Tax Planning · 8 min read
The $11,250 Super Catch-Up: How Ages 60 to 63 Get the Largest 401(k) Allowance in 2026
The 2026 401(k) employee limit is $24,500 under IRS Notice 2025-67. Savers 50 and older can add an $8,000 catch-up, for $32,500, and savers who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 during the year can add $11,250 instead, for $35,750. From 2026, higher earners must make catch-ups as Roth contributions.
Each November the IRS publishes the next year’s retirement plan limits. The number that gets the attention is the headline deferral limit, $24,500 for a 401(k) in 2026. A less-noticed line gives savers who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 during the year a catch-up allowance of $11,250, often called the super catch-up. It covers four calendar years, and for many households those are the last full-salary years before retirement, when saving capacity tends to be highest.
What follows is educational. Whether a specific plan offers these contributions, and how they fit a household’s taxes, should be confirmed with the plan administrator and a tax professional.
What the Catch-Up Question Is Really Asking
“How much can I put in?” has a precise answer, laid out below. The more useful questions sit behind it. Can the household afford to defer that much from four years of paychecks without starving other goals? Should the extra dollars go in pre-tax or as Roth? And how do contributions in the early 60s affect taxes, Medicare premiums and the withdrawal plan a few years later?
The limits set the size of the container. What goes into it, and in which tax treatment, is a planning decision.
The 2026 Limits in One Table
Every figure below is from IRS Notice 2025-67, the annual cost-of-living notice published in November 2025, and the IRS catch-up contribution page. (IRS, Retirement topics: catch-up contributions)
| Limit | 2026 amount | Who it applies to |
|---|---|---|
| 401(k), 403(b) and governmental 457(b) employee deferral | $24,500 | Anyone eligible for the plan |
| Standard catch-up | +$8,000 | Age 50 and older |
| Super catch-up, in place of the $8,000 | +$11,250 | Those who turn 60, 61, 62 or 63 during 2026 |
| SIMPLE IRA or SIMPLE 401(k) deferral | $17,000 | Anyone eligible for the plan |
| SIMPLE catch-up (standard / ages 60–63) | +$4,000 / +$5,250 | Age 50 and older / ages 60–63 |
| IRA contribution | $7,500 | Anyone with earned income |
| IRA catch-up | +$1,100 | Age 50 and older |
Adding a 401(k) and an IRA together, the personal ceilings are:
| Age during 2026 | 401(k) employee maximum | IRA maximum | Combined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 50 | $24,500 | $7,500 | $32,000 |
| 50 to 59 | $32,500 | $8,600 | $41,100 |
| 60 to 63 | $35,750 | $8,600 | $44,350 |
| 64 and older | $32,500 | $8,600 | $41,100 |
The super catch-up replaces the standard catch-up; the two do not stack. The 401(k) ceiling at 60 to 63 is $24,500 + $11,250 = $35,750, not $24,500 + $8,000 + $11,250.
How the Age Band Works
SECURE 2.0 set the super catch-up at the greater of $10,000 or 150 percent of the 2024 standard catch-up, which was $7,500. That produces $11,250, indexed for inflation after 2025. (26 U.S.C. §414(v)) For 2026 the notice states that the amount “remains $11,250,” so it did not move this year even though the standard catch-up rose from $7,500 to $8,000. (IRS Notice 2025-67) The super catch-up is about 40 percent larger than the standard one.
The age test looks at the age a person reaches during the calendar year, not the age on January 1:
| Born in | Age reached in 2026 | 2026 catch-up |
|---|---|---|
| 1967 | 59 | $8,000 |
| 1966 | 60 | $11,250 |
| 1963 | 63 | $11,250 |
| 1962 | 64 | $8,000 |
Someone turning 60 on December 31, 2026 has the full $11,250 for all of 2026. Someone turning 64 in January 2026 is back to $8,000. The window is exactly four calendar years.
Two structural points complete the picture. First, catch-ups are optional plan features: the IRS describes them as contributions a plan “may” permit, so the plan’s own documents decide whether the super catch-up is available. (IRS, Retirement topics: catch-up contributions) Second, catch-up contributions are not counted against the overall defined-contribution limit, which is $72,000 for 2026 and covers employee deferrals plus all employer contributions. (26 U.S.C. §414(v); IRS Notice 2025-67) A 62-year-old with a generous employer could, in principle, see $72,000 + $11,250 = $83,250 added in one year.
Eligibility turns on the age reached by December 31. A December birthday counts for the whole year.
The Roth Catch-Up Rule for Higher Earners
A second SECURE 2.0 change takes effect in the same year. Starting in 2026, in plans with a Roth feature, an employee whose prior-year wages from the plan sponsor exceeded $150,000 must make all catch-up contributions as Roth: after-tax dollars in, and qualified withdrawals tax-free. (IRS, Retirement topics: catch-up contributions) The $150,000 threshold for 2026 is set in Notice 2025-67 and applies to 2025 wages. (IRS Notice 2025-67) It covers 401(k), 403(b) and governmental 457(b) plans, not SEP or SIMPLE arrangements.
Treasury and the IRS issued final regulations in September 2025. They generally apply to contributions in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026, and for earlier years plans may follow “a reasonable, good faith interpretation” of the statute. (IRS, Final regulations on the Roth catch-up rule (IR-2025-91))
In practice, affected employees lose the current-year deduction on catch-up dollars but keep the contribution room. The dollars still go in and still grow; they simply come out tax-free later instead of being deducted now. Employees at or below the threshold keep the choice between pre-tax and Roth.
A Hypothetical Household, Worked Through
This illustration is hypothetical and simplified. It uses 2026 figures, assumes the plan offers the super catch-up and a Roth option, ignores state tax and employer contributions, and is not a recommendation for any household.
Two colleagues at the same company both turn 62 in 2026 and both contribute the $35,750 maximum.
| Colleague A | Colleague B | |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 wages from this employer | $120,000 | $210,000 |
| Assumed federal marginal rate | 22% | 24% |
| Base deferral ($24,500) | Pre-tax or Roth, by choice | Pre-tax or Roth, by choice |
| Catch-up ($11,250) | Pre-tax or Roth, by choice | Must be Roth |
| Current-year tax reduction if all eligible dollars go in pre-tax | $35,750 × 22% = $7,865 | $24,500 × 24% = $5,880 |
Colleague B gives up $11,250 × 24% = $2,700 of current-year deduction on the catch-up. In return, that $11,250 and its growth can later come out tax-free. Whether that trade helps or hurts depends on B’s tax rate in retirement.
Over the full window the extra room adds up. Four years at $11,250 is $45,000 of catch-up capacity, against $32,000 at the standard $8,000, a difference of $13,000 before future inflation adjustments.
Both colleagues can save the same $35,750. The rule changes the tax treatment of $11,250 of it for the higher earner, not the amount either one can contribute.
How We Approach This in a Plan
We treat the four super catch-up years as part of the transition into retirement, not a separate savings decision.
- Pre-tax or Roth. A pre-tax deferral trades today’s bracket for the bracket at withdrawal, the mirror image of the math in Roth conversions: when they pay off. Knowing where the 12 percent bracket ends helps estimate the later rate.
- Medicare premiums. Income-related Medicare premiums generally look back two years, so income at 63 helps set premiums at 65. (20 CFR §418.1135) Pre-tax deferrals lower that income; Roth contributions do not. The thresholds are in our guide to the IRMAA cliff.
- Roth timing. Roth catch-ups start or add to a plan’s own five-year clock and later roll to a Roth IRA under its rules, covered in the two Roth five-year clocks. Roth 401(k) balances also carry no lifetime RMDs.
- Cash flow and the exit. Deferring $35,750 competes with other uses of the same paychecks, including bridging health coverage to Medicare. For those leaving work at 55 or later, the rule of 55 can shape which account funds the first years.
Questions Worth Answering Before You Decide
- Does the plan document permit catch-up contributions, including the ages 60 to 63 amount?
- Were last year’s wages from this employer above $150,000, and does the plan offer Roth contributions?
- Which calendar years will each spouse be 60 through 63?
- Is the expected tax rate in retirement higher or lower than today’s?
- How would lower or higher income at 63 affect Medicare premiums at 65?
- Can the household fund the larger deferral while keeping cash for the transition?
What This Does Not Mean
- It does not mean everyone should contribute the maximum. A limit is a ceiling, not a target.
- It does not mean the catch-ups stack. The $11,250 replaces the $8,000 in the years it applies.
- It does not mean the Roth rule reduces savings. It changes the tax treatment of catch-up dollars for higher earners, not the amount they can save.
- It is not personalized advice. Contribution and tax decisions belong with a professional who can see the full picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is the 401(k) contribution limit for 2026?
$24,500 of employee deferrals. Savers 50 and older can add $8,000, for $32,500, and savers who turn 60 through 63 during 2026 can add $11,250 instead, for $35,750, under IRS Notice 2025-67.
Q: Does the $11,250 stack on top of the $8,000 catch-up?
No. It replaces the standard catch-up in the years it applies, so the 401(k) employee ceiling at ages 60 to 63 is $24,500 + $11,250 = $35,750.
Q: What happens in the year I turn 64?
The super catch-up no longer applies, and the standard age-50 catch-up, $8,000 for 2026, becomes the allowance again.
Q: Who must make catch-up contributions as Roth in 2026?
Employees in plans with a Roth feature whose 2025 wages from the plan sponsor exceeded $150,000. Employees at or below that level keep the choice. SEP and SIMPLE plans are not covered by the rule.
Q: Is there a super catch-up for SIMPLE plans?
Yes. For 2026 the SIMPLE catch-up is $4,000 at 50 and older and $5,250 for those who turn 60 through 63 during the year, on top of the $17,000 SIMPLE deferral limit.
Q: Does my plan have to offer the super catch-up?
No. Catch-up contributions are a feature a plan may permit, so the plan’s summary plan description or administrator is the place to confirm it.
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The views and opinions expressed here are those of The Financial Sciences Company as of the publish date and are provided for informational and educational purposes only. They are not personalized investment, tax, or legal advice. The Financial Sciences Company, LLC is a registered investment adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Additional information is available in our Form ADV at adviserinfo.sec.gov.
General educational information, current as of 2026. Figures and rules change. For guidance specific to your situation, speak with a qualified professional.