Nov 18, 2025

IRS Makes Retirement Plan Changes for 2026

As it does every year, the IRS has announced a variety of changes to retirement plans. In brief, it has raised the limits on how much savers can put away, but there are many other adjustments. Read through for a summary of the key provisions.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued a release explaining changes in retirement plan limits for 2026. Below is a summary of this release. The provisions can be complex, so current and prospective plan participants should work with a financial professional.

Highlights of changes for 2026

The annual contribution limit for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased to $24,500, up from $23,500 for 2025.

The limit on annual contributions to an IRA is increased to $7,500 from $7,000. The IRA catch‑up contribution limit for individuals aged 50 and over was amended under the SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0) to include an annual cost‑of‑living adjustment is increased to $1,100, up from $1,000 for 2025.

The catch-up contribution limit that generally applies for employees aged 50 and over who participate in most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased to $8,000, up from $7,500 for 2025. Therefore, participants in most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan who are 50 and older generally can contribute up to $32,500 each year, starting in 2026.

Under a change made in SECURE 2.0, a higher catch-up contribution limit applies for employees aged 60, 61, 62 and 63 who participate in these plans. For 2026, this higher catch-up contribution limit remains $11,250 instead of the $8,000 noted above.

The income ranges for determining eligibility to make deductible contributions to traditional Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), to contribute to Roth IRAs and to claim the Saver’s Credit all increased for 2026.

Taxpayers can deduct contributions to a traditional IRA if they meet certain conditions. If during the year either the taxpayer or the taxpayer’s spouse was covered by a retirement plan at work, the deduction may be reduced, or phased out, until it is eliminated, depending on filing status and income. (If neither the taxpayer nor the spouse is covered by a retirement plan at work, the phase-outs of the deduction do not apply.) Here are the phase‑out ranges for 2026:

• For single taxpayers covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is increased to between $81,000 and $91,000, up from between $79,000 and $89,000 for 2025.
• For married couples filing jointly, if the spouse making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is increased to between $129,000 and $149,000, up from between $126,000 and $146,000 for 2025.
• For an IRA contributor who is not covered by a workplace retirement plan and is married to someone who is covered, the phase-out range is increased to between $242,000 and $252,000, up from between $236,000 and $246,000 for 2025.
• For a married individual filing a separate return who is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is not subject to an annual cost-of-living adjustment and remains between $0 and $10,000.

Again, this is just a summary of a series of complex rules, so work with a financial professional.

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