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IRS Increases 401K Contribution Limits by $500 from January 1st 2018.

Posted on November 16, 2017 at 2:40 PM

IRS Increases 401K Contribution limits by $500 from January 1st 2018 What this means for you.

The IRS had announced sometime in October, that effective from January 1 2018, the contribution limit for Employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans and the Federal Government’s Thrift Savings Plan will be increased from $18,000 to $18,500.

This is surely a Big Deal. As we all know, this extra $500 can help us more than we may think and it could also mean up to $70,000 more in your retirement account, assuming you decide a retirement age of 67 for yourself and at a 6 percent annual rate of return.

This is also important to know, as we have only few weeks to the end of the Year and most of us have less than 3 Payroll Cycles to the end of 2017. We need to ensure that we are working towards reaching the limit of $18,000 for this Year and if you are over 50, try to ensure that your Payroll Company implements your catch-up contribution limit of $6,000. It’s been discovered that most time, they don’t implement it, unless you inform them.

If you have not been contributing the maximum amount to your 401(k), this IRS Announcement is a useful reminder to push your contribution rate higher. Even if you’re not saving that much, increasing your savings rate by a percentage point or two every year, and anytime you get a pay raise will make a Big Difference to you in Retirement.

In addition to this announcement, the income ranges for determining eligibility to make deductible contributions to traditional Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs), to contribute to Roth IRAs and to claim the saver’s credit is also increased for 2018.

Taxpayers can deduct contributions to a traditional IRA, if they meet certain conditions. If during the year either the taxpayer or their 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 their 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 2018:

For single taxpayers covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $63,000 to $73,000, up from $62,000 to $72,000.
For married couples filing jointly, where the spouse making the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan, the phase-out range is $101,000 to $121,000, up from $99,000 to $119,000.
For an IRA contributor who is not covered by a workplace retirement plan and is married to someone who is covered, the deduction is phased out if the couple’s income is between $189,000 and $199,000, up from $186,000 and $196,000.
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 $0 to $10,000.

Highlights of Limitations that Remain Unchanged for 2018:

The limit on annual contributions to an IRA remains unchanged at $5,500. The additional catch-up contribution limit for individuals aged 50 and over is not subject to an annual cost- of – living adjustment and remains $1,000.
The catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 and over who participate in 401K, 403(b), most 457 plans and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan remains unchanged at $6,000.

Please Note that If you don’t have a 401(k), there are other ways to put your money to work. Consider alternate retirement savings accounts, such as Roth IRA , Traditional IRA and/or Health Savings Account.

The IRS issued technical guidance detailing these items in Notice 2017-64

Categories: 2017 tax filing, 401K Contribution Limits, 401K Retirement, IRA, IRS, Payroll, Year End