Since January 1, 2026, a person can open an ABLE account if their disability began before age 46. Until the end of 2025 the cutoff was age 26. The change comes from the ABLE Age Adjustment Act, section 124 of the SECURE 2.0 Act, which became law on December 29, 2022.
An ABLE account is a savings account for a person with a disability. Money in it grows free of federal tax when it is spent on disability expenses, and up to $100,000 of it does not count against Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
For most people with cerebral palsy, the new age rule opens no new door. CP begins before, during or soon after birth, so nearly every child and adult with CP already met the old age 26 test. What did change for them in 2026 is how much can go in, and the rules for workers.
“For most families living with cerebral palsy, the age change matters less than the money rules: a $20,000 yearly limit in 2026, and a permanent extra allowance for account owners who work.”
— Cerebral Palsy Center Editorial Team
Who qualifies
The account belongs to the person with the disability. A parent or other authorized person can open it on their behalf, and each person may have only one account at a time (IRS Publication 907). The medical test did not change in 2026, only the onset age. A person qualifies if they receive SSI or Social Security disability benefits for a disability that began before 46, or if a signed certification, backed by a doctor’s letter kept on file, states that the disability causes marked and severe limits and began before 46.
How much can go in
For 2026 the limit from all sources combined is $20,000, set by the IRS in Revenue Procedure 2025-32. That is $1,000 more than this year’s $19,000 gift tax exclusion, because the 2025 tax law known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act changed how the ABLE limit is figured.
Owners who work and have no employer retirement plan contributions that year can add their own pay under a rule called ABLE to Work: up to $15,650 more in 2026 ($19,550 in Alaska, $17,990 in Hawaii). The same 2025 law made that rule permanent.
SSI and Medicaid
SSI allows a single person $2,000 in countable resources, a limit unchanged since 1989. Social Security excludes the first $100,000 in an ABLE account from that count (POMS SI 01130.740). Above $100,000, SSI checks are suspended, not ended, and Medicaid continues. Money withdrawn for rent and still in the bank the next month counts as a resource. When the owner dies, a state may claim what is left to repay Medicaid for care paid after the account opened, though The Arc reports several states have chosen not to.
Trusts and settlements
A special needs trust also protects benefits, with no yearly cap and no age rule, but a trustee controls spending. An ABLE account is cheaper and lets the owner spend directly. Special needs attorneys writing for the ABLE National Resource Center describe families using both, with the trust feeding the ABLE account for rent and daily costs. The yearly cap is why an ABLE account alone rarely fits a large birth injury recovery; see how cerebral palsy settlement money reaches a family. This is general information, not legal or tax advice. A special needs attorney or benefits planner can review a family’s own situation.
