Improving Retirement Security for Family Caregivers Act of 2026

Key Points

• This bill allows family caregivers who don't have traditional jobs to contribute to a Roth IRA retirement account. Normally, you need earned income from a job to put money into an IRA, but this change removes that barrier for qualifying caregivers.
• To qualify, a person must spend at least 500 hours a year as an unpaid caregiver and work fewer than 500 hours at a paid job during that same year. This targets people who have largely stepped away from the workforce to care for loved ones.
• The bill covers a wide range of caregiving tasks, including bathing, grooming, cooking, cleaning, managing medications, transportation, and mobility assistance. This broad definition ensures many types of family caregiving count toward the 500-hour requirement.
• Eligible caregivers could contribute the same maximum amount to a Roth IRA as workers with regular jobs. This means they could save up to the standard IRA contribution limit each year, helping close the retirement savings gap that caregivers often face.
• The new rules would take effect for the 2026 tax year if the bill is passed and signed into law. Senators Collins and Warner introduced the bill, which was referred to the Senate Finance Committee.

Votes

No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.