What the credit is
The Retirement Savings Contributions Credit, the Saver's Credit, is a credit of 50, 20 or 10 percent of eligible retirement contributions, depending on adjusted gross income (AGI) and filing status. The IRS caps the contributions that count at $2,000 per person, $4,000 on a joint return, so the largest possible credit is $1,000, or $2,000 for a couple who each contribute. It comes on top of whatever the contribution itself does to taxable income: a deductible IRA contribution lowers AGI and earns the credit at the same time, and the guide 401(k) vs IRA vs Roth IRA covers the 2026 contribution limits the credit sits inside.
The 2026 income tiers
| Filing status | 50% of contributions, AGI up to | 20%, AGI up to | 10%, AGI up to | No credit above |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Married filing jointly | $48,500 | $52,500 | $80,500 | $80,500 |
| Head of household | $36,375 | $39,375 | $60,375 | $60,375 |
| Single, married filing separately, surviving spouse | $24,250 | $26,250 | $40,250 | $40,250 |
The figures are the section 25B limits in IRS Notice 2025-67 for taxable years beginning in 2026, and the IRS release on 2026 retirement limits gives the same top figures. The steps are cliffs, not slopes: a single filer with $24,250 of AGI gets 50 percent, and one with $24,251 gets 20 percent, so a deductible traditional IRA contribution that pulls AGI under a line can be worth far more than its face value.
Who qualifies
- Age 18 or older at the end of the year.
- Not claimed as a dependent on someone else's return.
- Not a student: the IRS counts you as a student if you were enrolled full time at a school, or in a full-time on-farm training course, during any part of five calendar months of the year.
- AGI under the limit for your filing status in the table.
- An eligible contribution during the year, listed below.
Contributions that count
| Counts | Does not count |
|---|---|
| Traditional and Roth IRA contributions | Rollover contributions |
| Elective deferrals to 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457(b), SARSEP and SIMPLE plans | |
| Voluntary after-tax contributions to qualified plans, including the Thrift Savings Plan, and to 403(b) plans | Contributions offset by recent distributions (below) |
| Contributions to a 501(c)(18)(D) plan | |
| Contributions to an ABLE account of which you are the designated beneficiary |
Form 8880 reduces the contributions that count by certain distributions you or your spouse took from a retirement plan, IRA or ABLE account in a window around the tax year, so money taken out and put back in does not earn the credit twice.
One filer, worked out
A single filer with $24,000 of AGI in 2026 puts $2,000 into a Roth IRA. The AGI is under $24,250, so the rate is 50 percent and the credit before limits is $1,000. The limit is the filer's tax: AGI less the $16,100 standard deduction is $7,900 of taxable income, all of it inside the 10 percent bracket, so the income tax is $790.
| Step | Amount |
|---|---|
| Eligible contribution (capped at $2,000) | $2,000 |
| Rate at $24,000 AGI, single | 50% |
| Credit before the tax liability limit | $1,000 |
| 2026 income tax on $7,900 taxable income | $790 |
| Credit actually allowed | $790 |
| Credit lost to the limit | $210 |
The limit is the credit's known weakness: the people in the 50 percent tier owe the least tax, so they rarely collect the full $1,000. Other nonrefundable credits compete for the same tax. The 401(k) calculator shows what the contribution itself grows into, and the retirement savings calculator what a yearly $2,000 becomes over a career.
2027: the Saver's Match
The IRS states that for the 2027 tax year the Saver's Match replaces the Saver's Credit for eligible retirement contributions; the credit remains available only for ABLE account contributions. Under the match, enacted in the SECURE 2.0 Act, the federal government matches up to 50 percent of what you contribute to an employer plan or IRA, up to $1,000 per person a year, and deposits it directly into your designated retirement account rather than reducing your tax, which removes the tax liability limit. You claim it by filing Form 8880-A with the 2027 return in 2028. The IRS gives the 2027 income limits at which the match ends as $35,500 for single filers, $53,250 for heads of household and $71,000 for married filing jointly, with the full match available up to $20,500, $30,750 and $41,000.
| Saver's Credit (through 2026) | Saver's Match (from 2027) | |
|---|---|---|
| Form | Form 8880 | Form 8880-A |
| Maximum | 50% of $2,000 = $1,000 per person | 50% match, up to $1,000 per person |
| Paid as | a credit against income tax, limited to tax owed | a deposit into your retirement account |
| Income limit, single | $40,250 (2026) | $35,500 (2027) |
| Income limit, joint | $80,500 (2026) | $71,000 (2027) |
This guide reports the 2026 figures in IRS Notice 2025-67 and the rules on the IRS pages cited; the Saver's Match rules are still being written into regulations, and the IRS page is the place to check them before filing the 2027 return.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Saver's Credit?
The Retirement Savings Contributions Credit, claimed on Form 8880: a tax credit of 50, 20 or 10 percent of up to $2,000 of contributions to an IRA, 401(k) or similar plan, $4,000 on a joint return, so a maximum credit of $1,000 or $2,000. The rate depends on adjusted gross income, and for 2026 the credit ends above $40,250 for single filers, $60,375 for heads of household and $80,500 for joint filers.
Who can claim the Saver's Credit?
Per the IRS: you must be age 18 or older, not claimed as a dependent on another person's return, and not a student, meaning not enrolled full time at a school or in an on-farm training course during any part of five calendar months of the year. Your AGI must be under the limit for your filing status, and you must have made an eligible contribution during the year.
Which contributions count?
Contributions to traditional and Roth IRAs; elective deferrals to 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457(b), SARSEP and SIMPLE plans; voluntary after-tax contributions to qualified plans including the Thrift Savings Plan and to 403(b) plans; contributions to a 501(c)(18)(D) plan; and contributions to an ABLE account of which you are the designated beneficiary. Rollover contributions do not qualify, and the IRS reduces eligible contributions by certain recent distributions from a plan, IRA or ABLE account.
Is the Saver's Credit refundable?
No. Form 8880 limits the credit to your tax liability, so a filer who owes no income tax after the standard deduction gets nothing from it, however large the contribution. That gap is one reason the credit is being replaced: the Saver's Match that takes over for 2027 is paid into the retirement account whether or not any tax is owed.
What replaces the Saver's Credit in 2027?
The Saver's Match. The IRS says that for the 2027 tax year the Saver's Match replaces the Saver's Credit for eligible retirement contributions, with the credit surviving only for ABLE account contributions. The federal government matches up to 50 percent of what you contribute, up to $1,000 a year, deposited directly into your designated retirement account; you claim it on Form 8880-A with the 2027 return filed in 2028. The 2027 income limits where the match ends are $35,500 single, $53,250 head of household and $71,000 married filing jointly.
Sources
- IRS: Retirement Savings Contributions Credit (Saver's Credit) (eligibility: age 18 or older, not a dependent, not a student; the contribution types that count; 50, 20 and 10 percent of up to $2,000, $4,000 joint; rollovers excluded; reduction for recent distributions; Form 8880)
- IRS Notice 2025-67, 2026 cost-of-living adjustments (the section 25B AGI limits for 2026: $48,500, $52,500 and $80,500 joint; $36,375, $39,375 and $60,375 head of household; $24,250, $26,250 and $40,250 all others)
- IRS news release: 401(k) limit increases to $24,500 for 2026, IRA limit increases to $7,500 (the Saver's Credit income limits of $80,500, $60,375 and $40,250 for 2026)
- IRS Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions (the $2,000 per person limit, the maximum credit of $1,000 or $2,000, the tax liability limit)
- IRS: Saver's Match (replaces the Saver's Credit for retirement contributions from tax year 2027; up to 50 percent, up to $1,000 a year, deposited into the retirement account; Form 8880-A in 2028; the 2027 income limits)
- IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32 (the 2026 single standard deduction of $16,100 and the 10 percent bracket to $12,400 used in the example)