What is the employer benefit worth to you?
How employer Trump Account contributions work
Under new Section 128 of the tax code, an employer can adopt a written Trump Account contribution program and contribute up to $2,500 per year (indexed to inflation after 2027) to the Trump Account of an employee or of the employee's dependent child.
The three things that make this unusually good
- It's excluded from your income. A $2,500 contribution doesn't show up in your taxable wages. At a 22% marginal rate, getting the same $2,500 into the account from your own paycheck would require roughly $3,205 of pre-tax salary.
- It stacks with the federal seed. The $1,000 pilot contribution and employer dollars can both flow into the same account.
- It counts toward — not on top of — the $5,000 cap. If your employer puts in $2,500, you and family can add up to $2,500 more that year.
If you're an employee
Ask HR whether a Trump Account contribution program is planned. Benefits teams began evaluating these programs after the IRS released Notice 2025-68 in December 2025. If your employer offers nothing yet, forwarding the IRS guidance is a low-effort nudge — the benefit is inexpensive for employers relative to its perceived value.
If you're an employer
A Trump Account program is a recruiting-friendly family benefit with a clear cost ceiling ($2,500/employee/year). It requires a written plan that doesn't discriminate in favor of highly compensated employees, similar in spirit to other Section 125/127-style benefit programs. Treasury has indicated further regulations are coming, so most employers are coordinating with payroll providers and benefits counsel before launching.
Curious what the full account could grow to with employer help? Run the main calculator with the employer slider turned on.