When to Start Making Catch-Up Retirement Contributions
Supercharge your nest egg by upping your savings in the year you turn 50.
I turn 50 in January. Can I make a catch-up contribution to my IRA for 2014, after my birthday, because I’ll be 50 before the April 15 deadline? Or do I have to wait until 2015 to start catch-up contributions?
That’s a good question. You have to be 50 by December 31 to make a catch-up contribution for 2014, so you will have to wait until 2015 to make your first catch-up contribution. But you can make the contribution as early as January 1, even if it’s before your birthday.
Catch-up contribution amounts have not yet been set for 2015, but people who are 50 or older in 2014 may contribute an extra $1,000 to their IRAs (bringing their total contribution limit to $6,500) and an extra $5,500 to 401(k)s, 403(b)s and other employer plans (bringing their totals to $23,000). These amounts are usually indexed for inflation every few years.
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As the "Ask Kim" columnist for Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Lankford receives hundreds of personal finance questions from readers every month. She is the author of Rescue Your Financial Life (McGraw-Hill, 2003), The Insurance Maze: How You Can Save Money on Insurance -- and Still Get the Coverage You Need (Kaplan, 2006), Kiplinger's Ask Kim for Money Smart Solutions (Kaplan, 2007) and The Kiplinger/BBB Personal Finance Guide for Military Families. She is frequently featured as a financial expert on television and radio, including NBC's Today Show, CNN, CNBC and National Public Radio.
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