whether you make your own contributions. These basic University contributions are a percentage of your base salary, according to your age as of January 1 of each year.
Penn’s match
If you make contributions to the Matching Plan, Penn will match your contributions dollar-for-dollar (subject to the IRS contribution limits discussed above).
| Your Age | University Basic Contribution | Matching University Contribution | Total Potential University Contribution | Total Potential Employee + University Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21-29 | 1.5% | Dollar-for-dollar match on employee contributions up to 5% | 6.5% | 11.5% |
| 30-39 | 3% | 8% | 13% | |
| 40 or over | 4% | 9% | 14% |
Maximize Your Contributions
- If you want to maximize your contributions, contact the Retirement Call Center at 877-PENN-RET (1-877-736-6738) for help in calculating how much you need to contribute.
- If you stopped your contributions because you reached the maximum early in the calendar year, you’ll need to call 877-PENN-RET in early January of the following year to have your contributions restored. To ensure your contributions will restart in time for your January pay, please call in the first two weeks of January.