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For tax year 2025, the regular employee contribution limit for most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans and the federal Thrift Savings Plan rose to $23,500. Eligible workers could add catch-up contributions, including a higher limit for people who attained age 60 through 63 during the year. A separate SECURE 2.0 rule generally began requiring automatic enrollment in certain newly established 401(k) and 403(b) plans for plan years starting after 2024. These are 2025 figures and rules; plan terms and statutory exceptions matter.
2025 retirement contribution limits at a glance
The limits below are federal ceilings for 2025, not recommended savings targets. For workplace plans, the plan must allow the relevant contribution type, and its terms and participant eligibility rules can affect what an individual may defer. The IRS announced the 2025 limits in its 2025 contribution-limit announcement.
| Account or contribution | 2025 limit | Who or what it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Regular employee deferrals | $23,500 | Most 401(k), 403(b), governmental 457 plans and the federal TSP; before catch-up contributions. |
| IRA contributions | $7,000 | Traditional and Roth IRA contributions share this annual limit across a person’s IRAs. |
| Ordinary workplace-plan catch-up | $7,500 | Generally available to eligible participants age 50 or older in most of the listed workplace plans, if the plan permits it. |
| IRA age-50 catch-up | $1,000 | Additional IRA contribution limit for people age 50 or older. |
| Higher workplace-plan catch-up at ages 60–63 | $11,250 | For an eligible participant who attains age 60, 61, 62 or 63 in 2025, in most covered workplace plans. |
| Higher SIMPLE-plan catch-up at ages 60–63 | $5,250 | For an eligible participant who attains age 60 through 63 in 2025 in a SIMPLE plan. |
The ages 60–63 amounts are special catch-up limits, not extra amounts to add on top of the ordinary age-50 catch-up. SIMPLE plans have separate limits. The IRS set out the 2025 catch-up figures in Notice 2024-80.
How the 2025 catch-up rules work
Ordinary age-50 catch-up
An eligible participant who was at least 50 could generally defer up to $7,500 beyond the regular workplace-plan limit in 2025, if the plan offered catch-up contributions. The IRA catch-up was different: people age 50 or older could contribute up to $1,000 above the $7,000 IRA limit, subject to the rules for their IRA contributions.
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Higher catch-up for ages 60 through 63
For a year in which a participant attained age 60, 61, 62 or 63, SECURE 2.0 provided a larger workplace-plan catch-up. In 2025 that ceiling was $11,250 for most covered plans and $5,250 for SIMPLE plans. The employer’s plan must permit catch-up contributions for the participant to use them. See IRS Notice 2024-80 for the applicable limits.
Roth treatment for some workplace-plan catch-ups
For 2025, the statutory wage threshold was $145,000 in prior-year FICA wages from the employer sponsoring the plan. A participant above that threshold who made catch-up contributions was subject to the rule requiring those catch-ups to be designated Roth contributions. This threshold refers to wages from the sponsoring employer, not household income. The threshold appears in IRS Notice 2024-80.
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The IRS’s final catch-up regulations were effective November 17, 2025, and generally apply to contributions in taxable years beginning after December 31, 2026. That general applicability date is later than the 2025 statutory wage threshold; consult the plan administrator about how the rule applies to a particular plan and contribution year. The final regulations are published in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2025-40, T.D. 10033.
Which plans had to add automatic enrollment?
For plan years beginning after December 31, 2024, SECURE 2.0 generally requires an eligible automatic contribution arrangement in 401(k) and 403(b) plans established after December 29, 2022. It is not a blanket requirement for every employer or every existing workplace plan. The law provides exceptions, including for certain small businesses, churches and governmental plans; new employers and plans established before the statutory date are treated differently as well. The IRS describes the rule and exceptions in Notice 2024-2.
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The IRS explains: “Automatic enrollment allows an employer to automatically deduct elective deferrals from an employee’s wages unless the employee makes an election not to contribute or to contribute a different amount.” Participants must have the opportunity to opt out or select a different contribution rate. The arrangement therefore sets a default, rather than removing the worker’s choice. See the IRS page on automatic enrollment.
What employers and participants should verify
- Employers should confirm when the plan was established, the plan year start date, whether an exception applies, and how the plan’s default and election procedures are implemented.
- Participants should check the plan notice and account elections to see whether a default contribution rate applies and how to opt out or change the rate.
- Automatic enrollment does not determine the participant’s best savings rate; that decision depends on personal circumstances and plan terms.
IRA limits and eligibility are not the same thing
The 2025 IRA contribution limit was $7,000 in total across a person’s traditional and Roth IRAs, or $8,000 when the $1,000 age-50 catch-up applied. A traditional IRA contribution is not automatically deductible, and income and other circumstances can limit eligibility to contribute to a Roth IRA or deduct a traditional IRA contribution. The IRS’s 2025 limit announcement provides the annual cap; individual eligibility requires applying the relevant IRA rules.
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Two selected Social Security changes for 2025
Not every retirement-related 2025 update concerns employer plans. The Social Security Administration announced a 2.5% cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security and SSI beneficiaries for 2025. The Social Security taxable maximum—the amount of earnings subject to Social Security tax—was $176,100 for 2025. These program figures are separate from 401(k), 403(b) and IRA contribution limits. Details are in the SSA’s 2025 COLA fact sheet.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How to apply these changes to your own situation
- Identify the account and tax year. Separate workplace-plan deferrals from IRA contributions, and use 2025 limits only for 2025 contributions.
- Check age and plan type. Determine whether the ordinary age-50 catch-up or the special age-60–63 amount may apply, and whether the plan permits it. SIMPLE plans have their own catch-up ceiling.
- Review plan materials. For automatic enrollment and Roth catch-ups, read the plan notice or contact the administrator to confirm how the rule operates in that plan.
- Check IRA eligibility separately. The annual limit does not by itself establish Roth IRA eligibility or traditional IRA deductibility.
The figures here cover selected federal changes relevant to workers, plan participants and employers; they are not a complete inventory of every federal, state, employer or individual-plan change for 2025. Plan documents and personal tax circumstances determine how the general rules apply.
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