Did you know you can put extra money into your Wisconsin Retirement System account so you have more income for retirement? Additional contributions earn the same rate of interest as your employee-required contributions. Use the WRS Retirement Benefits Calculator to see how additional contributions may affect your retirement benefit.
Ways to Contribute
There are three ways you can make an additional contribution to your WRS account:
- Make an e-Payment.
- Send a check or money order directly to ETF along with the Additional Contributions Remittance (ET-2545) form.
- Arrange a payroll deduction with your employer if available.
If you participate in the Variable Trust Fund, 50% of your additional contributions will be put in your Variable Fund account.
Instructions for e-Payment
- You must be an active (working) employee of a WRS employer to make additional contributions.
- You will need your ETF ID.
- Payments initiated by 8:00 p.m. CST will be considered received for the current business day. Payments initiated after 8:00 p.m. CST will be considered for the next business day. The e-Payment site is administered by US Bank. US Bank will automatically email a receipt confirming the transaction has been processed. This does not confirm the deposit has been successfully completed. Some payments could be rejected by the bank, taking up to three days. If rejected and not successfully re-entered and fully processed by 8:00 p.m. CST on December 31, deposits will not qualify for interest earnings in the new year.
Click on the link below to get started.
Note: On your bank statement, the e-Payment shows up as “WRSETFAddl". No fees are charged for making payments or using the e-Payment site. Any fees for returned payments or overdraft charges are the responsibility of the member.
Important Deadlines for Year End
To begin earning interest on additional contributions on January 1 of the new year:
- e-Payment: Must be successfully initiated via the e-Payment site by 8:00 p.m. Central Standard Time (CST) on December 31 with no subsequent bank rejections or holds.
- Checks mailed to the US Bank lockbox: Must be received by the bank no later than December 31 with no subsequent rejections or holds.
- Checks dropped off at ETF: Must be received at ETF by 4:30 p.m. CST on December 30 with no subsequent bank rejections or holds.
The amount of money that you can contribute each year (for both required and additional contributions) is set by Internal Revenue Service annual 415(c) contribution limits. You may not exceed the limit set for the year. See this year's limit in the Maximum Additional Contribution Worksheet (ET-2566) and the past three years in the IRS Benefits and Compensation Limitations (ET-8873) form. Please consult with your tax advisor if you have questions on how much can be contributed for a given year.