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
Filing federal taxes is free through IRS Free File for incomes under about $84,000
Taxpayers earning under roughly $84,000 in adjusted gross income can file their federal returns at no cost through the IRS Free File program, a public-private...
A revocable living trust passes your home and accounts to heirs without the delay and cost of probate
Families who lose a loved one and then discover the home or bank accounts must pass through probate court face months of delays and mandatory...
$2,000 is the most an SSI recipient can keep in savings, frozen since 1989
Millions of Americans who receive Supplemental Security Income face a savings ceiling that has not changed in more than 36 years. The individual resource limit...
You can fund a 2026 IRA until the April 2027 tax deadline, not December 31
Millions of workers assume they must finish funding an Individual Retirement Account by December 31 to claim a deduction or lock in Roth contributions for...
Going without Medicare drug coverage adds a permanent penalty of about 1% for each month you skip it
Medicare beneficiaries who skip Part D prescription drug coverage for 63 days or more after their initial enrollment window closes face a permanent surcharge of...
When your hospital drops your Medicare Advantage plan, you pay out-of-network rates or must switch coverage for the next year
Medicare Advantage enrollees who lose access to their hospital mid-year face a hard choice: absorb higher out-of-network costs immediately or wait to switch plans during...
Checking your Social Security earnings record for errors can add hundreds a month to your check for life
A single missing year of wages on a Social Security earnings record can permanently reduce a retiree’s monthly check by hundreds of dollars. The Social...
Full retirement age finished its climb to 67 this year, and claiming at 62 now locks in a check about 30% smaller for life
Americans born in 1960 or later now confront the steepest early-claiming penalty in Social Security’s history. Full retirement age has completed its four-decade climb to...
Workers can now deduct part of their tip and overtime pay under the new tax law, which raised many spring refunds
Millions of tipped and overtime workers filing 2025 tax returns this spring are discovering larger refunds than expected, even though their paychecks looked the same...
Earn over $1,690 a month in 2026 and you can lose your Social Security disability benefits
People collecting Social Security Disability Insurance who earn more than $1,690 in any month during 2026 risk losing their benefits entirely. The Social Security Administration...
When a Medicare Advantage plan drops you, you get a guaranteed right to buy any Medigap policy
Seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans that exit their county or fail to renew contracts face an abrupt loss of coverage, but federal law gives...
$11,250 is the 401(k) catch-up limit for workers 60 to 63 in 2026, above the standard $8,000
Workers turning 60 to 63 in 2026 can defer up to $11,250 in catch-up contributions to their 401(k) plans, per the IRS. That figure sits...
Required withdrawals from retirement accounts now start at 73, giving savers an extra year of tax-deferred growth
Retirement savers born in 1951 or later gained an extra year before the IRS requires them to start pulling money out of tax-deferred accounts. Under...
Heirs can now inherit up to about $15 million tax-free after the estate-tax exemption was made permanent
Families with estates worth up to $15 million can now pass that wealth to heirs without owing a dollar in federal estate tax, after Congress...
$750 a month is the least the government must leave you when it garnishes Social Security for old student loans
Older Americans living on Social Security can lose a share of their monthly benefit when the federal government collects on defaulted student loans, but the...
Buyers of new U.S.-built cars can deduct up to $10,000 of auto-loan interest a year, even without itemizing
Millions of Americans who finance a new vehicle assembled in the United States can now subtract up to $10,000 in auto-loan interest from their taxable...
Lower-income workers can claim up to $1,000 back, $2,000 for couples, just for funding a retirement account
Millions of lower-income workers across the United States are leaving money on the table by not claiming a tax credit designed specifically to reward them...
$250,000 of home-sale profit stays tax-free, $500,000 for couples, a limit Congress hasn’t raised since 1997
Homeowners who sell their primary residence can shield up to $250,000 of profit from federal capital-gains tax, or $500,000 for qualifying married couples filing jointly....
Workers 50 and up earning over $150,000 must now make 401(k) catch-up contributions as after-tax Roth money
Starting in 2026, Americans age 50 and older who earned more than $150,000 in prior-year FICA wages from their plan sponsor will no longer have...
$24,500 is the 401(k) contribution limit in 2026, with an extra $8,000 for workers 50 and older
Workers saving for retirement through a 401(k) or similar employer plan can set aside up to $24,500 in 2026, a $1,000 increase over the prior...