Retirement & Taxes
Long-term financial planning, retirement accounts, government benefits, tax law, and IRS rules. Covers the intersection of policy and personal finance that affects how people save, invest, and plan ahead.
Latest in Retirement & Taxes
$994 a month is the new maximum SSI payment for an individual in 2026
The maximum federal Supplemental Security Income payment for a single person climbed to $994 a month in 2026, up from $967 the year before. For...
Student-loan forgiveness is taxable again in 2026, and $50,000 wiped out could mean a $10,000 tax bill
Borrowers who watched a stubborn student loan finally disappear now face an unwelcome sequel: a tax bill. A temporary federal rule that treated forgiven student...
Medicare’s 2027 price cuts target the COPD inhaler Trelegy
Starting January 1, 2027, Medicare’s prescription drug program will pay a federally negotiated price for Trelegy Ellipta, the once-daily inhaler that millions of older Americans...
Medicare Advantage plans are cutting grocery allowances and over-the-counter cards for 2027
The grocery allowances, over-the-counter cards, and flexible spending perks that helped sell many Medicare Advantage plans are shrinking for the 2027 plan year. Insurers are...
About $2.1 trillion sits in nearly 32 million forgotten 401(k) accounts
Roughly $2.1 trillion in retirement savings sits in about 31.9 million 401(k) accounts whose owners have walked away from them. That money was not lost...
Retirement savers set a record, putting away 14.4% of pay into their 401(k)s
American workers funneled a record share of their paychecks into workplace retirement plans in early 2026, with the combined 401(k) savings rate reaching 14.4% —...
A pension’s survivor option decides whether your spouse keeps getting checks after you die
One decision at the moment a pension starts paying can quietly determine whether a surviving spouse keeps receiving income or watches it stop at the...
Original Medicare has no out-of-pocket maximum, so one serious illness can run up unlimited bills
Original Medicare, the government-run coverage that pays for hospital and doctor care, carries no ceiling on what a beneficiary can owe in a single year....
Medicare’s Part B “give-back” benefit refunds part of your premium through certain Advantage plans
A feature buried in some Medicare Advantage plans, the Part B “give-back,” quietly hands part of the standard Part B premium back to enrollees by...
Some states don’t tax Social Security, pensions or retirement income at all
Two retirees with identical pensions and Social Security checks can owe sharply different tax bills depending on nothing more than the state line they live...
Medicaid’s five-year lookback can penalize seniors who gave money away before applying for nursing-home care
Older Americans who hand money to their children, help a grandchild with a down payment, or sign the family home over to a relative sometimes...
A health savings account is the only account with three tax breaks, and 55-and-older savers can add an extra $1,000
A health savings account carries a tax advantage no other account can match: money goes in tax-deductible, grows tax-free, and comes out tax-free when spent...
After a spouse dies, the survivor can get hit with a “widow’s penalty” of higher taxes on a single return
The first tax year after a married retiree loses a spouse often brings an unwelcome surprise: the household’s income has barely moved, yet the federal...
Qualified charitable distributions let those 70½ and older give from an IRA and cut their tax bill
Retirees who have reached age 70½ can send money straight from a traditional IRA to charity and keep that amount off their taxable income entirely,...
A Roth IRA lets retirees withdraw money tax-free and skips required withdrawals for life
A Roth IRA gives retirees two advantages that no traditional retirement account matches at once: withdrawals that come out entirely tax-free when the rules are...
Retire mid-year and Social Security’s monthly earnings test lets you collect full checks even over the annual limit
A worker who earns a full salary through June and then retires can still collect a full Social Security check for July, August, and every...
Widows and widowers can switch between a survivor benefit and their own Social Security to claim the bigger check
A widow or widower sitting on two possible Social Security checks — one earned on a late spouse’s record, one on their own — does...
A spouse who never worked can still collect up to half of the other spouse’s Social Security
A person who never earned a paycheck, never paid Social Security taxes, and never built a work record of their own can still draw a...
Restarting student-loan collections can dock up to 15% of a retiree’s Social Security check
Up to 15 percent of a monthly Social Security check can be redirected to a defaulted federal student loan once the government switches collections back...
$750 a month is the most the government must leave you when it garnishes a Social Security check for old federal debts
Roughly $750 a month is the legal minimum the federal government must leave inside a Social Security check when it reaches into that check to...