President Donald Trump says he plans to introduce a new type of retirement account for workers who don’t have access to 401(k)s or other types of workplace plans.
“Half of working Americans still don’t have access to a retirement plan with matched employer contributions,” President Trump said in Tuesday’s State of the Union address. “To address this egregious disparity, I am announcing that next year, my administration will give America’s often forgotten workers access to the same kind of retirement benefits available to all federal employees. We will provide contributions of up to $1,000 each year to ensure every American can benefit from the rise in the stock market.”
It’s unclear exactly how President Trump’s plan will play out or what form it will ultimately take. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent suggested to reporters Tuesday that the bill could be passed through reconciliation, similar to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. There is currently no set timetable for the proposal to go into effect, although President Trump hinted it would be “next year.”
Meanwhile, about 40.6 million full-time workers in the U.S. are not enrolled in a retirement plan, and about 48.8 million are not receiving the benefit of an employer match, according to White House statistics.
If you fall into this bucket, financial experts say you don’t have to wait for President Trump’s proposed account to go into effect and can start saving for retirement in a tax-advantaged way and possibly get a matching contribution from the government. Here’s how to start saving now.
How to invest now if your workplace doesn’t have a retirement plan
Currently, tax-advantaged retirement investment options are limited for employees without access to workplace plans.
“It’s a pretty shallow bench,” says Douglas Bonepers, a certified financial planner and president of Born Fied Wealth in New York City. “Assuming you’re not self-employed or a business owner, you’re basically looking at individual retirement accounts.”
With a traditional IRA, your contributions are deducted from your taxable income as an advance payment, and you owe income taxes on the money you withdraw in retirement. Roth accounts work the other way around. Fund your account with money that you have already paid taxes on. In exchange for giving up immediate earnings, withdrawals are tax-free in retirement if you’re 59 1/2 or older and have held the account for five years.
In 2026, Roth account holders can make maximum contributions if their taxable income is less than $153,000. Eligibility will be phased out completely for people with incomes above $168,000.
This year, you can contribute up to $7,500 ($8,600 if you’re 50 or older) to a traditional or Roth IRA. The amount you can donate “pales in” compared to the limits on many workplace accounts, Bonepers said. Savers under age 50 can contribute up to $24,500 to a 401(k) in 2026.
Additionally, at least for now, workers cannot receive additional savings incentives through matching contributions and no additional cash outside of workplace-sponsored plans.
Some workers can already get a savings ‘match’
For the 2025 tax year, some workers may qualify for the Saver’s Credit. This is a tax break worth up to $1,000 per individual for those who contribute to retirement accounts. This credit is non-refundable. This means that you can only claim to offset unpaid taxes. To qualify for the full credit, your income must be less than $24,250 for single filers and $48,500 for married couples filing jointly. You can receive a portion of the deduction based on your income up to $40,250 for a single person and $80,500 for a married couple.
But since many low-income Americans don’t have to pay taxes and receive tax refunds, few claim them. Only about 5.7% of taxpayers claimed this deduction in 2021, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
This situation was scheduled to change in 2027 with the Sabers match. The Saver’s Match will be available to taxpayers who save in qualified retirement accounts, regardless of whether they owe a bill or expect a refund. This change is part of a 2022 law known as Secure 2.0.
For single taxpayers with adjusted gross income of $20,000 (or joint filers with up to $40,000), the government will match 50% of contributions up to $2,000 to qualified retirement accounts up to $1,000 annually. Single filers with incomes between $20,000 and $35,000 are eligible for reduced contributions.
In 2025, Morningstar’s retirement model predicted that Americans eligible for the match would see a 12% increase in their retirement assets.
It remains to be seen how Trump’s proposed retirement account matching program will fit in with Saver’s Match. Spencer Look, associate director of retirement research at Morningstar Retirement, said more permissive matching rules, such as a 100% match up to $1,000 instead of a 50% match up to $2,000, could give low-income savers or those who don’t have access to a workplace retirement account more of an incentive to save and increase compound interest on the cash in the account.
Additionally, adding a dedicated account to receive the government match could also create confusion for eligible taxpayers about how the funds are collected, Look said.
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