Trump makes major change to retirement plans — and order could impact 56M Americans
WASHINGTON — President Trump has signed an executive order to create retirement accounts for tens of millions of workers who don’t currently have access to a 401(k) or another workplace plan.
“I promised to make the same types of retirement accounts enjoyed by federal employees available to all Americans, and that’s what we’re doing. It only seemed fair,” he said during the signing ceremony in the Oval Office.
Low-income earners without a retirement plan through their employer will receive a yearly federal matching contribution of up to $1,000 each, the president noted.
That designation applies to individuals making less than $35,500 annually, head of households making $53,250 per year, or couples making $71,000 each year jointly.
“This will be really revolutionary because they’ll be covered,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
“Nobody thought that was possible. For example, if a 25-year-old who is eligible for a Savers Match program invest just $165 a month under the matching federal contributions, they will have an estimated $465,000 in their account by the time they’re 65 years old,” he added.
“In other words, they’ll be rich. And there’s something awfully nice about that.”
About 56 million Americans lack access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan at work, according to Pew Research.
Those include gig workers such as Uber drivers, those who are self-employed like tradesmen as well as freelance and contract workers.
Small-business owners — such as those that run bodegas in the Big Apple — could also benefit.
At least 27 million are already eligible for the retirement plans — but not yet enrolled through a 2022 law that started the Saver’s Match program allowing for the matching contributions.
A report from the Joint Committee on Taxation in Congress previously projected the Saver’s Match will spend roughly $9.3 billion on those enrolled from 2027 to 2032.
The US Treasury Department will launch the website TrumpIRA.gov on Jan. 1, 2027, to begin fielding applications.
An earlier effort under former President Barack Obama, myRA, was eliminated by the 45th president in 2017.
The initiative comes as Trump touts his administration’s efforts to improve economic outcomes ahead of the 2026 midterms.
The Treasury is expected to start a messaging campaign in anticipation of the website launch in 2027.
Unlike Trump Accounts, the Treasury’s tax-advantaged savings plan for kids, the TrumpIRA proposal isn’t expected to partner with financial institutions and be entirely government-run.