IRA, 401(k), Roth & Qualified Retirement Accounts 2026 Rules • RMDs • Roth Conversions • Retirement Income Planning
Retirement accounts can look simple while you are accumulating money. The decisions become more important as retirement approaches: when to take income, what becomes taxable, when distributions are required, whether Roth strategies make sense, and what happens to the account after your death.
You do not need to memorize every retirement rule. You should understand the rules that can affect your income, taxes, flexibility and beneficiaries before a deadline or life event forces the decision.
Three facts worth knowing
1. Retirement accounts are not all taxed the same.
Traditional retirement accounts generally defer taxation until money is distributed. Roth accounts use after-tax dollars and can provide tax-free qualified withdrawals when applicable requirements are satisfied.
2. Distribution rules matter.
Required Minimum Distributions can create taxable income whether or not you actually need the money. Timing can matter.
3. Earlier planning generally means more choices.
Roth conversions, income planning, charitable distributions, beneficiary planning and guaranteed-income strategies are easier to evaluate before an urgent decision is required.
How much can you contribute?
401(k), 403(b), TSP & Governmental 457
$24,5002026 employee elective-deferral limit.
General age 50+ catch-up: $8,000.
Ages 60–63: special catch-up limit of $11,250.
Traditional & Roth IRA
$7,500Combined 2026 annual IRA contribution limit.
Age 50+ catch-up: $1,100.
Maximum at age 50+: $8,600.
SEP
$72,000Maximum 2026 contribution, subject to applicable compensation and percentage limitations.
SIMPLE
$17,000General 2026 employee salary-reduction limit.
General age 50+ catch-up: $4,000.
Ages 60–63: $5,250 special catch-up.
Certain SIMPLE plans may qualify for higher limits. Employer-plan provisions and individual circumstances can affect permitted contributions.
Several retirement rules changed
Higher contribution limits
The employee elective-deferral limit for most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans and the TSP is $24,500 for 2026.
The IRA contribution limit is $7,500.
New Roth catch-up requirement
Beginning in 2026, participants whose prior-year FICA wages from the employer sponsoring the plan exceeded $150,000 generally must make applicable catch-up contributions on a Roth basis when the plan is subject to the rule.
Enhanced catch-up at ages 60–63
Participants who attain age 60, 61, 62 or 63 during 2026 can have a catch-up limit of $11,250 in most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans and the TSP.
Annual limits continue to move
Many retirement-plan contribution limits and tax thresholds are indexed for inflation. Numbers used in an older retirement strategy may already be outdated.
RMD rules today — and what is coming
For many people currently approaching Required Minimum Distributions, the applicable starting age is 73.
Under current law, the applicable RMD age becomes 75 for later cohorts. The age-75 provision applies to individuals who attain age 74 after December 31, 2032.
- Traditional IRAs, SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs are generally subject to lifetime RMD rules.
- Roth IRAs do not require lifetime RMDs from the original owner.
- Designated Roth accounts in employer plans also no longer require lifetime RMDs from the original owner.
- Participants in some workplace retirement plans may be able to delay RMDs until retirement.
- Different rules apply to 5% owners.
Tax-free later can require a taxable decision today
2026 Roth IRA contributions
The combined Traditional and Roth IRA contribution limit is $7,500, or $8,600 for someone age 50 or older.
Direct Roth IRA contribution eligibility phases out in 2026 at:
- $153,000–$168,000 of modified AGI for single and head-of-household filers.
- $242,000–$252,000 for married couples filing jointly.
Roth conversions
The income limitations that restrict direct Roth IRA contributions do not themselves prohibit an otherwise permitted Roth conversion.
The taxable portion converted is generally included in income for the year of conversion.
Existing after-tax IRA basis can affect the result under the pro-rata rules, so conversions should be coordinated with a qualified tax professional.
What happened to the “Stretch IRA”?
Before the SECURE Act, many non-spouse beneficiaries could “stretch” distributions from an inherited IRA over their own life expectancy, potentially allowing tax-deferred growth to continue for decades.
For most non-spouse beneficiaries, that lifetime stretch is no longer available.
For many designated beneficiaries inheriting retirement accounts from owners who died after 2019, the account must generally be completely distributed by the end of the 10th calendar year following the owner's death.
The 10-year rule
Many non-spouse beneficiaries must empty the inherited retirement account within ten years.
Depending on when the original owner died relative to the owner's required beginning date, distributions may also be required during the ten-year period.
Important exceptions
Different distribution rules may apply to certain eligible designated beneficiaries, including:
- A surviving spouse
- A minor child of the deceased account owner
- A disabled individual
- A chronically ill individual
- Certain beneficiaries not more than 10 years younger than the original owner
Why this matters for legacy planning
The disappearance of the traditional lifetime Stretch IRA for many beneficiaries changed the tax-planning conversation. Beneficiary designations, Roth assets, life insurance, charitable planning and other legacy strategies may deserve review before the account owner dies — not afterward.
RMDs are a tax rule. Retirement income is a planning decision.
Qualified Charitable Distributions
Eligible IRA owners age 70½ or older may be able to make qualified charitable distributions directly from an IRA.
The 2026 annual QCD exclusion limit is $111,000.
A properly completed QCD can count toward an IRA owner's RMD for the year.
QLACs
A Qualified Longevity Annuity Contract can use eligible retirement assets to establish contractual income beginning later in life.
The 2026 QLAC premium limitation is $210,000.
Before payments begin, qualifying QLAC value can be excluded from the account balance used for certain RMD calculations.
Annuity Income
Annuities can be used to convert a portion of retirement assets into contractual retirement income.
Special distribution and RMD rules can apply when qualified retirement assets are annuitized.
Guarantees are subject to the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. Liquidity, surrender provisions, fees and beneficiary provisions should be reviewed.
Questions worth answering first
When will I actually need income?
Required distributions and the income needed to maintain your lifestyle are not necessarily the same amount or needed at the same time.
Which dollars will be taxable?
Traditional, Roth and after-tax assets can produce very different tax results during retirement.
What happens to what I do not spend?
Beneficiary designations, inherited-account rules and legacy objectives should be considered before major distribution decisions are made.
Retirement rules continue to evolve
- The applicable RMD age eventually moves from 73 to 75 for later cohorts under current law.
- Contribution limits and many tax thresholds can change annually with inflation adjustments.
- Beneficiary rules have become substantially more complex since the SECURE Act.
- Roth treatment has become increasingly important within employer retirement plans.
The objective is not to predict every future tax law. It is to maintain enough awareness and flexibility that a change in the rules does not become a retirement emergency.
Know what your retirement accounts need to do before you need them to do it.
TUSK can help you organize your retirement accounts, identify the issues worth discussing, and explore retirement-income, protection and legacy considerations alongside your tax and legal professionals.