Trump Account Growth
Calculator 2026

US-citizen children born between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2028 who have a Social Security number qualify for the one-time $1,000 federal seed deposit under IRC §530A (created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, P.L. 119-21, signed July 4, 2025). Both the child and (per Treasury guidance) at least one parent must have a work-eligible SSN. There is no income test — the seed is not means-tested, so high- and low-income families receive the same $1,000. Children born outside the 2025-2028 window can still have a Trump Account opened for them (any child under 18 with an SSN), but they do NOT receive the federal seed — the account starts at $0 and grows only from family and employer contributions. The seed is deposited by the Treasury into an S&P 500 index fund and does not count against the $5,000 annual contribution cap. Source: IRC §530A, Treasury/IRS guidance July 2026, trumpaccounts.gov.

Largely yes for eligible births. Treasury auto-enrolls eligible children (born 2025-2028, US citizen, with SSN) based on tax-return data — when parents claim the child as a dependent on their federal return, the IRS identifies the child and the Treasury opens an account and deposits the $1,000 seed. Parents who want the account sooner, whose child was not claimed on a return, or who want to add their own contributions can register directly at trumpaccounts.gov (portal opened with the July 4, 2026 launch). Parents can also opt out. Practical timing note: a child born in 2025 whose parents filed their 2025 return in early 2026 would typically see the account opened and seeded during 2026. If you believe your child qualifies and no account appears, check trumpaccounts.gov — auto-enrollment depends on the SSN and citizenship data matching IRS records. Source: Treasury/IRS Trump Account guidance and launch materials, July 2026.

Yes. Any US child under age 18 with a Social Security number may have a Trump Account opened for them — the 2025-2028 birth-year window only controls who receives the $1,000 federal seed, not who can have an account. A child born in 2020, for example, can have an account opened in 2026 (starting at $0) and receive family contributions up to $5,000 a year plus employer contributions within that cap until the year they turn 18. The trade-off is runway: a child born in 2008 turns 18 in 2026 and has essentially no contribution window left, while a 2020-born child has about 12 contribution years. Because the account locks money until 18, converts to a traditional IRA and taxes earnings as ordinary income on withdrawal, families of older, seed-ineligible children should compare it carefully against a 529 (for education goals) or a custodial Roth IRA once the child has earned income. Source: IRC §530A; CRS Report R48910.

Mechanics, not advice: they solve different problems. A 529 wins for education — qualified withdrawals (tuition, room and board, books, K-12 tuition up to $10k/yr, apprenticeships) are 100% federally tax-FREE, many states add a deduction, there is no federal annual cap (gift-tax annual exclusion $19,000 in 2026, superfunding $95,000 single / $190,000 MFJ over 5 years), and SECURE 2.0 allows up to $35,000 of leftover 529 money to roll to the beneficiary's Roth IRA. A Trump Account wins on the free money and universality: a $1,000 federal seed for 2025-2028 births, up to $2,500/yr of employer money excluded from income, and no restriction on what the money is eventually used for — but growth is only tax-DEFERRED, withdrawals of earnings/seed/employer money are taxed as ordinary income (plus 10% penalty before 59½ unless an IRA exception applies), and contributions are capped at $5,000/yr. Many families take the free seed + employer match in the Trump Account and direct their own dollars to a 529 for education goals. Source: IRC §529 and §530A.

No withdrawals at all are allowed before January 1 of the calendar year in which the child turns 18 — the account is fully locked during childhood (IRC §530A). On that January 1 the account is treated as a traditional IRA, and standard IRA distribution rules take over: the beneficiary CAN withdraw at 18, but earnings, the $1,000 seed and any employer contributions are taxed as ordinary income plus a 10% early-withdrawal penalty before age 59½. The penalty (not the tax) is waived for standard IRA exceptions: qualified higher-education expenses, first-time home purchase (up to $10,000 lifetime), birth or adoption (up to $5,000), disability, terminal illness, and certain medical costs. Money left invested keeps growing tax-deferred to retirement — that is where the Treasury's ~$243,000-at-55 projection for the seed alone comes from. One planning angle: an 18-year-old student with little income can convert to a Roth IRA at a very low tax cost. Source: IRC §530A; IRS traditional IRA rules (Pub 590-B).

Trump Accounts follow traditional-IRA taxation once they convert on January 1 of the year the child turns 18 (an earlier draft with capital-gains treatment was dropped from the final OBBBA). During childhood, growth compounds tax-deferred — no annual tax on dividends or gains. At withdrawal: (1) private after-tax contributions from parents, family or the child form BASIS and come out federal-tax-free; (2) the $1,000 federal seed, employer contributions and all investment earnings do NOT create basis and are taxed as ordinary income at the beneficiary's marginal rate — not the lower long-term capital-gains rate; (3) a 10% additional penalty applies to the taxable portion before age 59½ unless an IRA exception applies (education, first home $10k, birth/adoption $5k, disability, medical). Employer contributions (up to $2,500/yr) are excluded from the employee's income going in, which is why they are taxable coming out. Contributions are never federally deductible. Source: IRC §530A; IRS Notice 2025-68; CRS R48910.