It's A New Year - New Tax Rules

And here’s a bit of what you should be aware of for your 2024 financial planning.

Tax-free Gifts—You and your spouse can each make gifts of up to $18,000 tax-free in 2024, increased from $17,000 in 2023.**

Overfunded 529 College Savings Plans— Starting this year, you may roll over unused 529 Plan assets to a Roth IRA for your child’s or grandchild’s benefit. The plan must have been created at least 15 years before the rollover. The maximum amount that may be rolled over each year is the lesser of the annual IRA contribution limit or the child/grandchild’s earned income.*

Alternative Minimum Tax—Depending on income, you must calculate any AMT you might owe (at 26% or 28%) if your adjusted gross income (AGI) exceeds the ATM exemption level. You must pay that tax or your regular income tax, whichever is more. For 2024, exemption levels are increased to $133,300 (joint filers) and $85,700 (single) from $126,500 and $81.300 in 2023.**

NOTE: The numbers are the base exemption where the AMT becomes applicable, not where the 28% rate kicks in.

Social Security—This year, you’ll be paying a 6.2% social security tax on up to $168,600. of your earned income, increased from $160,200 in 2023. You’ll pay the 1.4% Medicare tax on all earned income, and an extra .9% tax is applied to earnings above $250,000 (joint filer), $125,000 (single), and $200,000 (other filing statuses). Also for retirees, Social Security benefits will be going up by 3.2%, with an increased top benefit of $45,864, which could mean more of your benefits will be subject to income tax.

HNW individuals work as hard to transfer wealth as they do creating it

* Additional requirements may apply. Discuss 529 tax rules with your tax professional. ** As estimated using US Bureau of Labor Statistics at the time of publication (Bloomberg Tax)