12–60 months · $50 fee
General purpose
The application does not require a primary-residence purpose, but account, employment, loan-count, wait-period, spouse and court-order rules still apply.
TSP paycheck-impact workbench
TSP loan calculator
Estimate the deduction, inspect all three borrowing limits and keep a periodic planning schedule separate from the TSP's official quote.
Your entries are calculated in this browser. This page does not transmit or store your balance, loan history, rate, eligibility facts or return assumption.
Method
Four ledgers, one decision
A recurring deduction, an allowable maximum, net cash and an account-return scenario answer different questions. This page does not collapse them into a single reassuring number.
- 01
Separate the request from eligibility
Estimate a payment from principal, term, rate and pay frequency even when account facts are incomplete. Eligibility and the official maximum remain a separate status.
- 02
Inspect all three borrowing caps
When account inputs are available, compare participant-owned money, the vested-balance rule and the prior-12-month $50,000 rule instead of showing one unexplained maximum.
- 03
Model the payroll deduction
Use a transparent periodic amortization, round each modeled line to cents and adjust the final payment. The TSP recordkeeper's account-specific loan agreement still controls.
- 04
Keep opportunity cost optional
Compare an assumed account-return path with the modeled repayment path without calling either a forecast or ignoring the value purchased with the proceeds.
Precision boundary
Exact rule ledger; approximate repayment dates
The borrowing-limit formulas and fee are deterministic from the facts you enter. The payment schedule is deliberately labeled an approximation because the public sources do not publish the recordkeeper's exact day-count and rounding method.
| Result | Precision and source |
|---|---|
| Modeled maximum | Exact A/B/C arithmetic from entered account facts; My Account overrides it. |
| Fee and net cash | Current $50 or $100 rule, subtracted from proceeds—not added to principal. |
| Payment schedule | Periodic amortization for planning; the TSP loan agreement and posting control. |
| Account difference | User-return illustration, not a prediction or the value of what the loan buys. |
Borrowing limit
The smallest applicable cap wins
The public rules compare participant-owned available money, a vested-balance formula and the prior-12-month limit. A primary-residence request also cannot exceed eligible costs still needed to close.
- A · Available participant money
- Core-fund participant contributions and earnings available for the new loan, excluding mutual-fund-window assets and outstanding principal.
- B · Vested-balance rule
- Greater of 50% of the applicable vested balance or $10,000, less current outstanding loan principal.
- C · Prior-12-month rule
- $50,000 less the highest combined outstanding TSP loan balance during the prior 12 months.
Loan structure
General purpose and primary residence are different lanes
61–180 months · $100 fee
Primary residence
For an eligible future purchase or construction, subject to documentation and costs still required to close. Refinancing and a home already purchased are outside this model.
Eligibility and separation
A payment can be valid while the loan is not
The calculator keeps arithmetic available when a fact is unresolved, but it will not label borrowing as confirmed. Current employment, contribution eligibility, pay status or an applicable shutdown exception, loan counts, the post-payoff wait, spouse rules and holds all belong to the application decision.
After separation
Do not model silence as forgiveness
A separated participant may be able to continue direct payments. Failure to begin or maintain required payments can create an offset or other tax event. This tool does not estimate that tax; use the official account instructions and the withdrawal-tax tool separately.
Opportunity-cost boundary
One assumption, two account paths
The optional illustration grows the borrowed principal and modeled repayments at the same return assumption. It does not forecast TSP funds, value the purchase made with the proceeds, model taxes or assume a contribution change.
Return may be higher or lower
Loan interest is not market return
Contribution matching stays separate
Scope & assumptions
No account feed is required
Rules and source metadata are versioned locally. You supply the account facts, official maximum and rate. A shared data-platform feed would not make private account balances, exact loan accrual or the TSP's approval decision authoritative.
Canonical references
Rules you can inspect
Regulation controls the program. My Account controls the participant-specific maximum and quote.
5 C.F.R. Part 1655Current eligibility, number of loans, terms, maximums, rate, repayment, separation, spouse and residential-purpose rules.5 U.S.C. § 8433(g)Statutory TSP loan authority, participant-money scope and financing-cost disclosure framework.Official TSP LoansCurrent participant process, the 4.500% rate displayed July 22, 2026, fees, repayment context and the account-specific application path.TSP Loans booklet (TSPBK04)Official participant guide to eligibility, applying, costs, repayment, residential documentation and leaving service with a loan.DOL 2023 TSP loan-process auditOfficial audit context for recordkeeper-calculated amortization, accrued interest and calculation-input transparency limits.IRS retirement-plan loan FAQsFederal plan-loan limits, prior-12-month rule and substantially level repayment context.5 U.S.C. § 8435(e)Statutory spouse-rights context for TSP loans.2022 FRTIB loan final ruleOfficial Federal Register rulemaking for current loan-program structure and mutual-fund-window treatment.
Rules verified July 22, 2026. Recheck the loan-rate input monthly and the full rule set by January 15, 2027, or sooner after an FRTIB or eCFR change.
Related TSP decisions
Keep the account questions separate
Questions
TSP loan FAQ
Is this the official TSP loan calculator?
No. This is an independent planning tool. Your TSP My Account maximum, application status, fixed rate, accrual calculation, due dates and final repayment schedule control. FedUp makes the planning arithmetic and assumptions inspectable before you apply.
How much can I borrow from the TSP?
A new loan is generally at least $1,000 and no more than $50,000, but the actual maximum can be lower. The rules also consider your participant-contribution money, vested balance, current outstanding loans and highest outstanding balance during the prior 12 months. The amount shown in My Account controls.
How does the payment estimate work?
The tool converts the annual rate to the selected payroll frequency, calculates a level periodic payment, rounds that recurring payment up to cents, rounds each modeled interest line and adjusts the final payment. TSP interest accrues from the issue date, and its account-specific schedule can differ.
What is different about a primary-residence loan?
A general-purpose loan normally has a 12-to-60-month term and a $50 fee. A primary-residence loan has a 61-to-180-month term, a $100 fee and documentation and eligible-cost requirements tied to a future purchase or construction. The TSP decides whether the purpose and documents qualify.
Does TSP loan interest go back into my account?
Loan repayments, including interest, are credited under TSP account rules. That does not make the loan costless: the fee leaves the proceeds, the borrowed principal is outside the account while unpaid, and actual fund returns can differ from the fixed loan rate.
What happens if I leave federal service with a TSP loan?
Current rules can permit continued direct payments after separation, but missed or untimely payments can lead to a loan offset or other tax consequences. Use the official TSP repayment and separation instructions for your account; this page does not calculate an offset tax.
Will a TSP loan stop my agency match?
The loan payment and your employee contribution election are separate. A loan does not automatically change the election, but reducing contributions to make room in a paycheck can reduce matching contributions. Use the TSP growth calculator for that separate scenario.
Does my spouse need to approve the loan?
Spouse consent or notice rules can apply depending on the account and retirement coverage, and court orders can hold processing. This calculator flags the issue but does not collect consent or determine whether an exception applies.
Protect the transition runway
The loan is one line in the plan.
See private-sector roles matched to your federal experience while you model the paycheck and account tradeoff.