403(b) Max Contribution 2026: Catch-Ups by Age and Total Cap

The 403(b) maximum contribution for 2026 is $24,500 from your own salary, up from $23,500 in 2025. If you’re 50 or older, you can add another $8,000. Participants who turn 60, 61, 62, or 63 during the year get a larger catch-up of $11,250 instead. Employer contributions stack on top of your deferrals, with a combined ceiling of $72,000 from all sources.¹

The $24,500 Employee Deferral Limit

The $24,500 base limit is set under Internal Revenue Code Section 402(g) and covers every dollar you contribute through payroll deductions in the calendar year, whether the money goes into a traditional pre-tax account or a designated Roth account inside the plan.¹

The limit follows you, not your employer. If you contribute to 403(b) plans at two different qualifying organizations, your combined deferrals across both cannot exceed $24,500.² The same aggregation applies if you contribute to both a 403(b) and a 401(k) in the same year. Payroll departments at separate employers don’t share this information, so tracking your running total is on you.

Catch-Up Contributions If You’re 50 or Older

If you turn 50 by December 31, 2026, you can contribute an additional $8,000 on top of the base limit, bringing your personal ceiling to $32,500. Reaching 50 at any point during the calendar year qualifies you for the full catch-up, whether your birthday is in January or in December. Most payroll systems apply this automatically once your date of birth is on file.

The Larger Catch-Up for Ages 60 Through 63

Under the SECURE 2.0 Act, participants who are 60, 61, 62, or 63 during 2026 get a higher catch-up of $11,250, replacing the standard $8,000 amount for that four-year window.³ Combined with the $24,500 base, that’s up to $35,750 from your salary. Once you turn 64, you go back to the regular $8,000 catch-up available to everyone 50 and older.

The 15-Year Service Catch-Up

Employees with at least 15 years of service for the same qualifying 403(b) employer — a public school system, hospital, home health service agency, health and welfare service agency, or church — can access an additional catch-up of up to $3,000 per year, capped at $15,000 over a lifetime.⁴ This is separate from the age-based catch-ups and stacks on top of them when a participant qualifies for both.

When you’re eligible for both this provision and an age-based catch-up, the IRS requires deferrals above $24,500 to count toward the 15-year catch-up first, then toward the age catch-up.² Not every plan offers this feature, so check your plan document before assuming it’s available.

Roth Requirement for High Earners

Starting in 2026, if you earned more than $145,000 in wages from your 403(b) employer during the prior calendar year, any catch-up contributions must go into a designated Roth account.⁵ The dollar amounts don’t change, but you lose the option to make those catch-ups on a pre-tax basis. This applies to both the age-50 catch-up and the ages 60–63 catch-up. Your base $24,500 in deferrals is unaffected and can still be pre-tax or Roth at your discretion.

The $145,000 threshold is indexed for inflation. If your plan doesn’t offer a Roth option at all, participants above the wage threshold cannot make catch-up contributions until the plan adds one. Confirm with your benefits office before the year starts.

The $72,000 Total Contribution Ceiling

Beyond your personal deferrals, the IRS caps the total amount flowing into your 403(b) from all sources — your salary deferrals, employer matching, and employer non-elective contributions — at $72,000 for 2026, or 100 percent of your includable compensation if that’s lower.³ Catch-up contributions, both age-based and 15-year, sit outside this limit and don’t count against it.

This ceiling matters most to employees whose employers make generous matching or non-elective contributions. If your employer contributes 10 percent of your $100,000 salary and you max your $24,500 deferral, the combined total is $34,500, well within the cap. For highly compensated employees at organizations with aggressive contribution formulas, the ceiling can become a real constraint. Your employer is responsible for monitoring the combined total, but verifying it yourself is smart practice.

Adding a 457(b) on Top

Many public-sector and nonprofit employees can participate in both a 403(b) and a governmental 457(b) plan. Contributions to a 457(b) are not aggregated with your 403(b) deferrals.⁶ Each plan carries its own separate deferral limit. A participant under 50 could defer $24,500 to a 403(b) and another $24,500 to a 457(b) in the same year, totaling $49,000 before any catch-ups. The 457(b) has its own catch-up rules that differ from the 403(b) side, so the specifics are plan-specific.

What Happens If You Go Over

If your total deferrals across all plans exceed the applicable limit, the excess gets taxed twice unless you correct it quickly. The excess is included in your gross income for the year you contributed it, and then taxed again when you eventually withdraw it, with no basis credit for the tax you already paid.⁷

To avoid this, request a distribution of the excess plus earnings by the due date of your tax return, typically April 15. Miss that deadline and the consequences worsen: all 403(b) contracts held by a participant exceeding the deferral limit can lose their tax-sheltered status entirely.⁸ The best defense is tracking your year-to-date deferrals yourself, especially if you contribute at more than one employer.

Quick Reference: Your 2026 Deferral Ceiling by Age

Under 50: $24,500 in salary deferrals; up to $72,000 from all sources combined
Age 50–59 or 64 and older: $32,500 ($24,500 base plus $8,000 catch-up)
Ages 60–63: $35,750 ($24,500 base plus $11,250 catch-up)
15-year service catch-up: up to $3,000 extra per year, $15,000 lifetime, stacking with age-based catch-ups when the plan allows
Earned more than $145,000 in 2025 wages from your 403(b) employer: catch-ups must be designated Roth

A participant age 60–63 with 15 years of qualifying service could theoretically defer up to $38,750 from salary in 2026 ($24,500 + $11,250 + $3,000), assuming the plan allows both catch-up types and the $15,000 lifetime cap hasn’t been used up.² Add a 457(b) and the numbers grow further.

1
Internal Revenue Service. 401(k) Limit Increases to $24,500 for 2026, IRA Limit Increases to $7,500
2
Internal Revenue Service. Retirement Topics – 403(b) Contribution Limits
3
Internal Revenue Service. IRS Notice 2025-67 – 2026 Amounts Relating to Retirement Plans and IRAs
4
Internal Revenue Service. 403(b) Plan Fix-It Guide – 15-Years of Service Catch-Up Contribution
5
eCFR. 26 CFR 1.414(v)-2 – Catch-Up Contributions Required to Be Designated Roth Contributions
6
Internal Revenue Service. How Much Salary Can You Defer if You’re Eligible for More Than One Retirement Plan
7
Internal Revenue Service. Consequences to a Participant Who Makes Excess Annual Salary Deferrals
8
Internal Revenue Service. 403(b) Plan Fix-It Guide – Elective Deferrals Exceeded Amounts Specified Under Law