- Retirement savings current
- This is the percentage of your annual salary you contribute to your retirement plan each year. While your plan may not have a deferral percentage limit, this calculator limits deferrals to 75% to account for FICA (Social Security and Medicare) taxes.
- Retirement savings new
- This is the new percentage of your annual salary you would like to compare your current contributions to. While your plan may not have a deferral percentage limit, this calculator limits deferrals to 75% to account for FICA (Social Security and Medicare) taxes.
- Gross pay
- This is your gross pay, before any deductions, for the pay period. Please enter a dollar amount from $1 to $1,000,000.
- Pay period
- This is how often you are paid. Your selections are: Weekly (52 paychecks per year), Every other week (26 paychecks per year), Twice a month (24 paychecks per year), and Monthly (12 paychecks per year).
- Filing status
- This is your income tax filing status. The choices are "Single", "Married" and "Head of Household." Choose "Married" if you are married, "Head of household" if you are unmarried with dependent children, "Single" if you file your taxes as a single person or if you are married but file separately.
- State and local taxes
- This is the percentage that will be deducted for state and local taxes. **TAX_STATE_ALLOWANCE_TJA_DEFINITION** Please note, this calculator can only estimate your state and local tax withholding. The tax rate displayed is an assumption that may or may not be relevant to your situation.
- Pre-tax deductions
- Enter any payroll deductions made by your employer that are made with pre-tax income. This might include your health insurance, life insurance among other pre-tax deductions.
- Post-tax deductions
- Enter any payroll deductions made by your employer that are made with after-tax income.
- Post-tax reimbursements
- Enter any reimbursements made by your employer that are after-tax.
- Expected annual salary change
- The expected annual increase in your salary. The tool uses this to project future contributions and matches to your savings plan.
- Year to date income
- Income from your employer that you have been paid during the current year, before the current payroll period. The tool uses this amount to determine if you are still required to pay FICA OASDI for the current payroll period.
- Social Security tax
- **TAX_SOCIAL_SECURITY_MAX** Please note that if you have other wages or employers this calculator does not make any assumptions as to the total Social Security tax withheld for the current year other than the actual inputs for this calculator. This tax is also referred to as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act Old Age Survivors and Disability Insurance (FICA OASDI).
- Medicare tax
- Medicare tax is calculated as your gross earnings times 1.45%. Unlike the Social Security tax, there is no annual limit to the Medicare tax. Starting in 2013, an additional Medicare tax of 0.9% is withheld on all gross earnings paid in excess of $200,000 in a calendar year. If you enter an amount for the year-to-date gross earnings, this additional Medicare tax will be calculated based on the current period's gross earnings that exceed the annual $200,000 threshold. If no year-to-date amount is entered, any additional Medicare tax withholding will be calculated only for any gross earnings in excess of $200,000 for the current payroll period. If year-to-date wages prior to the current payroll period have exceeded $200,000, the year-to-date wages must be entered to calculate an accurate additional Medicare tax.
- Federal tax withholding calculations
- **TAX_CALCULATION_TJA_DEFINITION**
- Plan type
- Choose the type of 457 plan contributions. The choices are pre-tax and after-tax.
- Current balance
- The current balance of your retirement plan.
- Current age
- Your current age.
- Age at retirement
- Age you wish to retire. This calculator assumes that the year you retire, you do not make any contributions. For example, if you retire at age 65, your last contribution occurs when you are actually 64.
- Annual contribution limits
- Your total contribution for one year is based on your annual salary times the percent you contribute. However, your annual contribution is also subject to certain maximum total contributions per year. **PLAN_CONTRIBUTION_MAX** It is also important to note that employer contributions do not affect an employee's maximum annual contribution limit. The catch-up amount is indexed for inflation in increments of $500.
It is important to note that some employees are subject to another form of contribution limitations. Employees classified as 'Highly Compensated' may be subject to contribution limits based on their employer's overall participation. **PLAN_HIGHLY_COMPENSATED**
